The stripes
Slopes like a rainbow.
Christian Morales Callo — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Glendora de Valo — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Havardtl — CC BY 4.0 · PoolPs — CC BY-SA 4.0
An Andean mountain about 5,036 metres high whose slopes are striped red, yellow, green, purple and pink as if painted with a brush, hence the names «mountain of seven colours» and «Rainbow Mountain». The colours come from different minerals in the layers of rock. The mountain was unknown to tourists until the mid-2010s, when the snow that covered it melted, its photos spread, and it became one of Cusco's best-known trips. Today thousands of visitors come on full-day tours. Tours leave Cusco before dawn, then visitors hike about five kilometres uphill on a trail through pastures and herds of llamas and alpacas to the lookout near the top. From there you see the coloured stripes ahead, a red valley, and the snow-capped peak of Ausangate on the horizon. The extreme altitude makes the walk very tiring even for fit people, so do not go before acclimatising for at least two days in Cusco. You can hire a horse for most of the way. It is cold and windy, so bring warm clothes and sunscreen.
Slopes like a rainbow.
Along the trail.
Snow on the horizon.
Cusco region, about three hours by road south-east of Cusco, then a hike
Yes, because of the altitude above five thousand metres, even though the distance is not long. Acclimatise in Cusco for at least two days; you can hire a horse for most of the way.