Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
Turn Right at Machu Picchu
Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time | Mark Adams
What happens when an adventure travel expert-who's never actually done anything adventurous-tries to re-create the original expedition to Machu Picchu? July 24, 1911, was a day for the history books. For on that rainy morning, the young Yale professor Hiram Bingham III climbed into the Andes Mountains of Peru and encountered an ancient city in the clouds: the now famous citadel of Machu Picchu. Nearly a century later, news reports have recast the hero explorer as a villain who smuggled out priceless artifacts and stole credit for finding one of the world's greatest archaeological sites. Mark Adams has spent his career editing adventure and travel magazines, so his plan to investigate the allegations against Bingham by retracing the explorer's perilous path to Machu Picchu isn't completely far- fetched, even if it does require him to sleep in a tent for the first time. With a crusty, antisocial Australian survivalist and several Quechua-speaking, coca-chewing mule tenders as his guides, Adams takes readers through some of the most gorgeous and historic landscapes in Peru, from the ancient Inca capital of Cusco to the enigmatic ruins of Vitcos and Vilcabamba. Along the way he finds a still-undiscovered country populated with brilliant and eccentric characters, as well as an answer to the question that has nagged scientists since Hiram Bingham's time: Just what was Machu Picchu? Watch a Video
Amazon Indiebound Barnes and Noble WorldCat Goodreads LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
review
LaurenAsh
post image
Pickpick

I loved Mark Adams' writing style and it made the long treks to this spectacular place in the world, entertaining, informative, and easy to imagine you're right there with them.

review
Texreader
post image
Pickpick

Educational and entertaining! What more can one ask for? Mark Adams retraces the footsteps of Hiram Bingham, who introduced Machu Picchu to the world in 1911, then Adams returns to confirm the Incas‘ engineering was superbly accurate aligning with the winter solstice. Adams is self-deprecating but clearly very brave, willing to expend an enormous effort when he hadn‘t so much as tented in his own backyard as a child. A book not to be missed for ⬇️

Texreader anyone interested in history, the Incas, South America, travel, #Peru, the Andes—or anyone just wanting a good read. My only complaint? The author‘s photos weren‘t in color and were very small. #readingtheamericas (edited) 1y
Librarybelle Stacking! 1y
55 likes1 stack add2 comments
blurb
Texreader
post image

I‘m spending a good part of the first day of #scarathlon trying to finish books I started in September for #readingtheAmericas.

blurb
Texreader
post image

I‘d love to hear where everyone‘s been book traveling! Me? Peru! And in my other reads, London, China, and Anguilla

julesG A volcanic island in the Caribbean, London, a parallel universe - just three books going on right now, I might be doing something wrong. 1y
MissyD I am currently journeying through Texas, Mississippi, and Ohio. 1y
Sharpeipup @julesg I read multiple books too so I vote you‘re doing it right.

My books are currently in NYC, UK, UK, and UK.
(edited) 1y
See All 10 Comments
julesG @Sharpeipup Three is low for me. I normally have a lot more going on. I have five non-fiction books hibernating though. 😁 1y
Soubhiville I‘ve gone back in time to the wilderness just outside colonial America. 1y
JamieArc Mine takes place on the Camino de Santiago in Spain (which I was doing 9 years ago) 1y
AmyG India! 1y
TheBookgeekFrau North Carolina 1y
Dilara I am mostly in Azerbaijan, with forays in the Netherlands, the US, Russia and other countries.

1y
Ruthiella One book is set in outer space! Tau Ceti to give a rough estimate. 😆 Plus with other books- India and Russia. 1y
50 likes10 comments
quote
Texreader
post image

This first paragraph of chapter 3 is just such a great example of the author‘s writing style. This is just fun to read. I‘m so glad I picked this book next for #readingtheamericas #Peru @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB

@Doll8455 Mom, the reference to Sterno reminded me of your telling us just this weekend that you bought a bunch of sterno during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Just classic.

