The Inca Bridge or Inka Bridge refers to one of two places related to access to Machu Picchu, in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

. One of the two was built by the

Incas The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, ( Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The adm ...

as a secret entrance to Machu Picchu for the

Inca army The Inca army (Quechua: ''Inka Awqaqkuna'') was the multi-ethnic armed forces used by the Tawantin Suyu to expand its empire and defend the sovereignty of the Sapa Inca in its territory. Thanks to the military mit'a, as the empire grew in size ...

The Inca Bridge (trunk bridge)

This Inca Bridge is a part of a mountain trail that heads west from Machu Picchu. The trail is a stone path, part of which is cut into a cliff face. A twenty-foot gap was left in this section of the carved cliff edge,DeLange, op. cit. over a 1,900-foot drop, that could be bridged with two tree trunks, otherwise leaving the trail impassable to outsiders.

The Inca Bridge (rope bridge)

This Inca Bridge was an ancient Inca grass rope bridgeEncyclopædia Britannica, ''Hispanic Heritage in the Americas'', "Machu Picchu"
/ref> out of Machu Picchu, crossing the

Urubamba River The Urubamba River or Vilcamayo River (possibly from Quechua ''Willkamayu'', for "sacred river") is a river in Peru. Upstream it is called Vilcanota River (possibly from Aymara ''Willkanuta'', for "house of the sun"). Within the La Convención ...

southeast of Cusco in the Pongo de Mainique. Every one or two years, a replica bridge is constructed from dried grasses and wood. The biannual changing of the bridge is celebrated as a major event by locals.

Other rope bridges

The

Q'iswa Chaka Queshuachaca (also spelled ''Keshwa Chaca, Q'iswa Chaca, Keswachaka, Q'eshwachaka, Qeswachaka, Q'eswachaca, Q'eswachaka, Queshuachaca, or Queswachaka''), is the last remaining Inca rope bridge, consisting of grass ropes that span the Apurimac Rive ...

(

Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, a Native South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language **So ...

for "rope bridge"), believed to be the last remaining Inca rope bridge, spans the

Apurímac River The Apurímac River ( que, Apurimaq mayu; es, Río Apurímac, ; from Quechua ''apu'' 'divinity' and ''rimaq'' 'oracle, talker') rises from glacial meltwater of the ridge of the Mismi, a mountain in the Arequipa Province in the south-western ...

near Huinchiri, Peru in the province of Canas. The Mawk'a Chaka (Quechua for "old bridge", hispanicized spelling ''Mauca Chaca''), an historic suspension bridge over the Apurímac River, near Quebrada Honda, the town of Curahuasi and the Cconoc thermal baths (), disappeared by the end of the 19th century after 300 years of service. There are still remnants of the access tunnels and the bridge supports. Local organizations are planning to rebuild the bridge with its access roads and tunnels to serve the hiking community and provide a view of the gorge.

References

;Citations ;Sources
DeLange, ''Machu Picchu Ruins'', "Inca Bridge"
– Definition, and two pictures (close-ups of the trunk bridge) Bridges in Peru Buildings and structures in Cusco Region Inca {{Peru-bridge-struct-stub

The Inca Bridge (trunk bridge)

The Inca Bridge (rope bridge)

Other rope bridges

See also

References