Machu Picchu - 1978

This summer, some friends of ours visited the ruins of Machu Picchu, Peru. In 1978, Larry and I spent a month in Peru as guest helpers with Wycliffe Bible Translators. Most of that time we were in Yarinacocha, a base in the jungle near Pulculpa. Before we left Peru, however, we had the opportunity to visit Cusco and Machu Picchu.

We flew into Cusco from Lima. Early the following morning, we left Cusco for a 3.5 hour ride on the local train to Machu Picchu. Arriving at Machu Picchu, we ran from the train to waiting buses, managing to get on the first bus up the mountain to the ruins. As the pictures show, the stonework was amazing, both in the buildings and in the terraces.










Encouraged by our friends in Wycliffe, we decided to climb Juana Picchu, the tallest of two mountains overlooking Machu Picchu, seen in the background. According to my journal, it was quite a hike over to the mountain, and quite a hike up. The path was steep and narrow, mostly of stones hewn into the side of the mountain. Up, up, up, for about an hour and a half.




On the train from Cusco, we met two women from Michigan. They also climbed Juana Picchu.




This picture, taken from the vantage point of Juana Picchu, is the road from the train station in the valley up to the ruins. As you might imagine, it was quite a ride, especially as the bus negotiated each hairpin turn!



At one point, the path went through a cave.




This is a view of the ruins of Machu Picchu from up on Juana Picchu.



This is a picture of Larry and me at the top . . . nothing there but sky and a huge rock.



The hike down took about half an hour and we got back to the ruins without incident. Only later did we hear stories of people who had fallen off the path never to be found . . . The train ride back to Cucso was a bit over four hours. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for us.

If you build it . . . part II

In April, we planted 3150 grapevines. It's time for a photo update . . . then until now.

This is how each newly planted vine looked . . . a single, waxed graft.



Within three weeks the grapes were growing, and so were the weeds. We cultivated them twice using an old tobacco cultivator. We also pruned them for the first time, nipping off all but two or three shoots, and any tiny bunches of grapes.

And that was just the beginning . . .


Anchors were placed at the ends of each row, augered in using a post hole digger attachment.





End and line posts were driven in using a vibrating pounder which the guys rigged up to a skid loader.



A pencil rod was placed at each vine.



The vine was fastened to the pencil rod with plastic banding.



We purchased a grape hoe to cultivate the growing vines.



The hoe has a sensor that detects the pencil rod and swings out around each plant, then back into the row.



Last week the guys strung the fruiting wire in each row. It is attached to the end posts and to each line post.



Each pencil rod is clipped to the fruiting wire.



The plants have been hoed and pruned again. There is only one stalk remaining. It will become the main trunk for the maturing vine.



The vineyard now. It is a beautiful thing to see!