Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time

Great book! Funny and informative. I loved it and bought it for my daughter who lives in Peru. She'd text me as she read it - enjoyed it so much

This is not a very easy read for me. There were a couple of funny moments in the story. The whole thing is not that funny, but it is not ment to be a comedy. It is interesting and most of the time engaging. However at times it dragged and was tedious for my taste. I liked the story and how informative it is. I learned so much an I wish I had read it before my trip to Peru. If you plan to visit Machu Picchu, please try to read this book. Pages move slow, but I think it is worth it.

Machu Picchu is simply a place I must visit before I get too old, that's all there is to it. I've had this fixation long before reading "Right Turn at Machu Picchu", and now that I know the "back-way" which presents even more ancient Inca sites in the area, I can see my visit shall last several weeks (months?) and require a new resolution to my physical health long before my plane arrives in Cuzco. Mark Adams doesn't seem to suffer from my affliction; it seems his motivation was more due to the 100th anniversary of Hiram Bingham's "rediscovery" of the site. I especially enjoyed the research the author did on Bingham himself, giving us an insight of an upper-cruster, who enjoyed rubbing elbows with the social movers and shakers, more often to shake them down for expedition funding than anything. It is obvious that Mr. Adams is more than a bit suspicious of Bingham, not only to what degree the documentation of his travels bore accuracy, but about the character of the man himself. As far as global exploration of the time was concerned, the turn of the 1800's into the new century was indeed an interesting era. It was also during this period that in Cambodia a French naturalist by the name of Henri Mouhot "rediscovered" the ancient Khmer kingdom on the shores of Tonle Sap known as Angkor. Personally, having visited Angkor many times I will be quite surprised if once I fulfill this promise to myself to find Machu Picchu eclipses the wonder and majesty of Angkor. We'll see. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Adams book, well written and descriptive of not only the event itself, but of the characters he describes. He paints Bingham with a brush dipped in a can of part flim-flam man, part egomaniac, and part snob as he rushed through the Inca trail area nary giving Machu Picchu a second glance (he was there all of five hours). He seemed much more concerned in giving the investors back home their money's worth in return for their financial stake in his explorations, to the point of looting the Inca sites he tripped over and shipping home anything that wasn't red-hot or nailed down. Mr. Adams gives color to the problematic desire to visit this place, the hazards involved and even his own misgivings leading him to wonder what he had gotten himself into. This is a very unforgiving place of the planet, the never-ending steep grades up and down the mountains of the Andes is not for the infirm of body nor heart. There is a reason why llamas can dance on the head of a pin. In the end, you come away glad that you read his account especially, if like me, you've always had a desire in the back of your mind to pay a visit to Machu Picchu. His book not only furthered that desire, but made me aware that I will need to devote a lot longer period of time to do it the right way than I originally thought I would.

The combination of history and adventure results in a book that you can’t put down. I read the book in one sitting.

Turn Right is entertaining but the laughs don’t come nearly as often as with Bill Bryson’s ‘A Walk in the Woods,” another “Hiker with a crazy partner” trail book. But as the Appalachian Trail is nothing like the Inca Trail, and Bryson wasn’t trying to explain a thousand+ years of history, enough said about that. I’m just objecting to the word “hilarious” which was in one of the blurbs. “Hilarious” is overkill, but I’m still glad I read the book. Mark Adams’ detailed info about Macchu Picchu’s origins, coupled with his quest story about Macchu Picchu’s “discoverer” (and the author explains why “discoverer” isn’t the best word) is a good read, but for me, the last 100 pages were clogged with info that seemed there only to make a 250-page book into 300 pages. For that I fault the book’s editor, who might have taken a sharper pencil to some of the author’s extensive research. The best parts focused on the brilliant Yale explorer Hiram Bingham III (about whom I would have liked to know more); on his twenty-first century Aussie counterpart, John Leivers; and of course on the author himself, who comes across as likeable, sturdy, and gifted.

