Peru travel

Twice in my life I have spent several days off the grid in Peru, slogging up and down the Andes Mountains on the way to Machu Picchu. Once I did it on the Inca Trail, another time on the Salkantay Trail. These two Peru treks present very different experiences, both with their pros and cons. …

If people make a plant product into candy, chocolates, and tea, can it really be all that bad? Well, if you’re U.S. Customs, yes, but for people in the Andes, the coca leaf is life. If you don’t process it into white powder, the coca leaf is a pretty innocent little item. Our heavy handed …

Peru gets a lot of travelers, from budget backpackers to “money is no object” luxury travelers ticking off a box on their bucket list. Because of Machu Picchu being named one of the wonders of the world and Peru seemingly unable to stop milking that cash cow in all their marketing, an inordinate number of …

I’ve done a lot of hiking in Peru. I’ve gone on the Inca Trail, done the Salkantay Trek, and just finished up a version of the Lares Trek. But the hike that made me the most uneasy is one that up to 400 people a day set off to do: heading to the top of …

Sure, the famous citadel on a mountain is worth seeing sometime in your life and Cusco is a great city that still feels special despite the hordes of tourists. To really get how great Peru is though, you have to take some time to explore and soak it all in. A couple months ago I …