My wake up time of 1:30AM came awfully early, but given that I’d gone to bed at 8PM I did manage to get a few good hours. The van from Flashpacker Connect, the tour company, arrived right on time at 2:15, and we were off. There was just three of us; a youngish couple from Denver and me, so there weren’t any further stops in Cusco, which was nice. The skies were clear and the stars were very bright. I wished that I could have identified them but we turned a lot and I don’t know my stars that well anyway. We had blankets and pillows, but after about 90 minutes, we turned onto a VERY bumpy dirt road, with lots of switchbacks and some elevation gain, so there was no sleeping for me. The entire trip took about 3 1/2 hours.
The reason we went so early was to beat the crowds. The story about Rainbow Mountain is that until 5 years ago it wasn’t a destination at all, and at times it had some snow cover, so the bright mineral colors weren’t all that visible. But the real turning point was social media. So while 3 years ago there may have been 300-400 people a day making the trek up the adjacent mountain, now there are 1,500. So the tour company I went with makes a point of getting there before the other buses. We arrived at 5:30, and it was COLD! There was snow on the Vinicunca mountain range and there was a brisk wind. I smartly added my rain pants to my gear, and my rain coat, just for the wind protection.
The hike to the top is meant to be about 2.5 miles, with an altitude gain of about 2,000 ft. We took it slow, since we were starting at an elevation that had been the highest I’d hiked to earlier in these travels — 14,200 ft. As the sun came up it illuminated the Vinicunca valley and the colors of the hills were bright. There were many local women and men with horses offering rides up, and leading the horses, and as we’ve seen before they were wearing colorful shawls or sweaters and sandals. While we are all bundled up. When we reached the summit, there was a local man offering coca tea and other snacks, as well as a Rainbow Mountain stamp for your passport. The tea helped, as we had another climb to get to the viewpoint. And that’s where the wind and cold really kicked in.
Not only could you see an unobstructed view of the multi-colored mountain below, but we were also right next to Ausangate, the highest peak in the Cusco region, at 20,945 ft. It is revered in Incan mythology and I believe it is the peak that you can see in the distance from Saqsaywaman, where one resting place was purposefully situated with a view to it. There were a couple of hawks soaring right above us as we took our photos and marveled at the two distinctly different mountains. The colors on Rainbow Mountain are all created by different kinds of mineral content.
On the way down we took a detour to the left to see the Red Valley, which was simply breathtaking. Also rich in minerals, at one point the area had been leased to a Canadian mining company. But the local people, who have been herders (sheep, llama, alpaca) for decades revolted, and the government rescinded the lease. So the valley can stay as it is. Which allows these herding communities to continue to trade with the agricultural areas at lower elevation. The tourism has changed things a bit, but the feeling is that tourism is better than mining, and it does bring money in.
We were down the mountain and in the van by 9:45, and what had been an empty parking lot was now jam packed with tourist vans. We encountered scores of people heading up as we headed down. I very much appreciated the decision by the tour company to force an early start. We drove back along that bumpy road for about an hour and a half and came to a small community, and entered a gated property where lunch was waiting for us. And as is typical, it was a multi-course meal with more dishes than room on the plate. After filling us up, we headed back to Cusco, another 90 minutes or so, and I am so very happy to be back in my room and warm.
Tomorrow is another early start, as I catch a 10 hour train ride south to Puno, at the edge of Lake Titicaca. The adventure continues.
Those colors are striking!
Baller!