Montaña de Colores // Rainbow Mountain

    For this trip, the wake up call was almost as early as it was for Machu Picchu. At about 3:30 AM we bundled up in our biggest sweaters and scarves and headed out to be picked up by our tour company. We had reserved the tour two days earlier for 70 soles or about $30 USD. We were promised breakfast, lunch, and transportation. However, when we arrived at a breakfast spot at the base of the mountain we were given just bread, jam and butter that was then followed with a speech from the guides telling us how difficult the hike would be due to the high altitude (thanks for the hearty meal to fuel our day then...I guess). We were also told that if we wanted, we could take horses up instead of walking...for $20. We weren’t thrilled about spending the money but when I had hiked Cotopaxi in Ecuador just a month earlier it was just about as high and still pretty tough towards the end. We decided that the horses might be worth the cost. We made a wise decision in the end.

    There were points on the trail where we had to get off of the horses and walk because it would have been too difficult for them to carry us up the slopes. On those little stretches, we found ourselves breathing heavier than we had expected after. Other people in our group had decided to walk (at least most of the way) and a couple of them ended up throwing up from the exertion and altitude.

    When we got to the top, we were starving and there were vendors selling snacks and water but the only money we had was 5 soles which is equivalent to a little more than $1.50. I asked the vendor what that could buy us and she said… a single Snickers bar. We decided that we “weren’t us when we were hungry” and handed over the money and each ate half of the Snickers (Elise and I both swear that a candy bar has never tasted better in our whole lives).  

    The view on top was really pretty but we thought that if we hadn’t used horses, it may not have been worth it. It was a cool picture, but there wasn’t anything else to look at or do. Not so fun fact: this tourist attraction is relatively new because the mountains used to be covered in snow so you couldn't see the colors but due to pollution and climate change, the snowcaps have melted in the recent years. More fun fact: the reason that the mountain has all of the different colors is because there are minerals in the rocks that change colors with oxygenation and other environmental factors.

We walked the entire way down which was about 6k in distance. The view was still pretty and there were llamas EVERYWHERE. Afterwards, we were served a real lunch with vegetables, chicken, rice and more to recover after the long walk. We were pretty ecstatic to be getting a real, good meal for the first time in awhile.

    It took what seemed like forever to get back to Cusco where we were dropped off in the main square and left to find our own way home. All was well and good since we grabbed dinner and drinks before heading back but we still weren’t thrilled with the tour company for not even telling us that they wouldn’t be taking us back to the hostel.

    We got back feeling pretty exhausted and fell asleep the second that our heads hit the pillows. Words of advice: cool trip but you can catch some similar views at Painted Hills in Central Oregon and you won’t have to take a horse to get there in order to not feel like you’re dying. It was experience nonetheless and now we are off to the next adventure!

Chao por ahora,

Claire