Guardian of the Cusco region, Ausangate is the fifth highest mountain in Peru with its 6,384 meters high. For centuries it has received many names, the best known being ‘The Roof of the Inca Capital’ and ‘Vinicunca’, which means ‘Cerro de Colores’.
Located in the district of Pitumarca (in the province of Canchis –region of Cusco-, in the south of the country), Ausangate is considered the most important mountain in the Andean worldview. And although it is also one of the most beautiful is one of the least known abroad, always overshadowed by that impressive ‘Wonder of the World’ called Machu Picchu. AUSANGATE TREK PACKAGES: Ausangate Trek 5 Days Ausangate Circuit 7 Days
A walk through these parts constitutes a very special experience, combining the fact of being at such levels with the enjoyment of an outdoor activity and the contemplation of a visual wonder.
How to get? Ausangate is the fifth highest mountain in Peru, its maximum altitude is 6,372 meters above sea level. It is located about 100 kilometers southeast of the city of Cusco. You leave the city in a vehicle, the estimated travel time is 3 hours, when you arrive in Chilca, the 3-hour walk begins towards the mountain of colors (you walk about 4 km ½ approx.). It can be done in a private car or by hiring a tour.
The road to Ausangate is one of the most amazing experiences you can have, enjoy the scenery, be accompanied by birds and native animals during the road is only part of all that this great opportunity offers, you can find yourself, where you will receive the protection and wisdom of what was once sacred to our culture.
About 100 kilometers southeast of Cusco, Peru, there is a rainbow mountain.
It is the mountain of the Seven Colors, also known as Vinicunca or Rainbow.
The pilgrimage in the Peruvian Andes in search of the Snow Star The mountain is located in the Vilcanota Range at 5,200 meters above sea level, in the Pitumarca district.
Its slopes and summits are dyed by stripes of intense shades of fuchsia, turquoise, lavender and gold.
The visual show offered by Vinicunca has attracted visitors since the beginning of 2016, according to Haydee Pacheco, a tourism official at the Municipality of Pitumarca.
In just over two years, travelers who take pictures with the summit went from a few tens to about 1,000 a day, say Peruvian media, despite the cold and altitude of the place. Thanks to its popularity, also driven by social networks, the hill became a common destination in the rankings of tourist attractions in the world.
For example, in August 2017, it appeared on the list of 100 places to visit before dying recommended by travel experts on the Business Insider website.
The tourist boom is quite recent, but the history of the mountain and its colors began millions of years ago.
Minerals The rainbow aspect of Vinicunca is due to "a complex geological history of marine, lake and river sediments," according to a report by the Office of Cultural Landscape of the Decentralized Directorate of Culture of Cusco.
10 rock formations of unsurpassed beauty These sediments, transported by the water that previously covered the area, date between the tertiary and quaternary periods, that is, from about 65 to two million years ago. Over time, the sediments were forming layers (with different grain sizes) that today look like the stripes that attract tourists so much.
The movement of tectonic plates in the area raised these sediments until they became mountains.
5 tourist destinations threatened by excess visitors (and two are in Latin America) Then they acquired their striking colors because of the oxidation of their minerals, exerted by the humidity of the area, and their erosion, explains César Muñoz, a member of the Geological Society of Peru (SGP),
Muñoz and the study of the Office of Cultural Landscape detail the composition of each strip according to its color.
Pink or fuchsia: mixture of red clay, fangolites (mud) and sand. Off-white: sandstone (quartz sand) and limestone. Purple or lavender: marl (mixture of clay and calcium carbonate) and silicates. Red: argillites and clays. Green: clays rich in magnesium ferro (mixture of iron and magnesium) and copper oxide. Yellowish, mustard or golden brown: limonites, calcareous sandstones rich in sulphide minerals (combined with sulfur).
Ausangate Trek 5 days, will take you Ausangate mountain itself is considered a holy mountain by local people and is the deity of Cusco. Since pre-Inca times the mountain has been a place of worship and offerings and this tradition continues today.
Machu Picchu,This stunning site situated on a mountain ridge above the Sacred Valley is the best-preserved relic of Inca civilisation and South America’s most popular attraction with an estimated 3,000 people visiting on a typical day.