Vansa I don't think he would have had much to do with raising his sons, and he didn't really have to “ hold down“ his teaching job at Yale-given his background and family, he was never in danger of losing it! 1y
Texreader @Vansa I‘m pretty sure everything here the author is saying with tongue in cheek. 1y
38 likes2 comments
blurb
Texreader
post image

#wondrouswednesday Thanks @Eggs for the tag!

🍏 Autumn in south Texas can still be pretty darned hot. So when it cools off enough I like to head back out to work on cleaning up the mess (all the dead plants) the 100+ degree heat has left for me
🍎 Happy. It was a good day spent at a client‘s office, with lots of folks whose company I enjoy, and ending the day seeing my mom
🍏 Among others, I‘ve just started the tagged book

Eggs #1 Same here - we‘re going to need more rain ☔️ 1y
38 likes1 comment
blurb
Texreader
post image

No good travelogue is complete without a map!! Here we go!! #Peru #readingtheAmericas @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB

BarbaraBB Must read this! 1y
54 likes1 comment
blurb
Texreader
post image

I‘m very excited about starting this book tonight. Two chapters in and I find the writing style quite fun and the anticipated trek exciting! #Peru #readingtheAmericas @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB

Susanita This is one of my favorites. 1y
BarbaraBB Great choice! I hiked the Inca Trail in the 90s, a four day trekking with Macchu Pichu as its finish. Incredible 😍 1y
Librarybelle Hooray!! It looks good! 1y
55 likes3 stack adds3 comments
blurb
GinaKButler
post image

Up next…Machu Picchu is definitely on my bucket list, so I‘ve been looking forward to reading this. I‘m using it for the South America prompt of my Memoir Around The World Mini-Challenge.

#bookspinbingo
#unreadbookshelf

14 likes1 stack add
review
QBub
Pickpick

In the first 3/4 of Turn Right, Adams weaves together three stories: Hiram Bingham‘s 1911 “discovery” of Machu Picchu, Mark‘s own trek retracing Bingham‘s, and the legal fight over ownership of artifacts taken from Peru. Mark does this with humor and a keen eye for detail. The last portion deals with a return trip along the Inca Trail and ongoing questions about the meaning of Machu Picchu. Totally engrossing, and good prep for a planned trip.

blurb
Texreader
post image

I‘ve already got #Peru well covered but I couldn‘t pass up this beauty.

#readingtheamericas @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB

Susanita I loved it! 2y
GinaKButler This one (Turn Right at Machu Picchu) is on my TBR this year, too. 2y
57 likes1 stack add3 comments
blurb
Conservio
post image

haven‘t been at this reading spot in a few years.

#nature

Tamra Wow, I read the blurb and this sounds fascinating! Stacked! 2y
6 likes2 stack adds1 comment
blurb
Conservio
post image

reading some south american based books while eating thai

#nonfiction #botm #peru

blurb
erank58
post image

For 2022, I've set a goal to read at least one non-fiction book per quarter. I'm not a huge non-fic reader, but have always sucker for anthropology books!

Even though I'm enjoying this, I can already tell it's going to be very naval-gaze-ish 😑 Does anyone have any good anthropology books by non-white authors, or such books written by a member of that specific culture? (For example, a book about Machu Piccu written by a Peruvian author, etc)

blurb
Susanita
post image

1. Platform tent…but I‘d like to try a yurt
2. Camp This & That
3. Tagged
4. Finish Southernmost and maybe something else
#LitsySummerCamp

ImperfectCJ Ooh! Someone else in a platform tent! I think a yurt might be a similar experience? Raised up a bit, still with the sounds of the outdoors, but maybe a little more elegant. At least that's how I envision it. I've never slept in a yurt and mostly know about them from the movie Babies and one quick look at one a couple of decades ago, so I'm pretty much guessing. :-) Great to have you at camp! 3y
33 likes1 comment
blurb
Blueberry
post image

