Mystical Walks
How hiking in some places in nature can feel as spiritual as going to Church on Sunday
When I travel abroad, I like to include some scuba diving and a good hike or two into the mix. When I thought about the December challenge and the topic of spirituality, I wanted to write about places I have been to in the great outdoors hiking that felt spiritual to me. My thoughts were immediately drawn to a few hikes I had done over the years because of the special spiritual connection I had with each of them. These hikes were done in sacred places, and they made me feel it.
The Inca Trail to Machu Picchu
My first experience encountering a mystical walk was in 1998 when I went to Peru to hike the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. The four-day hike winds around the Andes Mountains and through ancient open-air temples on a stone road made hundreds of years ago by the Inca.
As each day of the hike progressed and we stopped with our guide at an Inca ruin, he would describe the Inca culture, Quechua language and experience. As I walked the ancient steps as so many Incas have walked before me, I felt as if I was in a…
