July 18, 2025
¡Nosotros amos Peru!
Greetings from MPU 3! We have just finished up our last real activity for the trip- our lovely tour around Machu Picchu- but more about that later. Where we left of last, we were just about to begin the trekking section of our trip. What a truly special time it was. We began our trek with a drive to the trailhead near the base of Humantay, a nearly 18,000ft glaciated peak nestled in the Vilcabamba range here in Peru. Once our group was all geared up, we began our adventure with a quite steep hike up to Humantay Lake. Amelia demonstrated her indomitability as she braved the challenging conditions en route to the lake. Along the way, our group passed countless animals, and Halle always greeted the dogs with wide open arms and excitement. After climbing ~1500 vertical feet over just about 2 miles, our group reached Humantay Lake. A gleaming, clear lake that sits at the foot of the Humantay glacier. We posed for photos, soaked in the scenery, and ate a few snacks too. Shortly thereafter, we descended quickly back down and parked ourselves at our campsite for the night. It got chilly quickly, so our group bundled up and gathered for some hot tea and snacks. As night fell, we were greeted by some of the most incredible show of stars any of us had ever seen. As Laine later told me “I saw my first shooting star of my life last night, and I saw 3 of them!” Amara helped me take some epic long exposure pictures by drawing “Moondance” with her headlamp. Shortly after, we all gathered under the stars and braved the cold for a truly special moonup led by (insert LODs). After mostly everyone had gone to bed, Andrew and I stayed up a little later and stared at the stars, with the Milky Way and the Southern Cross fully in view, for an additional half hour.
Our second day of trekking was our biggest of the trip, featuring our most daunting task yet, crossing the Salkantay Pass at over 15,000 feet of elevation. We stirred from our tents early for breakfast and had to wait for the sun to de-thaw us before beginning our long day of hiking. Our group made quick work of the first portion of the hike, and before long, we approached a series of switchbacks. These steep switchbacks would challenge us and force us to rest and snack as we inched our way closer and closer to the pass. Still we pressed on, and after conquering the switchbacks, we were greeted with a truly stunning view of Salkantay “the savage mountain.” We posed for some pictures, but our job was not yet finished. We pressed on through the rocky and dusty path until we came to a clearing with lots of big rocks to sit on and rest. Ann Frances and Vivian helped document the contrasting lush and glaciated scenery while we rested. Our group could sense that we were getting close to the pass, and so we trudged on and climbed a few more hundred feet of elevation before George, Andrew, and Lawson led the group to the pass, posing with a sign that signified our accomplishment. With our group’s spirits lifted, we posed for photos, enjoyed the views, and then moved on to get out of the wind. We stopped for lunch surrounded some of the most scenic views any of us have had the pleasure of observing. After a nice long lunch (and nap) break, we continued our descent into a valley and made it to our campsite just after the sun fell behind the awe-inspiring peaks around us.
Day three provided our group a slight reprieve from the lengthy hiking of days past. We trekked for a brief couple of hours before being transported by bus to our next campsite. While there, Henry and Jack consumed some delicious Inca Kola (a Peruvian delicacy some could say) before our group headed to the thermal baths nearby. Everyone greatly enjoyed soaking their sore muscles before returning to camp to eat the traditional Peruvian dish Lomo Saltado for dinner, which was one of our absolute favorite meals of the trip.
Day four of trekking was our last, but it was an excellent one to finish with. Lauren led the way as we hiked a relatively flat path along train tracks for around 7 miles before we rolled into the town of Aguas Calientes, our gateway to Machu Picchu. We took much needed showers at our hotel before we explored around the hilly town, checking out the local markets and buying gifts for our loved ones. We ended our day with a delicious local meal where the group tasted some Peruvian classics like guinea pig and alpaca. Our group then headed to bed early as we had a big day ahead of us.
Our last day of adventuring Peru culminated with the most unique adventure of all: exploring the Incan city of Machu Picchu! We had a two hour guided tour and while the slight drizzle may have frustrated some, it only added to the ambiance for our group. We had perfect views of the historic site and got to soak it all in. We took copious pictures and videos and made sure to capture this once-in-a-lifetime experience! After our tour, we headed back down to Aguas Calientes where we gathered our things and hopped on a train back to Cusco!
Tomorrow our group will spend our last day together exploring Cusco before we head back to our respective homes. It has been a truly amazing experience getting to spend this time together and Molly and I are so thankful to have had this opportunity to lead these outstanding kids!
Adios from Peru!
-Henry and Molly
Thank yous:
George: Hey Mom and Dad! Thanks so much for all you have done to allow me to experience this amazing trip. Love y’all!
Lawson: Hey Mom and Dad, thank y’all so much for all of your hard work and sacrifices that allowed for me to come on this trip. It was a blast and I am excited to see y’all soon.
Vivian: Thank you guys for allowing me to go on this Moondance trip!! I miss you guys a lot but I can’t wait to come home and tell y’all all about it!!
Amelia: Thank you guys for sending me on this amazing trip to see such cool and awesome things that I will never forget. See you very very soon!! I love y’all!!
Lauren: Thank you guys so much for letting me come on this trip!!! It has truly been once in a lifetime – can’t wait to see y’all soon!
Ann Frances: I am so very appreciative for the opportunity to explore Peru. It has been nothing short of amazing and quite literally a dream! Thank y’all so much- I love and can’t wait to see y’all soon.
Amara: Thank you mom and dad for an experience of a lifetime! I have loved every minute of Peru and I am so excited to see you guys in two days, love and miss you!
Andres: I very happy that I went on the trip and can’t wait to be home and relax with the dogs and some real true food.
Henry: thank you mom and dad for giving me this amazing opportunity and experience! I can not thank y’all enough and I’m super thankful for yall .
Jack: Hey dad, thanks so much for sending me on this trip. It was awesome and our group bonded so well together. Can’t wait to see you on Sunday!
Laine: Hey Mom and Dad! Thank you so much for this trip! It was so amazing and the coolest experience of my life. I can’t thank y’all enough and I’m excited to see you Sunday!
Halle: Hey mom and dad! Thanks so much for sending me on another Moondance trip it’s been awesome. I can’t wait to tell you guys all about it. See yall Sunday hope all is well at home!!!
July 8, 2025
Hello Machu Picchu Families!
We heard from our leaders this morning that the group has landed safely in Peru! The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure! Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips, but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next week! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