The Inca site of Machu Picchu will be closed to tourists for at least
three weeks – and shut off from all but the hardiest of visitors for almost two
months – as Peruvian authorities assess the damage caused by the recent floods
along the Urubamba river.
While the ruins themselves have not been harmed the problem is
damage to the train line that runs from the town of Ollantaytambo, in the Sacred
Valley, to Aguas Calientes, the town based at the foot of Machu Picchu
mountain.
Over four thousand people, both foreign visitors and Peruvians, were evacuated by helicopter from Agua Calientes at the end of last week.
The small town, which sits at the foot of the Andean mountain where Machu
Picchu hides 8,000ft up, became a gathering point for tourists stranded by the
extreme weather as torrential rain caused the river to break its banks, setting
off mudslides and stripping away sections of the railway line that connects the
historic citadel to the city of Cuzco.
Train operator Perurail says that it will take eight weeks to complete repairs
to the damaged track. With the rough mountainous terrain and remoteness of the
location ensuring that there is no road access to Machu Picchu, the site is
effectively cut off from the outside world until the train service can be
restored. The tracks have been broken in 8 places which means that
restoration work is going to be very complex and demanding. However,
authorities are working hard to get the route to Machu Picchu restored and at
this stage plan to have repairs completed by the beginning of April. So
this is great news for people heading to Machu Picchu from April onwards!
Juan Garcia, director of Peru’s National Culture Institute, which administers
the famous citadel, says the site will remain closed for business until trains
resume – although he added that officials would consider opening the park to
travellers who could hike part of the distance along the celebrated ‘Inca Trail’
once the first section of track is restored. It is estimated that this will take
three weeks.
Pitched high above the Urubamba river, the ruins themselves were not damaged by
the floods. The river reached its highest registered rate last week, with 1100
cubic metres of water a second flowing through the narrow gorge on which Agua
Calientes sits.
(Mail on Line - Daily Mail.co.uk)
Published on 19-02-2010