Inca Trail Porters

Porter threatment

Porters Working Conditions:

In April 2002 a new law was introduced to set a minimum wage for all porters on the Inca Trail.

This has followed years of exploitation. This wage is 55 Peruvian Soles per day which is about US$ 19. It may not seem a lot but wages are all relative to livings costs and compared to other professions 55 Soles is quite well paid. Even though the law exists it is not being enforced and many companies are still paying their porters as low as US$ 5 per day. In 2002 the maximum weight that a porter can carry was limited to 20kg (15kg load + 5kg personal items).

All porters have their weight checked by government officials at the start of the trail. However even this system is open to abuse and many tour operators get their guides and assistants to carry large loads across the checkpoint where they are dropped and left for the porters to pick up. Many trekkers who have hired an extra porter are also asked to carry their bags across the checkpoint to be given to the porters after they have been weighed. (and Many Travel agencies are sharing porters once they are on the Inca trail that’s why most of the are overloaded and there are agencies that include porter service on their prices because they don’t care they only want to sell Inca Trail)So even with the new regulations and a weigh-station at the beginning of the trail it is still possible to see porters carry loads of up to 35kg or more.

Quechuas Expeditions Porter(chaskis) are very well equipped with proper Hiking equipment…