Cusco and Climbing the Rainbow Mountain

When traveling to Peru, a visit to the Inca capital of Cusco is a must. Initially, we were not interested in the tourist hustle and bustle and opted for a budget-friendly program. It must be admitted, though, that Cusco is truly a beautiful city. In addition to the classic city tour, we visited the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art. Here, we had a genuine A-HA experience. Thanks to the thematically arranged exhibits, we were finally able to place the different cultures (Chavin, Inca, Nazca, Chimu, etc.) chronologically and geographically.

Since we had truly had enough of old stones and ruins, we left the Sacred Valley of the Incas behind and mentally and morally prepared ourselves for the ascent of Rainbow Mountain. This strenuous day trip cannot be found in any guidebook, but thanks to Instagram, it is absolutely hyped. Theoretically, you leave Cusco (elevation of 3,439 meters) at about four o'clock in the morning, reach the parking lot at 4,400 meters around eight o'clock, then hike or ride up the mountain to an elevation of 5,100 meters, and finally, around twelve o'clock, you are herded down the mountain towards the parking lot by your guide. After lunch, you then take the unpaved roads back to Cusco. We didn't want to subject ourselves to this killer program of ascending 1,700 meters in one day. Around noon, we left Cusco and found a nice place to sleep near the parking lot at a more bearable elevation of 4,100 meters. Thanks to good acclimatization, we slept quite well and were awakened in the morning by the passing sprinter vans. After breakfast, we felt ready for our first 5,000 meter peak. The first 200 meters of elevation went surprisingly well, but then it got really tough. Conversation became impossible, and we panted like two old steam locomotives. At an elevation of 4,750 meters, we reached a sort of high plateau and walked gently uphill for about a kilometer. In the meantime, we were frequently overtaken by locals wearing sandals who were running uphill or downhill with their horses - simply incredible, while we were sitting on a rock struggling for air. At around 4,800 meters, we caught sight of our destination and saw the masses of tourists heading towards us. We were really glad that we set off only around 11 o'clock because despite the sun, it was quite chilly and windy. After 2 ½ hours, we finally reached the Mirador and marveled at the Rainbow Mountain. After a short tea break, we felt ready for an exclusive photo shoot with the Rainbow Mountain 😊. Afterwards, we started the return journey, which felt quite long, and we had to take a short break here as well. But eventually, we made it. With slight headaches and the first signs of muscle soreness, we drove down to lower terrain with Maggi.