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Machu Picchu and the Huayna Picchu Trailhead |
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This sign marks the trail to Huayna Picchu. |
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The postcard view of Machu Picchu looks from the slopes above it and to the north toward the south. Huayna Picchu is the tall sunlit spire in this photo. |
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A closer look at Huayna Picchu shows that it is a steep pinnacle, but one that the Incas domesticated five hundred years ago. Note the agricultural terraces near the summit of the peak, in the sunlight. Another even steeper set of terraces is visible in the shadows to the left of the sunlit face. The ruins of a storehouse are visible on the ridge above these shaded terraces. The crux pitch of the descent follows the edge of the shaded terraces, in the corner between them and the sunlit area. |