The mountain showed up

The night before this photo was taken, we were sliding through mud, soaked from rain and snow, barely able to feel our fingers.

We’d been pushed hard by the elements, freezing, exhausted, questioning why we’d signed up for this trail in the first place. 

But the next morning, as we started the climb toward Salkantay Pass, the sky opened up. We looked back and there it was. 

Towering, sharp, and completely unreal. The mountain that had been hidden the day before, now standing in full view like it had been waiting for us. 

It stopped us all in our tracks. This wasn’t just a good view, It felt like a reward.