The rainbow mountain at Palccoyo is made up of layered layers of sandstone. These fine-grained rock layers contain large amounts of iron and other minerals, which give the mountains pigments for the different color stripes. The Checacupe Bridge is one of the attractions on the route to the Palcoyo mountain. Bridges were an important part of the Inca highway system and an excellent example of Inca innovation and engineering. They were frequently used by Chasquis (Inca runners or messengers) to send messages to the entire Inca empire
PALCOYLLO MOUNTAIN
We are going to star our adventure to this incredible mountain range by picking you up from your hotel in Cusco around 05:00 and board our transportation and drive to the southern part of Cusco. through our way we are going to see farming areas of corn, potatoes, quinua and some other products cultivate by the andean people, you we’ll see the great Urubamba river that stars on the Vilcanota mountain range
After a 2 hrs. of driving we’ll arrive to village of Checacupe where we will make a brief stop to appreciate a small Inca bridge and a colonial bridge that are in the area.
Afterwards we continue our journey for about 1:40 hrs. to the place called “paradero” our trail head, once your team will be ready we star our adventure, in our ascending we can see parts of the mountains of colors around, as we will gaining altitude of which we will have a better views, our ascending will take us 45 minutes, which is a less demanding trek than that of Vinicunca.
From the viewpoint of Palcoyo we can appreciate the 3 mountains of colors, which have colors that resemble the rainbow for their multi-colored layers. In addition we can appreciate a curious forest of stones which is composed of rocky peaks formed by the natural erotion of rain and wind.
After enjoying the beauty of this place, we will return to the parking lot to enjoy our delicious box lunch in our driving back to the city of Cusco where we will be around 17:00 hrs.
Afterwards we return by the same way where or driver wait for us to take us to our restaurant to enjoy of our lunch.
We are going to be back in Cusco around 5:00pm.
Note: On the trail head there will be the change to hire a horse (S/80.00) per person, round trip), not included in the price, you can pay for it on the trail head.
Going to the Rainbow mountain riding a horse take usually 1hr. approximately but just until the place Mirador, from there still we have to walk for 30 minutes, on a stipe way up.
IMPORTANT:
To enjoy and explore of this tour we recommend to stay at least 2 days in Cusco, to get a good adjusting to the altitude to avoid any problems with it and doing some of this tours as the City Tour, The Sacred Valley of the Incas or Moray and Maras.
Read our Terms & conditions (link).
INCLUDES
- Pre-departure briefing
- English speaking professional and official tourist guide.
- Transportation (van or bus) with professional authorized driver
- First-aid kit including emergency oxygen bottle
- 24-h guest service: please ask for the emergency number available during your time of visit.
NOT INCLUDED
- Entrace fees to visit the sites included in the program.
- Travel insurance.
- Tips to our staff (guide & driver).
Important: read our Terms & conditions (link)
WHAT TO BRING
The area where we are going to do our adventure half day tour is in Cusco and its surroundings. Despite of the time of the year, there are always seasonal variations: it can be sunny and still cold or rainy but dry and kind of mild. Tourists must be ready and equipped to enjoy their tour under safe conditions. The following packing list gathers items that you will need for this tour.
Clothing
- Wear clothes in layers: It is hard to guess what the weather will be like, that’s why layering is really helpful. Make sure you are using wickable clothes, cotton ones keep much moisture on them.
- Use short or long-sleeved t-shirts for your first layer.
- Pack lightweight jackets of fleece or microfleece for the second layer.
- Wear a waterproof jacket for the third layer.
- Carry gloves to protect your hands from the cold.
- Wear hiking boots or trekking shoes.
- Use thick socks
- Pack a hat in case is going to be sunny day.
Additional Accessories
- Lip balm.
- Sunglases.
- Sun cream.
- Baby wipes.
- Hand sanitizer.
- Trekking poles.
- Batteries or flashcards for your camera.
Snacks & Drinks
- Energetic bars.
- Dried fruit.
- Bottle of water (1-2 Lt).
- Candies
Beware that there will possibly be no signal for cell phones up in the mountain. Personal identifications are always required.