Savannah Welch Instagram – When I lost my leg 5 years ago, it felt like “times-up” on some things I’d only dreamed of doing & all kinds of things I’d never thought of, but no longer had the option to pursue or not. I accepted that there would now be activities & places on this planet that I wouldn’t get to experience or get to show Charlie. Machu Picchu was certainly one of the things on that list. When this opportunity presented itself, I had no idea how I would do it but I was damn sure gonna try. Yesterday, I tried and the greatest take aways were that I am stronger than I think & that it wouldn’t have been possible without support.
Not that I counted, but apparently there are about 3,000 stone stairs throughout the ruins & I’m pretty sure we traversed most of them. Considering the constant light rain on those mossy granite steps, they were pretty slick. My eyes were down when we were moving, searching for stable footing for each robot foot step. The rain ponchos we bought on the street for 4 sols whipped around in the wind & made it hard to see our feet. About 15 min into the uphill climb to the ruins, I had a moment of reckoning. I knew this was going to be a lot, but with everything else we were contending with, I realized it was going to be much harder than I thought & maybe even not possible. Had I finally done it? Naively pushed myself to the limit and inconvenienced everyone around me as a result? Was this stupid & selfish?
Dust was in cowboy boots, of course, which he said were built for this. It should also be noted that he was in jeans, a pearl snap, a blazer & his trusty fedora. This will be my brothers attire anywhere & pretty much always has been, but this was notable commitment. As was the impressive mustache he’s been maintaining for a role in a buddy’s film. Charlie had some altitude sickness, had not slept well the night before & the bag of breakfast items packed for us were suspect & remained untouched. His empty belly hurt & his backpack was heavy, which he finally spoke up about through tears halfway through the tour. Our guide carried his pack the rest of the way & some hits of oxygen a peppermint cough drop seemed to take the edge off. (Cont in next post) ⛰ | Posted on 03/Dec/2021 12:07:16
