Train Ride to Aguas Calientes

A four hour train ride from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes follows the river into the Urubamba Gorge. Along the ride we saw a staircase carved into the rock leading to a series of ruined structures where the Inca artisans smelted gold. Also saw many Inca ruins within the valley, waterfalls, and beautiful agricultural terraces as we heard the roaring Urubamba. Aguas Calientes is a cute little town surrounded by lush green cloud covered mountains. It is ~4 miles from Machu, has no cars, and is made up of 2 main streets. One of the streets is an active railroad track!!!!

1. The active railroad track smack in the middle of the town which is actually a street. You just walk around it and step aside when a train approaches. We saw many kids playing on it.

2. The river/stream in aguas calientes that cuts through town and merges into the roaring Urubamba River.

3. The Urubamba River. Our hotel was located on the river bank from where we could enjoy the lush cloud forest and hear the raging river all night.