The Incas began as a small tribe from the area around Lake Titicaca, bordering modern day Bolivia and Peru. The Incas conquered their neighbors by both conquest and cooperation. It can be argued that the Incas united many warring tribes into a common empire with a common language and religion; what cannot be argued is that they accomplished this peacefully. The empire extended from modern day Columbia down the Pacific coast into Chile. The ruler of the empire was called the Inca, the first of which was Inca Pachacutec, who ruled from Cusco. To ensure efficient travel throughout the large empire, a system of roads was built that came to be called the Qhapaq Nan.
To accommodate llamas, you need to travel at altitudes higher then 13,000 feet; the majority of the Inca trail is indeed this high. The trails vary by terrain, as wide as 20 meters along the coast, but as little as 1 meter in the jungle. Bridges fashioned of stone and wood extend over waterways; some suspension bridges hang over raging waters.
The Incas were generally a sedentary society, not nomadic. Thus, the roads were used chiefly for official business such as the relaying of messages by runners called chasqui and for mobilizing troops for military purposes. The roads that were traveled by the lay people were roads to sacred places of worship.
During the reign of the Incas, where the trails were being traversed, there were stopping points along the way. Specific resting points called tamboos were stocked with p'olqo, the cloth that protects the llama's feet from the elements and terrain.
The Incas did not envision that the Qhapaq Nan was advantageous for defeating the Spanish. The Spaniards were unaccustomed to traveling at such heights, so they opted to climb and descend in a zigzag pattern on their quest for conquest. If the Incas would have taken advantage of this inefficient method, history may have been different.
Machu Picchu was declared a Protected Natural Area by the Peruvian government in 1981. In 1983 it was given the status of a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The Incan trail leading to Machu Picchu is the most traveled section of the Qhapaq Nan, offering guided tours all months of the year except for February when the trail is closed for restoration. Machu Picchu was discovered by the world in 1911, and is especially significant because it was not destroyed like the rest of the Incan empire.
