Full Day Rainbow Mountain Trek

OVERVIEW

The simple act of walking,
taking in the landscape and observing the character of a mountain or any other
natural spot makes you feel alive and connected to the land. Vinicunca, also
known as the “Mountain of Colours” or “Rainbow Mountain,” provides us with a
natural colour palette that is hard to find anywhere else on Earth. Your
experience will be enriched with Peruvian gastronomy and cultural
sustainability. As with all our programs, our purpose is to provide
professional and personalized service of the highest level, with one of our
primary focuses being your safety. This is especially important on such a
high-altitude hike (see our safety precautions at the bottom).

ITINERARY

We’ll begin bright and
early with a 3:30am pick-up from your hotel. We will travel roughly
2.5 hours along a paved road to the community of Pitumarca before turning onto
a dirt road for another 45 minutes until we reach its end and our beginning.
After stretching our legs for a bit and having a light breakfast, we will start
our hike towards Rainbow Mountain. The first half of our walk is a 9km, roughly
4-hour ascent to an elevation of 5,029m (16,500ft). This section will vary from
moderate to very difficult. Once we arrive, we will be treated to unparalleled
views and a huge sense of accomplishment. We will stay long enough to truly
savor it and take some photos before descending to lower altitudes and warmer
climes. On the way back, we will take a bit more time to see the glacial
lagoons, where we will stop for lunch and to take in the wide-open landscapes
of the area before returning to our starting point. Our driver will be waiting
to take us back to Cusco, arriving between 6:30pm and 7:30pm.

ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS:

This trek’s difficulty
level is moderate. If you haven't been at altitudes over 2000m (6561ft) in the
previous 2 weeks, we suggest that you take a few days to acclimatize before
doing this trek. If you are not used to hiking, we suggest that you hire one of
our horses (see above). This is a round trip service going at a slow pace and
which you can stop at any time to get off and hike. You can also use and even
share the horse service to carry your backpack or other things. The maximum
weight is 90 kg (202 lb).

We suggest that you use
hiking poles if you are not used to hiking or have any foot or knee injuries.
This trek can be hiked by people of almost any age, from 11 to 65.

Get some coca leaves to
chew and also to give to the locals along the way (we can tell you where to buy
them). This is a traditional Andean way of greeting and exchanging gifts, and
the locals will be very appreciative.