I think I am a pretty seasoned traveler. I have my favorite travel blogs that I follow, and I have some really good travel hacking mentors that show me the ways of budget travel. I have learned over the years how to see some amazing places in the world without paying the crazy prices that you might see when you book through a professional tour group. I understand that not everyone is willing to step out into the unknown, and I also want people to know that I don’t look down on people that choose to go the route of paying a professional to set up their travel adventures. My personal mantra is that I want to see the most amazing places of the world while knowing that I was able to get the same view for a lot less money than someone standing next to me. It’s a game to me, and one that I love.

I have an list of places that I want to get to before I die. Because I am a dreamer, the list is quite long and keeps getting longer. I am ok with this. I know it stresses my wife out a little because she likes having lists that she knows she will actually complete. I on the other hand love having a list that I know is impossible to accomplish because I want to keep exploring. One of the top items on this list has been Machu Picchu. It has been on the number two spot for many years. Number one has been getting my wife to Prague, which will be a different blog post after we knock this 27 year promise off the list this summer…but I digress.

There are certain places in the world that seem to capture my attention. Machu Picchu is definitely one of those places. Not only do I find every photo I come across amazing to look at, but I also love the history behind it. I am fascinated with Indian ruins. This has made living in the Southwest of the United States an amazing experience for me. In Indian ruins terms, experiencing Machu Picchu is the pinnacle of intrigue. And when I had the chance to be in Peru earlier this year, this was going to be my chance to cross this major milestone off my bucket list!

So I went to work doing my research on going to Machu Picchu. There are four main things that need planning when you decide to do Machu Picchu on your own without going with a tour group:

• Travel to and from your gateway city for catching a train to get to Machu Picchu. In my case, it was Cusco, which is an amazing city to visit in its own right. I chose to fly into Cusco from Lima, knowing that the altitude would affect me a little. Because Cusco is at 11,000 feet above sea level, it definitely will take your breath away with any exertion.
• Deciding which train and service you want to take to get from your gateway city to Machu Picchu. There are two main options to choose from: Inca Rail and Peru Rail. I chose the Bi-Modal service with Inca Rail.
• Making your reservation for admission to Machu Picchu. In peak travel seasons (June to September), it is strongly advised to purchase tickets ahead of time. Regardless, you cannot purchase tickets upon arrival at the park. I chose to purchase my tickets online with the Ministry of Culture. There are other options available with other websites that will add a surcharge. You can also buy your tickets in Cusco at the Ministerio de Cultura.
• Once you’ve made your way to the entry to the park, you now have one last decision: hike to the citadel from Agua Calientes (at least a 90 minute hike and high altitude) or take a 20-minute bus ride for $24 round-trip.

I did my research and I was ready to go! I caught my flight to Cusco from Lima, my Uber app worked great to get to my hotel, and all I needed to do was validate my ticket for my ride to Agua Calientes for the next morning. When I went to get my ticket validated I was told that the local farmers were planning a strike that might affect my train. I didn’t think much about it…until the next day.

When we arrived at the Inca Rail office where we would board the bus to take us to the train station it was apparent that there was a problem. The local farmers has road-blocked every road leading into and out of Cusco and were preparing their protest on the street that runs in front of the Inca Rail office. The strike would last for the next two days, and it was clear that the roads were so heavily barricaded that we would not be able to make it to Machu Picchu.

I was not going to get to strike Machu Picchu off my bucket list after all because of a strike…

I was so close, and I was so disappointed. I had been dreaming about this for so long. And now, just to have that dream be smashed caused me to remember a main principle that I live by in travel: Always have a back-up plan.

This principle is not just about emergencies and evacuations, it’s just a good travel principle when it comes to flight delays, vacation interruptions and circumstances outside of your control. Don’t leave the rebooking of your flights or the rearranging of your travel in someone else’s hands. As silly as this sounds, this is why I tend to know the major hubs of each domestic U.S. airline. This has helped me again and again to get out of being stranded at airports.

In my case of missing Machu Picchu, I had two options: stay in a city where farmers were on strike or cut my losses and head back to Lima and enjoy the Miraflores community for a couple more days before catching my flight home. I knew that flights to/from Lima are super frequent and so we grabbed a cheap hotel in Cusco for the night and headed out the next morning.

I’m bummed I missed Machu Picchu-but I’m super grateful I had a back-up plan. I know that I will get a chance to attempt Machu Picchu again in the future. I also know that so many people have dreams like this get squashed and don’t know that they will ever make it back for a second attempt. My biggest take-away from this experience is that I had no margin for interruptions. Had I booked my return flights to the U.S. even one day later, I would have been able to make it to Machu Picchu. If something is big enough to be on a bucket-list, I now know that it should have margin for the unexpected. Lesson learned…

I was asked a lot of questions about the farmers strike that caused me to miss out on going to Machu Picchu. At first I was so frustrated because they interrupted my travel plans. After getting back I challenged myself to think differently. Every place we visit all over the world is someone’s home and has challenges they face that can collide with our plans. It was a good opportunity to see the experience through the eyes of compassion. Another lesson learned…