Two Lost Sheep are Finally Found

After a couple of days of acclimatisation to the high altitude, it was time for the hour of reckoning. Today was the time for us to get our first taste of cycling the Sacred Valley of the Incas. After a short bus ride to the outskirts of the city we were introduced to our bikes for the first time. To our great relief they were high end Specialised brand bikes with dual suspension and hydraulic brakes.

As it was the first time that most of us had ever ridden a dual suspension bike, they did take a little getting used to, but soon we were looking for potholes in which to test how good they were.

We didn't have long to wait because most of the day's ride was along very rough back roads, liberally covered with rocks and culverts. The enormous tyres and the suspension certainly worked well, although most of our lungs did not work so well. Every time we encountered a hill our hearts and lungs went into overdrive, gasping for every molecule of oxygen we could catch.

For the third day in a row we were favoured with blue skies and a very warm sun. The warm clothing we had packed was quickly discarded and the sunscreen was applied thickly. At this altitude it is very easy to become very badly sunburnt in a short space of time.

We bounced and puffed our way along a succession of rough dirt roads and through some small settlements. In these places our progress was closely monitored by numerous stray dogs that barked menacingly each time we approached them. We had previously been warned that, in the event of a dog attack, we were to stop and take refuge behind our bike. Fortunately this strategy was never put to the test.

After a couple of hours of cycling we stopped for lunch beside a beautiful lake in the sacred valley and then were driven to the top of a nearby hill to wander some extensive pre Incan ruins.

We knew that the final two members of our team were due to arrive in Cusco today. Steve and Gil Wilson had to attend a family wedding in the UK and were taking the long and circuitous route from Manchester to Cusco to join us for the rest of our time in South America. Each time a plane flew overhead we imagined that it could be them on board.

It was only when we arrived back at our hotel we heard just what a trying time they had experienced. Not only had they been in continuous transit for over thirty hours, visiting Manchester, Helsinki, New York and Lima along the way, but their final flight from Lima to Cusco had been altered. This meant that they did not know that someone would be waiting for them on arrival in Cusco. They proceeded through the airport and caught a taxi instead.

That would have been OK, except for the fact that our hotel had also been changed and, when they arrived at the original hotel, they found it locked and bolted. This was not the welcome they had been looking forward to after such an horrendous time in the air. After a series of phone calls they eventually arrived at the correct hotel some four hours later. Although this was not the start they had been wanting, they took it in surprisingly good spirits and are looking forward to begin their own personal acclimatisation process.

Tomorrow we head to Olantaytambo where the more serious riding will begin.

In case you might have been wondering what had happened after my unfortunate incident with the exploding blue pen in my hotel room, I can now complete the story. After an unsuccessful personal attempt to remove the ink, I gave up, carefully folded the sheet on top of my bed and wrote a letter of apology to the cleaning staff. To add some extra gravitas to my apology I added a crying face at the bottom to emphasise that I was truly sorry for my sins. I expected to return to my room and be welcomed with a stern letter of rebuke and a hefty invoice. I found neither of these. My room and bed was made up and my stained sheet replaced with a pristine new white one. I have learnt my lesson.Read more