1. Turn Right at Machu Pichu
2. Tony Hillerman
3. Rick Bragg, Ruth Riechl, Anne Lamott

I tag @NataliePatalie

blurb
Blueberry
post image

#12booksof2020 @Andrew65
10th? Day of Christmas

review
Traci1
post image
Pickpick

This book follows Mark Adams travels, as he attempts to recreate Hiram Bingham's expedition to Machu Picchu. I loved reading about Mark's journey and the people who helped him on his way, especially his guide, John. I get why all the history with Bingham was included, but those bits were pretty dull, and I could have done without them. Overall, though I found the book fascinating.

Book 11/20 for #crushtherush
@Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick

Blueberry I thoroughly enjoyed it also 4y
Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick You might need to pick a few new goals for December... you're totally crushing your goal!😁 4y
67 likes2 comments
blurb
Traci1
post image

I adore travel books. I'm currently reading the tagged book, and it is fantastic. But I always struggle to find the next good one. All the "best of" lists tend to be the same books (usually starting with Kerouac and Bill Bryson). And I hesitate to pick up random ones cause I've read some sucky ones. So, I'm looking for recommendations.

? What are your favorite travel memoirs/narratives?

Ruthiella A Moveable Feast by Hemingway. Lovely and not like his fiction really. 4y
GingerAntics I‘m actually about to start Clanlands tonight. It‘s probably not on any lists because it‘s written by two actors, but they‘re good balls and I anticipate a lot of laughter. I‘ll keep you posted. 4y
See All 15 Comments
Traci1 @MoonWitch94 I read that one and like it too, particularly the Italy part. 4y
Traci1 @Ruthiella I hadn't thought of Hemingway - adding that to my list. Thanks 😊 4y
Traci1 @GingerAntics I've got that on my wishlist. I'm hoping I can snag a signed copy at some point - everyone's out at the moment. I definitely want it. 4y
Bookwormjillk I read Travels With Charley and Blue Highways this year and enjoyed them both. I also never met a K2 or Everest climbing memoir that I didn‘t love. 4y
Susanita Can‘t do better than the tagged book! 4y
silentrequiem Second Travels with Charley. Also Last Chance to See. I also have I See By Your Outfit on my TBR. 4y
Traci1 @Bookwormjillk I'm a sucker for mountain climbing stories, too. 4y
Traci1 @Susanita I am loving it! 4y
Traci1 @Megabooks ooh that sounds good. Gonna add that to my list. 4y
Traci1 @silentrequiem thanks. I'll look those up. 😊 4y
Traci1 Thanks for all the recommendations! 4y
58 likes1 stack add15 comments
blurb
Susanita
post image

... #thatmademewanttotravel

With caveats!

Travel to Australia but not for a corporate retreat in a remote forest.

Travel to Shetland but probably not in early February.

Travel to Machu Picchu but not a multi-week hiking trip.

erzascarletbookgasm 😄👍 I‘ll like to read the tagged book. 4y
Susanita @erzascarletbookgasm It‘s so good! He‘s like Bill Bryson but not as cranky. 😎 4y
OriginalCyn620 👍🏻📚👍🏻 4y
38 likes3 comments
review
Blueberry
post image
Pickpick

I really enjoyed this book. Nonfiction memoir. Told half in the past with Bingham "discovering" Machu Picchu and then in current time by author having a little Bingham obsession. It isn't stuck on the discovering part. It talks a lot about who was there first, second, third... ?

61 likes1 stack add
blurb
Blueberry
post image

😀 Turn Right at Machu Picchu
🤔 The Talented Mr. Ripley
🤨 Apostles: Travels Among the Tombs of the Twelve

@NataliePatalie @BayouGirl85
#TalkaboutitTuesday

blurb
Blueberry
post image

1. Dolores Umbrage that you said is a really good one. I also dislike Mr. Collins from Pride and Prejudice? and Humbert Humbert from Lolita.
2. as in essential oils...orange, peppermint. As in flowers...lilac.
3. Turn Right at Macchu Pichu, and The Talented Mr. Ripley.

