Three rainbow peaks
Mineral stripes.
PsamatheM — CC BY-SA 4.0 · PsamatheM — CC BY-SA 4.0 · PsamatheM — CC BY-SA 4.0 · PsamatheM — CC BY-SA 4.0 · PsamatheM — CC BY-SA 4.0
A quieter, easier alternative to the famous Vinicunca rainbow mountain, about 4,900 metres up in the mountains south of Cusco, where the slopes of three neighbouring peaks show long stripes of red, yellow, green and purple, painted by different minerals in the rock over millions of years. The big difference is that the walk here is short and fairly easy: an almost level path of about thirty to forty minutes from the car park, instead of Vinicunca's long, hard climb, with far fewer visitors. It suits anyone wanting to see the coloured mountains without a gruelling trip. Along the way you see herds of llamas and alpacas tended by locals, and at the top of the path is a «stone forest» of strange rock pillars carved by the wind, with wide views of distant snowy peaks, among them Ausangate. Though the walk is easy, the altitude is very high and the air thin, so acclimatise for at least two days in Cusco first. It is cold and windy and the weather changes fast, so bring warm clothes and a rain jacket.
Mineral stripes.
Wind-carved pillars.
Fewer visitors.
Near Checacupe, Canchis province, about three and a half hours' drive south-east of Cusco
Palccoyo is far easier, a short, almost level walk with fewer visitors, while Vinicunca is more famous but a long, hard climb. Both are very high, so acclimatise first.