11/7-8 - Rio Paucartambo, Day 6/7

Getting off the Paucartambo was smooth but slow. The sunrise ferry came as promised at 5am sharp. The launch driver wanted 20 soles ($6.60) a person with our kayaks and we consented, knowing we could talk him down later. The driver was amazing cruising up the Urubamba against the current, running rapids, tipping the boat from side to side. It was like a 60 foot long wooden canoe with a 75hp outboard. We cruised on the 'Yoga':

Ben and Jonathan on the 'Yoga':
When we got to the small town at the end of the boat ride, there were a few busses waiting for us to begin their journey to Quillabamba. We got a 12 hour bus there for 18 soles each including out kayaks ($6). Its interesting that the luxury bus lines charge an arm and a leg to load a kayak, while the cheap chicken busses never even blink an eye. Sadly, this bus ride was long, spine jarring, hot and sweaty, and even stopped for an unexpected 2 hour lunch. The driver must have been hungry.

We arrived in Quillabamba around dark and went to the Cuzco bus station to get our tickets. We got an overnight to Cuzco for 20 soles each on the Luxury bus and then went to town, hoping to walk off the ride to Quillabamba before taking the ride to Cuzco. The market in Quillabamba was sweet, and I managed to get my board shorts stiched in the street for a sole. This was interesting because I didn't have other pants to put on or underwear. It took some convincing but they stitched them up for me. There was a ton going on in the streets with vendors, kids, acts, shops, and tons of motor taxis:
The ride to Cuzco wasn't much of a sleeper, but we caught a minute here and there between the bumps. Upon arrival in Cuzco at 4:45am (24 hours after we caught the water taxi) we slept on the parked bus till 6am, headed to the Hostal, crashed hard. The Polica in Cuzco were confused by our kayaks, as usual:

Out.