Eight Feet in the Andes

This Andean frolic involves Dervla Murphy, her nine-year-old daughter Rachel and Juana, an elegant mule, who together clambered the entire length of Peru. Beginning on the Peruvian border with Ecuador, the eight feet of mule, child and Dervla Murphy walked and rode to Cuzco, the ancient Inca capital, over 1300 miles to the south. With only the most basic necessities to sustain them, the intrepid journey was marked by extreme discomfort, occasional danger and even the temporary loss of Juana over a precipice. Yet mother and daughter alike were unflagging in their sympathetic response to the perilous beauty and impoverished people of the Andes.