Ausangate Red Lake to Rainbow Mountain Trek – 2 Days

The best way to spend your time in Cusco is trekking to unknown places, Vino Cocha (wine – red lake) is one of those places to trek, and it can be combined with the Rainbow Mountain in 2 Days. As Palccoyo Trek or Perolniyoc Waterfall, this route is also totally off the tourist track. The Vino Cocha lagoon is one of the most outstanding lagoons of the Vilcanota mountain range; its colorful formation makes travelers fall in love with this amazing place.
The Ausangate Red Lake, is located at over 4.780 m.a.s.l. At the base of the Ausangate Mountain and Santa Catalina, the origin of the reddish color at this lake, it is due to the high concentration of minerals, especially iron, which oxidizes due to contact with water.

Ausangate red lake and Rainbow Mountain Trek highlights:

• The Ausangate red lake aims to become the new fashion destination.
• Discover the latest hidden gem of Cusco.
• You will have the opportunity to appreciate the Ausangate mountain, the fifth highest mountain in Peru.
• See the herds of alpacas.
• Enjoy the Rainbow Mountain before the crowds.

Acclimatization:
We recommend you be in Cusco at least 2 days before your trek to be acclimatized to Cusco’s altitude so that you won’t have a problem during the tour.

About us:
Choquequirao Expeditions is a direct local tour operator in Cusco – Peru; we never share our tours with other companies as most of them do to minimize operating costs. We don’t work with intermediaries or have hidden prices; we have the best local guides and professionals. We guarantee that your travel expenditures will support the local economy, and improve the lives of local Peruvians, due to the simple reason we are a local business!

At agreed time, we come and pick you up from your hotel in Cusco, to then drive for about 3.5 hours to the Comunity of Huchuy Phynaya, where our cook, will prepare a nutritious breakfast to start with the hike, the path is uphill for 2 hours and on the trail, we will see some herd of llamas and alpacas close to us, and pretty scenic views. The pretty scenic views around the Ausangate Red Lake will be undeniably beautiful, that will make us feel in a different world.

After we will descend to the starting point of our hike, where our cook will be waiting for us with the delicious lunch, subsequently we will drive to the community of Hanchipacha for 40 min, where our team will set up your tents,  in the evening we will enjoy our tea time and dinner. At night the sky will treat us with clear view to shoot amazing Milky Way photos.

Accommodation: Tent (4 season tent, 4 person made tent for 2 people which allows greater comfort).
Maximum Altitude: 4.780 m.
Meals: Breakfast,  Lunch, Tea and Dinner.
Distance of walking: 06 Km / 3.72 miles.
Highlights: Ausangate Mountain, Red Lake, Vino Cocha.

A great day awaits for us, we will be the first ones at rainbow mountain, since is just 30 min driving from hanchipacha to the starting point of our hike, after our nutritious breakfast, we drive to Qayrahuiri, where we start the hike to Rainbow Mountain, the path is gently uphill for 1 hour, Upon our arrival we will take enough time to savor this unique place and take the most beautiful pictures with no people.

Next, we visit the Red valley of Rainbow Mountain, for that, we will make the last effort hiking up for 30 minutes from rainbow mountain, this spectacular Red Valley is a chain of streams and mountains that show a unique natural reddish pigment due to the abundance of mineral and that shows this spectacular landscape that was already considered one of the potential attractions of the Cusco region.

After we are done with red valley we will hike down to Qayrahuiri, where our transport will be waiting for us to take us to the lunch spot, and subsequently we drive back to you hotel in Cusco for about 3 hours and 30 minutes. End of our adventure.

Maximum Altitude: 5.038 m / 16,528 ft.
Meals: Breakfast,  Lunch, Tea and Dinner.
Distance of walking: 04 Km / 2.48 miles.
Highlights: Rainbow mountain, beat the crowds, the Red Valley.

• Pre trek briefing (briefing at the hotel or Office).
• Pick up from your hotel on the morning of departure.
• Roundtrip private transportation.
• English / Quechua / Spanish professional guide speak.
• Second Tour Guide over 12 people.
• Local food service (2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 1 Dinner, snacks).
• Vegetarian and free gluten food for no extra cost.
• First-aid kit including emergency oxygen bottle.
• Entrance fee to Ausangate Red Lake & Rainbow Mountain.
• Master Chef.
• Horseman and Horses. To carry our camping equipment, food and 8 kilos of your personal stuff like sleeping bag and mat as well as clothes. We Never overload our Horses (well Animal Welfare).
• Dining equipment including portable chairs and tables.
• Tents – 2 people in a 4 person tent, which allows for greater comfort and storage of backpacks.
• Thermarest air-inflate Comfortable sleeping Mattress.
• Portable environmental Biodegradable toilet.
• Camping spots fees.

• Extra expenses.
• Dinner – Day 2.
• Travel and health insurance (bring copies with you please).
• Sleeping bags (it can be rented from us for US$ 15 for the entire trip).
• Walking sticks (it can be rented from us for US$ 10 for the entire trip).

• A travel insurance card is essential.
• Sleeping bag.
• Walking sticks.
• Rain gear (jacket and pants) or poncho. Plastic ponchos can be purchased for about $ 2 in Cusco.
• Strong footwear waterproof trekking boots are recommended. Extra socks are a must.
• 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.
• Your own special medicines you may need, paracetamol, second skin blisters, etc.
• 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 Red Lake to Rainbow Mountain Trek – 2 Days private service, includes additional items such as:

• Extra Horse to ride.
• North Face 4 season tents.
• Sleeping bag / Silk Liner included.
• 02 Waking Poles per person.
• 1 Duffel Bag to carry all your sleeping bags, self-inflating pad as well as clothes.
• Private round trip transportation.
• Tour Guide to explore Red lake, Rainbow Mountain and Red Valley all day. And of course, we pay a little 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.

what is the altitude of the Ausangate red lake?
The red lake of Ausangate is located over 4780 m.a.s.l

When is the best time to go to Ausangate red lake?
Best season: Dry season (May to October)

Is there horse rental?
If you have trouble walking on this trek, we recommend you rent a horse (there are horses at the starting point), However, horses will only take you the uphill seccion not on downhills since there is a risk to fall off from the horse.