Ausangate Trek to Rainbow Mountain – 6 Days

Ausangate Trek to Rainbow Mountain – 6 Days starts at the beginning of the Vilcanota mountain range and traverses past the highest peak in the Cusco region and then loops around Ausangate. Besides, our unique trek loop itinerary lets you catch the sunrise at Rainbow Mountain. Spend your days soaking in the massive peaks and your evenings enjoying the stars. Our guides will cater to your needs and explain all about the landscape surrounding you.

Come and be one of the first adventurers to make this Ausangate trek and Rainbow Mountain in 6 days; the beauty of this raw and dramatic landscape will help you understand why the park is designated one the most beautiful routes for adventure lovers in Peru. 

We will pick you up at 5 am from your hotel; we drive for 3.5 hours to the trailhead, a small town of Upis, passing Urcos Pass (4,000 m/13,123 ft) Oncogate town along the way. We will enjoy some breakfast at the trail trailhead and meet our local horseman and horses and get ready for the adventure.

After breakfast, we will start hiking for three-hour toward the northwest face of the impressive Ausangate mountain, enjoying the sceneries with llamas and alpacas. We will have lunch around noon by the skirt of Ausanagte Mountain.

Following lunch, we will climb for another 1.5 hours uphill to the first pass called Arapa Pass (4,800mt./15,748ft.) and then approximately 1:30 hours to your evening campsite at Yana Qocha (4,650 mt / 15,256 ft.), which is a place with amazing views around of the Ausangate mountain. Happy hour is around 5:30 pm, and dinner is at approx 7:00 pm, depending on hiking speed/weather.

After breakfast, we begin our trek with a 2-hour downhill and 1 hour and 30 minutes uphill to the second pass of the trail, called Puka Qocha. Along the way, we will enjoy colorful lakes surrounded by high mountains and unbelievable hanging glaciers, watch and hear for the glacier crashing into the tarns below! At the top of the pass, we will have a beautiful view of Ausangante Mountain. We will enter into the Red Mountain valley, an intact landscape with vivid colors all around, and llamas eating grass right close to you; as you approach the lunch place, we still have a fantastic view of the Rocky Mountains and have delicious lunch.

Following lunch, we continue trekking uphill for 2 hours to reach the Warmisaya Pass (16,404ft.); from this pass, we will spot the Rainbow Mountain in a further distance, and the views are still awe-inspiring. After witnessing the sights and taking some pictures, we will walk the last 30-45 minutes downhill to reach the second camp located in Qomer Qocha (15,354ff.). Happy hour is around 5:30 pm, and dinner at approx. 7:00 pm depending on hiking speed/weather.

Today is a great day that awaits us because we will explore the Rainbow Mountain, also called the 7-Color Mountain, one of the most beautiful trails in the Cusco region! We will wake early with the coca tea delivered to your tent, and then we will enjoy breakfast. After breakfast, we will hike up for about 1 and 30 minutes before reaching the famous Rainbow Mountain to beat the large crowds, explore in solitude, and take pictures.

At Rainbow Mountain, we will spend approximately 45 minutes (depending on your trekking speed and weather conditions). After exploring the epic Rainbow Mountain, we will go back to our camp by the same path that we took; along the way, we will have a chance to see some peasants still using the llamas as in the Incas time.

Once we get to the camp, we have time to rest and enjoy the delicious lunch. In the afternoon, we hike for 3 hours along the skirt of colorful mountains to reach our campsite, called Ausangate Qocha (4,300mt. /14,107ft.), which is at the bottom of one of the Ausangate glaciers. Happy hour is around 5:30 pm, with dinner at 7:00 pm.

After breakfast, we leave camp about 7:00 am and climb steeply for 3 hours to the highest point of our whole trail called Palomani pass (5,100mt. / 15,010ft.).

From the pass, there are extensive views of all the peaks in the Cordillera Vilcanota and some other colored hills which are still close by; we will then walk downhill to get the valley part, where we will eat our lunch, in the late afternoon we will walk up for 2 more hours to the next camp spot located at an elevation of 4,700 m / 15,420 feet. We will have happy hour around 5:30 pm, subsequently dinner.

After breakfast, we will hike gradually up to the Jhampa pass (5,400mt. /17,716ft.) for 2 hours. We have incredible views of The Three Peaks and enjoy amazing views of the glacier peaks right in front of us at this pass.

