PERU

There are many ways to get to Machu Picchu. You can spend a week hiking in from Salkantay, the area's highest mountain. Or you can hop on a tourist train from Cuzco. We decided on the "classic" four-day trek.

Our adventure started with a harrowing three-hour bus ride from Cuzco to the trail head. In addition to our 13 guides, cooks and porters, our group included a Dutch couple, two California lawyers, a Czech diplomat and a brother and sister from Scotland. Ranging in age from early twenties to late forties, they were fit, enthusiastic and, for the most part, fun to be around.

And then there was Ron, an Arizona entrepreneur who was the oldest in our group. Among other quirks, at the end of meals he liked to exclaim, "Tequila for my men, beer for my horses, for tomorrow we will ride!"

That kind of guy.

At the trail head, known simply as Kilometer 82, we strapped on our packs and hit the trail for the first day's trek, a 71/2-mile hike following the Vilcanota River. The weather was mild and sunny. We each carried a backpack with our clothes and personal items, a sleeping bag and a foam sleeping pad (provided by the tour operator). For an extra $70, you could hire a porter to haul up to 40 pounds of your stuff.

The porters carried tents, food, kitchen supplies and other serious equipment. They strapped a Volkswagen's worth of stuff on their backs and literally ran up and down the mountain wearing little more than rags and flip-flops. Part of the new regulations limit the total weight porters can carry and require companies to pay them $10 a day, about double the old rate.

It didn't take long for the first casualty to appear. Will, a healthy Scot in his early twenties, dropped to his knees just a few miles into the trip and nearly passed out. He and his younger sister had had only two days to get used to the altitude before the trek. It didn't help that he had the Peruvian specialty the night before: guinea pig. The casualty list grew each day, including the most serious scare when Will's sister needed to be carried down a mountain pass on a guide's back.

In the end, six of the 11 members of the group were knocked off their feet to one degree or another by altitude or accident. But none of the setbacks proved to be very serious, and all members recovered enough to make it safely down the mountain on their own power.

Our lead guide, Manu, whose kind heart and wry sense of humor made up for his poor English, deflected our questions about the frequency of altitude sickness among trekkers, although he did not seem surprised at the number of fallen. Perhaps it underscored the safety and wisdom of forcing everyone to travel with an experienced guide. Then again, it showed how an unprepared hiker could become a human anchor to the rest of the group.

As we entered the preservation area that surrounds Machu Picchu, the porters were given the once-over by officials, to make sure they weren't carrying more than the 44-pound limit. Afterward, we learned that Manu had asked Ron and some others who'd hired an extra porter to take some of their load -- at least until they passed the checkpoint. Afterward, the extra weight was portioned out to the porters. Some in the group groused, saying the porters were being abused. But Manu shrugged it off, saying that the porters would be well under the limit after supplies were used for lunch.

After a short break for chicha beer, a homemade brew made from corn, we headed to our first campsite, in a muddy field outside the village of Wayllabamba. Dinner that night, like all the trip meals, was an elaborate feast served on tables and chairs in a dining tent.

There is nothing better than good food when you're exhausted and famished, and the cooks always came through -- even for Janice, who doesn't eat red meat or pork. The healthy mix included American comfort food, such as popcorn and pancakes, and traditional Peruvian soups and main dishes featuring plenty of potatoes and corn. The best meals were those prepared simply with fresh ingredients, such as the luscious grilled trout on the first night.