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Your journey begins at around 4 am. We embark on a relaxing 3-hour scenic drive through the South Valley to the incredible Rainbow Mountain. The start of your trail goes along a scenic view of a flowing stream with crystal clear waters. Once you reach the trailhead, breakfast is served surrounded by herds of llamas and alpacas. You get to witness the locals in their colorful traditional outfits, speaking the ancient language of the Incas, Quechua. The women´s outfits are the most intriguing, with their stunning layered skirts, each layer a different bright color. The entire hike is at very high altitudes and a steady climb. Although it is a gradual climb, its important to hike at a considered pace because it is easy to suffer from altitude sickness this high up.
Once at the top, the jaw dropping beauty and strikingly vibrant colors of the mountain will take your breath away. Later, we head back to the trailhead for a scrumptious 5-course lunch prepared by our talented chef. Finally, we drive back to Cusco with an estimated arrival time of 6:00pm.
This morning your guide will pick you up from your hotel to begin our incredible Rainbow Mountain Trek Adventure! Set out on our 3-hour scenic drive through the South Valley. See amazing views of farming Inca terraces, valleys and rocky mountains. Our guides will review the itinerary for the day and safety tips to ensure you are fully prepared for the next two days. The trek begins in a large green valley, where you will see hundreds of alpacas, local farmers, and the beautiful Ausangate Mountain towering in the distance. On the trail, conquer the first pass of the trek, the Pucacocha pass. At around (4,876m/ 16,000 ft), the pass sits just above Pucacocha Lake, and the massive Ausangate Mountaing that is situated in front of you. Our destination for the night is Anata, enjoy a beautiful evening surrounded by jaw dropping landscape at the base of the Andes Mountains.
Wake up bright and early between 4am and 5am with hot tea or coffee delivered to your tent. Eat a hearty breakfast to fuel up for your final climb to Vinicuna (Rainbow Mountain). Upon arrival, you can take all the time you want soaking in the amazing 360-degree vistas of the surrounding lands and explore the mountain itself. Take some time and really enjoy the beauty of nature that surrounds you. It truly is a magical place! The hike down to where our van will be waiting for you and here we will celebrate a successful journey, enjoy lunch before departing back to Cusco (3 hours). Arrival time back in Cusco will typically be around 5pm or 6pm at your hotel.
This morning drive for 2 hours until we reach the Pitumarca Village where we will stop to get some fresh, local produce and then continue for 1 more hour to Qesuno community. Along the way, view amazing canyons, ancient Inca terraces which are still farmed today, rugged mountains and some isolated communities. Begin our hike gradually heading up to the Kayrawiry community where we have lunch. After enjoying lunch and a little rest, continue our hike towards RAINBOW MOUNTAIN. Once there enjoy the amazing stripes of color, which is the highlight of the day. We will also see condors, Cara Cara falcons and picturesque lakes. Finally, we hike downhill to Kayrawiry Lake, where our camping tents will be ready. It is time to enjoy afternoon tea and appetizers before dinner.
We wake up early and appreciate the majestic views of some of the highest peaks in the Andes and the depths of the most beautiful valleys. We will start with a 2-hour steep climb to Condor pass at (5,100m/ 16,732ft). Along the way, have gorgeous views of the turquoise lakes and the views of Ausangate Glacier Peaks. With any luck, see avalanches from the glacial hills with ice crashing into the lakes below.
Once you reach the summit, be located right in front of the sacred Apu Ausangate. Enjoy the valleys of alpaca grazing in the hills. It is postcard perfect! head downhill and reach our lunch spot. After another delicious lunch and a little rest, we continue with our hike for 3 more hours to Ausangate Lake where you will enjoy hot drinks and settle into our campsite for the night.
Hike even closer to the wonderful views of the Ausangate Glaciers, experience view of the lakes and waterfalls. See Llamas, Alpacas as well as Condors and Falcons. Discover unbelievable views of the surrounding area. It is possible there are maybe even some snow on the trail. There is a good chance you will see wild Vicuñas, which are the rarest animals still living wild in Peru. They produce the finest and most expensive wool in the world. After taking a few amazing pictures, continue to our lunch spot, with a gradual descent for another 1.5hours to a beautiful area where you will enjoy your lunch. After lunch, it will be another 2.5-hour hike to arrive at our campsite in JAMPA.
After enjoying the spectacular views of the Vilcanota Range, we descend back down to enjoy a delicious lunch. In the afternoon, we descend towards the Qomerqocha Lake just before arriving at Pacchanta after a 5-hour walk. Pacchanta is a little community with attractive hot springs where we can enjoy a relaxing dip. Then we take our transportation back to Cusco.
Pick up at your hotel in Cusco at 6am in the morning. Our private transportation will take you to the starting point of our trek at Tinqui. Hike for the next 3 hours and enjoy lunch before continuing our hike to our first camp. Today we only hike for a few hours until we arrive at the village of Upis. Here, take the opportunity to soak in the hot springs, while enjoying coca tea, and relaxing your muscles until dinner.
This morning start with a hike up Arapa pass (4,958m/16,266ft). Descend to our lunch spot near Puma Cocha – a deep blue lake and a perfect spot to enjoy the views. Enjoy another delicious and hearty meal. Along the hike, see llama herders, Ausangate Mountain range towering above us. Our expert guide will explain the history and culture of the indigenous people of Ausangate as well as the landscape.
After lunch, hike up to the second pass, Pucacocha (5,000m/16,404ft) where, if we are lucky, we may see condors soaring above and vicuñas grazing in the wild. Descend to our campsite of Chillca where we will be surrounded by towering mountains and incredible glaciers. Here, we can also watch for the glaciers crashing into the lake below! The camp will be set up for you to change and rest your weary legs while dinner is being prepared.
Today, starts with Chillca pass (5,051m/16,571ft), a very colorful mountain. After crossing the pass you enter into the Red Mountain valley, a vast desert landscape with surrounding vibrant colors. See llamas grazing below. When we approach the top of the pass, have incredible views of the valleys below! From here, we descend to circle lake and continue walking along a trail until we are presented with our last climb to Rainbow Mountain. This natural, colorful phenomenon is beyond words! Enjoy lunch in the surrounding area, head back down the valley to make our way to the beautiful Lake Ausangate. Here camp will be set up and waiting for us to rest our weary bodies.
Hiking a shorter distance today, we pass beautiful small glacial lakes, lush green everglades, and walk along the edge of the river. Today, is a great day for spotting wildlife so we will keep an eye out for Condors, and Vicuñas! When we get to camp hot drinks and appetizers will be ready. The tents will again already be set up so you can settle in before dinner.
As we only have one pass to cross today, we will take it slow today and enjoy the deep blue lakes and colorful glaciers along the way. If you are brave, you are welcome to jump into the cold water and take a swim! Views of the massive Ausangate Mountain are visible, today get to enjoy them from a different angle along with views of Pacchanta Valley. Our goal is to get to the hot springs of Pacchanta, enjoy a nice, hot soak with the views of the Ausangate Mountain above.
Take it easy today as we make our way back to the starting point of Tinqui, walk on relatively flat ground and celebrate our accomplishments. Arrive at the village, have our final lunch on the trek while everything is packed up in our private transportation to head back to back to Cusco, you will be dropped off at your hotel around 5pm.
Note: This itinerary is subject to change without prior notice according to weather conditions or other events which are beyond our control. We will always do our best to follow the itinerary as closely as possible.