Thanks for the tag @MoonWitch94
#ThoughtfulThursday

MoonWitch94 Thanks for playing 📚☺️👍🏻 5y
50 likes1 stack add1 comment
blurb
Susanita
post image

1. Tagged
2. Death
3. I like to make things with beads.
4. Just the Way You Are by Bruno Mars
#friyayintro

blurb
Curiouser_and_curiouser
post image

I slipped into an op shop or two this week....

I bought the 2 Elif Shafak books I posted about a couple of weeks ago, they were still there 😊

3 Phillipa Gregory books, 2 to add to my Tudor collection

I'm going to try Isabel Allende, 3 of hers....2 are of a series

I've read Atwood's The Blind Assassin, but now I own my own copy!

Aussie - 10 Short Stories & The Slap

Divergent, let's give a go...

The Celestine Prophecy to replace a lost copy

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Nice haul!!! 5y
runswithscissors007 So exciting!!! 5y
Curiouser_and_curiouser @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Thank you! Some are coming away on our holiday this week 😁 5y
Curiouser_and_curiouser @runswithscissors007 Thank you! I can't read them fast enough, and I've run out of space to store them, but I have so many new stories to explore and sets being completed!! It is a little too exciting I think 😉 5y
46 likes5 comments
blurb
Emparr
post image

First book of 2019! More excited than ever to venture to Peru later this year!

1 stack add
blurb
Dolly
post image

It appears this is library book sale weekend in Western Mass! Fill a bag for $20, hernia not included. Friends of the Library in my town have first pick - I‘m friendly. Some of these are books on my TBR others are authors I‘ve been meaning to try. Another sale in the next town over tomorrow and then a HUGE yarn sale at Webs in Northampton, MA. Anyone need lodging?

Dolly When I typed in the tagged book I searched for Turn Left At Machu Picchu, I would‘ve gotten lost in the jungle😂 (edited) 7y
LiteraryinPA These look amazing! 7y
AmyG Owen Meany ❤️❤️❤️ 7y
See All 9 Comments
mabell Close enough, right? 😂😂 7y
Dolly @LiteraryinLititz I know, right. I actually squealed when I saw the Andy Weir book. @AmyG sooo many have this as their favorite book I just have to read it. @mabell Remind me not to go hiking with you 😬 🤣 7y
mabell @Dolly Don't worry, I'll put it in Apple Maps 😂 7y
auntie_jenn we are neighbors! i‘m in south hadley ☺️ 7y
Dolly @auntie_jenn Well will you be hitting the book sales tomorrow in Easthampton and Southampton? 7y
auntie_jenn i just may! 7y
59 likes9 comments
blurb
Readerann
post image

The stack on the left is adopted library books, the others were acquired on my travels. Is it weird that my favorite tourist attractions are the independent bookstores? 😁😍📚 #usedbooksale #collectedworkssantafe #kramerbooksdc

Riveted_Reader_Melissa Not at all!💙👍 7y
11 likes1 comment
review
TorieStorieS
post image
Pickpick

Of the three books that I‘ve read so far for #ReadAroundTheWorld this one is by far my favorite! It‘s a great read- entertaining, totally engaging and also informative about both #Peru and the history of the “discovery” of Machu Picchu! I really loved it!! And the audio version was great too for #AudioColoring! @JenP

33 likes2 stack adds
blurb
readtheworld
post image

Finished two nonfiction books this week -- a travel memoir about Peru and a collection of essays by the incomparable Sarah Vowell.