Fun and informative - we read this while traveling through Peru on our way to Machu Picchu - but not really the best written. Adams's narrative jumps all over the place, between Bingham's story and his own, and the effect is not successful. It feels disjointed and confusing, especially with the varied paths, climbs, and topography of the area around Machu Picchu and Cusco. It would have been more engaging and accessible if he'd spent more time with one narrative in a chapter and then switching to the other one in the next. The historical elements in general are informative, I'm currently reading Kim McQuarrie's The Last Days of the Incas, and Adams's book did cover all of the main details and events of what happened. Plus, Adams adds some cute details that are very entertaining to read if you've been to Peru - for example, Lima is indeed very grey and constantly overcast. It was fun to read that this was not just bad luck on our part but a very real phenomenon with an actual name. Overall, it's worth a read, but I would get it used or, if you are traveling in Peru, pick it up at a book exchange. Definitely don't pay full price.

About twenty years ago and before Machu Picchu became such a popular tourist destination, a co-worker of mine did the Inca Trail hike and gave a slide show presentation that drew gasps and sighs from her audience of cubicle worker bees. Twenty years later and feeling thirty years older, I'm still fascinated with Machu Picchu and hope to see it in person before I am too feeble to move. When I heard a new book on the subject had been published, I snatched it up. The day after it arrived from Amazon, I had to go to the DMV so I brought the book to have something to read during the anticipated wait. While most people waiting at the DMV quietly pray for death to end their misery, I was completely engrossed by the book and was laughing out loud. Laughing out loud while at the DMV. That should give you an idea of how funny Mark Adams is. "Turn Right at Machu Picchu" is a pleasure to read. The humor, often self-deprecating, is sprinkled liberally throughout. Adams can build up slowly to a punchline or toss off a one-line zinger out of left field with equal ease. In the meantime, the book is also packed full of information presented in a clear, understandable and thorough way so you don't even realize how much you're learning. The end notes also include a good selection of reference materials and useful information about visiting Machu Picchu for readers with travel aspirations. I devoured this book in less than a week, then went back and reread my favorite parts the next day. I've given copies of this book to friends and family members who also hope to visit Machu Picchu, and they've all told me how the book exceeded their expectations. My boyfriend is reading it now and is also very impressed. He read "Guns, Germs and Steel" by Jared Diamond several years ago and was disappointed that Diamond didn't cover more of the back story about why the Inca empire didn't survive. This book provides that information. For people who want to learn about Machu Picchu or just want an amusing non-fiction read, I unreservedly recommend this book.

I assume others have covered the content. I got this in prep for a trip to Peru. I travel a lot, but Machu Picchu was never compelling enough to warrant a trip (I am very interested in Peru though). I was not excited about a tourist clogged site that was at an uncomfortable altitude. But I booked a tour because my friend wanted to go. This book really brought the significance and the experience of Machu Picchu to life for me. It wasn’t sugar coating the experience and the history was delivered through multiple and interesting viewpoints. I am putting purpose behind my early am training walks and I look forward to seeing some of the details mentioned in this book.

Es una novela histórica muy entretenida. Un buen libro para pasar el rato.

Ótimo livro. Descreve o caminho feito até MAchu-Picchu. Para os leitores mais exigentes, ressalto que este produto é paperback

I'd heard of Machu Picchu as being an ancient Inca stronghold. Some vague notion about the difficult terrain it was built on and the excellence of the stone architecture. This book surpassed all my expectations. It's back and forth between Hiram Bingham's journey and that of Mark Adam's own adventures was very engrossing. To experience the highest of mountains in the clouds while sitting in my house was the ultimate armchair adventure. It is a beautifully written book, and yes now if I ever go trekking I will remember to wear two pairs of socks.

This book is very interesting especially if want to know the history and a must read if you are traveling to Machu Picchu

This is a vrery interesting and amusing account of an expedition the author made into Peruvian jungles to visit Inca sites including the lost city and Machu Picchu. On the way a lot of history of the Inca civilisation and the Spanish conquest is given in a very readable way. On the wat the reader gains an understanding of the various sites and remains and the reason for their alignments. The author pokes fun at himself in an underastated way and the book is so enjoyable that I have reread it twice.