Yesterday before the football I used my blog to talk about the start of the Inca Trail when we walked it nearly 17 years ago. Day 2 was the day everyone was dreading with the legendary Dead Woman’s Pass ahead of us, the highest point on the trail at 4,215 metres. Altitude and how we react to it was an unknown factor. Clare was feeling some trepidation as we rose early.

We knew we would have to pace ourselves carefully. We decided to have a rest fairly frequently to catch our breath. Clare was feeling the altitude as we got higher and closer to the top of the pass. We eventually got to the highest point (picture below)

We knew we had now done the hardest point and Clare loved Day 3 walking through the Cloud Forest and I enjoyed spotting the birds flitting in and out of the trees. I was blown away at lunch on Day 3 we had porters (who do a similar role to the Sherpas in the Himalayas) so they had pitched a mess tent and had lunch ready for us. The flaps of the tent were open and in all four directions I could see snow capped mountains. I decided it must be one of the most beautiful places to eat lunch in the world! The picture of me below was in an earlier blog but was looking in one direction at the lunch site. (more on Inca Trail in the future)

Finally the football was disappointing but hats off to Southgate and his impressive young team. They have restored my interest in the England team.