May 22, 2026 — 12:59pmAn Australian tourist hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in Peru has died after falling down a ravine, according to state-owned news agency Andina.Cusco Police Region Chief General Virgilio Velasquez said the man, believed to be Mathew Cameron Patron, 53, had tripped and fallen on Wednesday afternoon while walking with a group of tourists and a guide.The Inca ruins of the lost city Machu Picchu.Getty Images/iStockphotoAndina reported on Friday that the body of the missing tourist had been found in an abyss along the trail by members of Cusco’s High Mountain Rescue Unit (USAM) on Thursday afternoon.Velasquez said Patron and his wife arrived in the city 12 days ago and headed to the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu from Ollantaytambo district, a four-day journey.“We have information indicating that he apparently tripped while crossing a wooden bridge, and he likely tried to hold on to the wooden railing, but it gave way and he slipped into the abyss along with it. Unfortunately, he fell down the ravine,” Velasquez reportedly told Andina.Authorities would investigate the circumstances surrounding the fall.They were waiting for the body to be recovered so it could be transferred to Machu Picchu Pueblo, the town at the base of the Inca citadel, and then to the city of Urubamba, police said.Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has been contacted for comment.From our partners