Vilcabamba to Espiritu Pampa Hike 8 Day

We will pick you up from your Cusco hotel at 5 a.m. to begin your Vilcabamba Trek to Espiritu Pampa. We arrive in Vilcabamba after an 8-hour private bus ride. We’ll spend a couple of hours exploring Vilcabamba before setting up camp for the night here.

• 3 kilometers total walking distance
• 2 hours total walking time
• Maximum Altitude: 3800m 
• Minimum Altitude: 2600m 
• The camp is situated at a height of 2600 meters (8,530 ft)

After a delicious breakfast this morning, we will take a local transportation from Huarina (2hs drive). From Huarina we will hike up to Puncuyoc to explore the intriguing site of Incahuasi (4300mt /14,107ft), returning to Huarina at the end of the day in about 7h total hiking time. We camp again tonight at Huarina.

• Total Walking Distance: 12km
• Total Walking Time: 7h
• Minimum Altitude: 3600m
• Maximum Altitude: 4300m
• Altitude of camp: 3600m (11,811 ft)

This day is the most challenging day of the Vilcabamba Trek to Espiritu Pampa, as we climb for almost 9 hours over the mountain range, passing by magnificent lakes. Finally, we’ll set up tent in the Capillayoc lagoon.

• 16 kilometers total walking distance
• Walking Time: 9 hours
• Maximum Altitude: 3950m
• Minimum Altitude: 3400m
• 3600m is the camp’s elevation

We must be well-rested and have a strong breakfast today in order to face a long day of hiking. We will hike about 10h in total as we passing for beautiful landscapes from Capillayoc lagoon to Qollpaqasa for about 4 hours and then continue on to Ututo for about 4 hours, where we will camp for the night.

• Total Walking Distance: 18km
• Total Walking Time: 10hs
• Minimum Altitude: 3100m
• Maximum Altitude: 3850m
• Altitude of camp: 3100m

From Ututo to Vista Alegre, our route today will take us through the Andean jungle. We’ll walk along Inca paths and get a sensation of the changing environment as well as witness the tunki bird, a relative of the famous Peruvian “gallito de las rocas,” Peru’s national bird. We’ll stay in for camp Vista Alegre for the night.

• 12 kilometers total walking distance
• Minimum Altitude: 2000m
• Maximum Altitude: 3100m
• Total Walking Time: 6  hours
• The camp is situated at a height of 2000 meters

We will begin our 11-hour descent from Vista Alegre to Concevidayoc after a superb breakfast. We’ll see a variety of birds and flowers, including orchids, famous for its colors and shapes. We’ll pass via the Tunqui Mayo bridge, the Andean community of Urpi Pata, and many settlements involved in agriculture, livestock, and coffee production.

• 20 kilometers total walking distance
• Walking Time: 11 hours
• Maximum Altitude: 2000m
• The camp is located at a height of 1768 meters

After three extremely long and strenuous days of hiking we have a well-deserved break.
We’ll hike for around three hours from Concevidayoc to Espiritu Pampa. The ruins of the archaeological site of Espiritu Pampa, the last Inca capital, can be seen here. We’ll be exploring this site for the most of the day. Espiritu Pampa is particularly intriguing because much of it is still covered in vegetation, adding to its allure. We’ll continue our journey back by bus for another 5 hours, resting in Kiteni for the night in a hostel.

• 7 kilometers total walking distance
• 3 hours total walking time
• Maximum Altitude: 1400m

We’ll leave Kiteni at 8 a.m. and board a bus to Quillabamba for the final stage of the tour, which will take around 4 hours. Around 5 p.m., we arrive in Cusco city.