I'm hoping to get a lot of reading in this weekend; I'm dying to finish The Heart's Invisible Furies!
#weekendreads #fridayreads

keithmalek I've read The Partly Cloudy Patriot twice throughout the years, and still can't bring myself to release it from my collection. 7y
readtheworld @keithmalek It's so good! I have Lafayette and the Somewhat United States on audiobook on hold at the library and am dying to start it. 7y
67 likes1 stack add2 comments
review
Michelle_2187
post image
Pickpick

Read this book after we hiked the Inca trail (photo of us at machu picchu) it was great re-living the trip and knowing exactly the places he was talking about and reminiscing the hike. I really enjoyed the book, the author is really engaging making it an easy read even tho it's non-fiction (Not something I'd usually pick up). I would really recommend this book, and hiking the Inca trail!!! #travel #explore #adventure #non-fiction

6 likes2 stack adds
blurb
LauraBrook
post image

After sleeping for an hour my body woke me up and was all like "hey, let's be more awake after midnight than during the day!" So here I sit watching one of my favorite shows and nearing the end of this book about Machu Picchu. Sigh.
#litsomnia

LeahBergen This books sounds good! 8y
LauraBrook @LeahBergen It really is! I like that it's set up to both follow the author (a journalist) on his Peruvian travels in the MP area, but also Hiram Bingham's work and travels that fold into the narrative, and what locals think and feel about the whole thing. Super interesting! After I finish this, I'm going to pick my friends brain - she's been there at least three times! I think you'll like this book! 8y
Megabooks Same here! 8y
See All 12 Comments
LauraBrook @Booksandcooks Hi, insomnia pal! 👋🏼 8y
LeahBergen One of my friends was there last summer and it sounded amazing! I'll see if she's read this. 👍🏼 8y
readinginthedark 😆My five-year-old son had started watching this when my husband's not around. But it's funny and not too inappropriate, so I let it go. 8y
Sue I hate it when that happens. 8y
LauraBrook @LeahBergen Yes, please check with her, I'm sure she'd like it! I've always wanted to go there, and I want to go more than ever now. @readinginthedark It's really funny, and I'm sure the inappropriate parts go right over his head. My mom loves this show too! @Sue It stinks. Hope you aren't in the same boat tonight! 8y
Sue @LauraBrook I had a rotten night last night so I hope tonight will be better. I hope you get some rest soon! 8y
Reviewsbylola This was my four year old at 3am. 😩 8y
ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled When this happens to me, Im like Tina lying in bed going "uhhhhhhhhh" 8y
LauraBrook @Sue Thanks - ended up with about 6 hours. Hope you got some decent sleep, or that at least tonight will be a good one for you! @Reviewsbylola Ack, I'm so sorry! Don't you wish you could explain to kids about how great sleep is? Hang in there today. @ErickaS_Flyleafunfurled Hahahaha!!! I love Tina. Butts.❤️ 8y
56 likes3 stack adds12 comments
review
Bookishlie
post image
Pickpick

I really enjoyed this. I am a sucker for travel books and when you add honest to goodness research about the area.... And that research deals with Inca's and Peru. Well what's not to like! I would say a solid 4 stars.

review
Susanita
post image
Pickpick

A very enjoyable and informative book suitable for armchair travelers as well as real-life adventurers. The author deftly weaves together 3 phases of exploration Machu Picchu and the Inca trail: Spanish conquest, Bingham's discovery, and his own modern-day trip in Bingham's footsteps. He also discusses such diverse topics as Peruvian politics, 80's music, the Quechua language, and the virtue of a good pair of socks. Like Bryson but less cranky!

review
JSW
Pickpick

Easy read; part travel memoir, part history of Hiram Binghams travels to Peru. Wry humor, good descriptions of the locations, and interesting factoids throughout.

1 like1 stack add
blurb
JSW
post image

My Sunday goals: finish the top two and start the third. Drink lots of tea in my amazing swears mug from @musemonthly. Listen to jazz CDs because I'm old school like dat. You?

BookishFeminist That mug 👌🏼 9y
JSW @BookishFeminist IKR?! you can order via Muse Monthly. I ❤️ @musemonthly 9y
musemonthly Yaaasssss 9y
5 likes3 comments