South America´s first Socialists

From Che Guevara to Hugo Chavez, South America has a long history of firebrand Socialists. In fact, we learned this history extends all the way back to the Inca civilization, nine million people strong.

While Erin and I are as left-leaning as any other good Seattle progressives, the Inca form of government really had very little to do with our decision to hike the trail to Machu Picchu. Rather, we were looking for some fine scenery, good exercise and historic ruins. We found all this, plus a bit of political discourse thrown in for good measure.

It turns out ¨The Inca Trail¨ is really just a famous 46 kilometer segment of over 9,000 kilometers of stone trails the Incas built during their rein. And with so much trail crossing steep, mountainous terrain, the Inca needed labor. Lots of it.

Considering the work requirements, I lobbed a question at our fearless guide Bobby: ¨How did they get all this trail built through such steep terrain?¨ Whereupon came the history lesson. It seems all Inca were expected to work for the good of the society. This meant when they weren´t farming, they were building trails, temples, houses and myriad other structures that today lie in various states of ruin.

Yet the total effect of their efforts is still awe inspiring. During our journey, we found the hillsides littered with stone ruins dating back hundreds of years. Add in stunning mountain views with porters carrying our heavy loads, and you have the makings for an epic trek.

So while Machu Picchu is the most famous and largest Inca ruin, it is far from the only one. As we hiked for four days over mountain and through vale, we crossed paths with many Inca sites. In each case, Bobby would wow us with his knowledge culled from hiking the trail over 400 times.

One example of this knowledge is the following interesting aside: It seems Machu Picchu was re-discovered in 1911 by Hiram Bingham, who was under contract with Yale University at the time. In the process of restoring the site, Good Samaritan Hiram illegally exported 400 crates of artifacts that today continue to reside in Yale´s Whitney Museum. Needless the say, the Peruvians would like their looted treasures back, but Yale is balking. For all those Eli´s out there, feel free to suggest to the Development Office they consider returning the Inca artifacts to their rightful owners.

Sitting showered and rested back in Cusco, it´s hard to see our experience on the trail as anything other than life changing. It was that epic.

And now that we´ve walked in the footsteps of the Inca, I can´t help feeling a sort of kinship with them. What they built is beyond description. Especially, since it was almost all constructed on steep mountain terrain. Sure they disappeared without a trace, but in my opinion the Inca ruins stand as a testament to the sophistication and immense efforts of South America´s first Socialists.