Moray

Monday, 30 August 2018

After visiting Corcor, we went to the Incan ruins at Moray.

The scenery up in the high Andean plains is spectacular.

Before heading to the ruins, we had a ridiculously elaborate "picnic" lunch, complete with shelter, kitchen tent, and tented porta-potty (just off the left side of the photo). The food was fabulous, but the wind made it a challenge to keep things from blowing away. I'm sure the cooks were grateful for the shelter of their kitchen tent.

The nearly circular terraces at Moray fill natural depressions that sink 150 ft (45 m) into the landscape. No one knows for sure what their purpose was, but since they have varying microclimates due to differing depths and sun exposures, and over 250 different types of crop seeds have been found in the soil, most archaeologists speculate that this was an agricultural research site.

Each terrace is about 2 m high and has cantilevered steps to connect the levels.

A closer look at the terraces and steps.

Using these cantilevered steps would be a challenge -- especially if carrying a heavy burden.