Salkantay Trek 1.1, Julio!

The “long grass” used for thatch roofs and alpaca feed

Medicinal tea for stomach ailments 

Before Peru, Spaniards, and even Incas there were the Quechua people living in the Andean Mountains and adjoining Amazon Jungle. 

The Incas were actually only the individual emperors over the empire that spanned a huge territory and just a couple centuries before being destroyed by the Spanish. There were 14 Incas prior to the Spaniards and 4 after, so only 18 total Incas. 

But the victors write the history, so they just called the entire civilization Incas for convenience. 

Julio is proudly Quechuan (ketch-wan) and finding us willing, avid and non-judgemental listeners to his descriptions of their culture, lifestyles, language, spiritual beliefs, and existence in harmony with the land, he shared too much to possibly convey. Along our trek he would jump off the trail, pick some herbs or pull some grass, give us the Quechuan and Spanish names, then describe its uses. 

Julio has been guiding in these mountains and jungles for over 22 years and his love of the environment and his people permeates everything he says and does. He  grew up in a mountain village of about 30 people, but his parents decided to move the family to Cusco when he was 8, where Julio had to learn Spanish to get by in school. Then he decided the best way to return to the mountains and his people was as a guide so he learned English and attended university four years to get his license. He’s kind, intelligent, funny, and a real team leader…when he noticed the huffing and gasping were getting pronounced, he’d make an unscheduled stop to describe some tree, or flower or tell some story, while we replenished our O2 levels so we could ask questions.  

The trail is clearly defined and easily followed without a guide. But, the risks of an significant error are magnified by the elevation and terrain. And oxygen-depleted brains often can’t even remember in which daypack pocket the snacks are stored, so having someone to gently and informatively leads us along was invaluable.

Julio will come up over and over again. Since we did our best to communicate in Quechuan and tried to incorporate everything he told us into our adventure, a real friendship was forged, with joking, jibes, laughter and beers, deeper than any client relationship, as the unfolding posts will reveal.

Haven’t seen Julio in several days now and can honestly say I miss him, but we’ll stay in touch and we just know he’s going to do well for himself, his family, and his people up on the mountain that he’s never forgotten