As well as will hopefully get a glimpse of some wild vicuña and deer, and if we are fortunate, a condor, subsequently, we will arrive at the last campsite called Ninaparayoq 4,700mt. / 15,420ft. We will enjoy lunch and after that, the whole afternoon is for relaxing at this last camp with happy hour and dinner following.

Today is the last day of our trek through the Peruvian Andes, so we get up early for another great day; after having breakfast, we’ll hike downhill the Pacchanta valley for about 2-3 hours to Pacchanta town, the final point of the Ausangate trail.

Pacchanta is a rural community that boasts some well-known thermal baths where we can enjoy a nice dip with fantastic views of the faces of Ausangate. We’ll eat our last lunch prepared by our private chef at this place. After having lunch, we’ll have a farewell ceremony for our muleteers, cooks, and guides. We will eventually drive back to Cusco and drop you off at your hotel. All meals included, except the last dinner.

• Pre trek Briefing (briefing at the hotel).
• Pick up from your hotel on the morning of departure.
• Transportation from Cusco to the trailhead at the beginning of the hike by private car.
• English / Quechua / Spanish professional guide speak.
• Second Tour Guide over 12 people.
• Tents – 2 people in a 4 person tent which allows for greater comfort, and also storage of backpacks.
• Thermarest air-inflate comfortable sleeping Mattress.
• Cook and assistance of the Cook.
• Cooking equipment.
• Snacks.
• Daily tea service.
• Dining equipment including chairs and tables.
• Portable environmental Biodegradable toilet (The Pett).
• Food service in the campsites (6 breakfasts, 6 lunches, 5 dinners, 6 snacks) – nutritionally balanced menu.
• Vegetarian and free gluten food for no extra cost.
• Personal trekking food – nutritionally balanced menu (Buffet).
• Horseman and Horses. (to carry our camping equipment, food and 8 kilos of your stuff like sleeping bag and mat as well as clothes) We never overload our horses (well Animal Welfare).
• Ausangate & Vinicunca Rainbow Mountain entrance fees.
• Camping spots fees.
• First-aid kit.
• Emergency oxygen bottle.
• Insurance policy for our Guide, Cook & Horseman.

• Extra expenses.
• Dinner – Day 6.
• Pillows.
• Not detailed meals.
• Travel and health insurance (bring copies with you please).
• Sleeping bags (it can be rented from us for US$ 30 for the entire trip).
• Walking sticks (it can be rented from us for US$ 20 for the entire trip).
• Tips (optional).

• Original passport.
• Travel insurance.
• Sleeping bag.
• Walking sticks.
• Rain gear (jacket and pants) or poncho.
• Strong footwear, waterproof trekking boots are recommended.
• Extra socks are a must.
• Sandals or plastic slip thongs are also good to give your feet a chance to breathe at night if you want to take them.
• Warm clothes include jackets, fleeces, gloves, scarf, and knit / tour beanies.
• Thermal clothing is also recommended, especially for sleeping.
• Flashlight and extra batteries.
• Camera, films, and batteries.
• Hat or cap to protect you from sun, rain, and cold.
• Sunblock.
• Toilet paper.
• Snacks: biscuits, energy bars, chocolate, raw fruits, muesli, etc.
• Non-disposable canteen (Nalgene type) and water for the first morning.
• We recommend bringing water purification tablets in case you pick up water from streams.
• Your own special medicines you may need, paracetamol, second skin blisters, etc.
• Small towel.
• Cash – sufficient for snacks, tips, and souvenirs.
• Eager and adventurous spirit to enjoy your hike.

We also offer a special service only for you or your group, you have the power to choose the size of your group and the date of departure, we will never add other people since it will be organized only for you.

Our Ausangate Trek to Rainbow Mountain – 6 Days private service, includes additional items such as:

• Extra horse to ride.
• North Face 4 season tents.
• 02 waking poles per person.
• 1 duffel bag to carry all your sleeping bags, self-inflating pad as well as your clothes.
• Private Transportation round trip
• Sleeping bag / Silk Liner included.
• The tour guide is just for you. And of course, we pay a little bit more to our Staff and Guide.

We offer 3 kinds of service, each with different price ranges and you can book in any of these services according to your convenience, we just need you to be a minimum of 02 people to organize your trip on the date that suits you, all our services are 100 % guaranteed.

We are a direct TOUR OPERATOR that never passes clients to other agencies as most agencies do it here in Cusco to save operating costs with poor quality.

We will make the trip even if there are only 02 people in your group.

What if i suffer from altitude sickness?
Our tour guide is professional, he will treat you accordingly with the oxygen tank, we always provide oxigyn tank for this kind of tour.