Vinicunca — Rainbow Mountain — sits at 5,200 metres in the Cordillera Vilcanota, about three hours south-east of Cusco. Its red, ochre, mustard and turquoise bands are the result of iron and sulphur oxidising in sedimentary layers that only emerged in the last decade, as the glacier covering the ridge retreated. Peruways runs the full day-trip from Cusco.
Photographers come for the colours, which are sharpest around midday when the sun is high. The trek itself is short — about 1.5 hours up from the parking area — but the altitude makes it feel longer. Horses are available for the climb; most people hike up and ride back.
Local Quechua guides from the Pampachiri and Chillihuani communities lead the walk, and the route passes alpaca herds and apachetas (stone cairns) left by Andean travellers for centuries. The viewpoint behind the summit also opens up the Ausangate massif at 6,384 m.
Book the Vinicunca day tour with Peruways — pickup from your hotel in Cusco is around 4 a.m., and you are back in the city by late afternoon.
