On a recent trip to Peru, Humboldt director Simon took the chance to explore Peru’s new rainbow mountain, Pallay Punchu.
You may have seen Instagram images of the original rainbow mountain, Vinicunca, usually with some filters to bring out the multicoloured mountain. It’s become hugely popular, and justifiably so, however this has brought overtourism with often around 2000 people a day heading from Cusco on a day trip or an overnight trek.
A less visited rainbow mountain is found at Palccoyo and in the last year, a third mountain has been discovered, Pallay Punchu.
For years this mountain lay hidden under snowy peaks but due to climate change the white mountain has now transformed to show its red and blue hues.
Pallay Punchu, also known as Pallay Puncho del Apu T’acllo, is a 4-hour drive from the old Incan capital of Cusco. Often referred to as the “Mountain of the Rainbow Poncho,” it features vibrant, naturally occurring stripes of colour that resemble the intricate patterns found in traditional Andean textiles. The name “Pallay Punchu” comes from Quechua, with pallay meaning “to weave” or “to pick up,” and punchu meaning “poncho,” symbolizing its resemblance to a hand-woven garment.
Due to its location a visit to the mountain, as with the other rainbow mountains, requires an early start. Ordinarily this means a 6am departure from Cusco however due to a landslide close to the start of the trailhead, we had to start earlier, at 4am.
Usually the drive from Cusco, which passes through various towns of the Sacred Valley, takes trekkers all the way to a car park at the start of the trek however the landslide meant that Simon wasn’t so fortunate and had to first do a 2-hour trek to reach this point, close to the town of Layo. Some people opt to begin the trek from here, but most start from the car park higher up.
Pallay Punchu is at significant altitude. The top is at almost 4900 metres above sea level, that’s an extra 1500 metres higher than Cusco and you immediately feel the altitude.
The views are tremendous, even at the beginning of the trek. A cascading waterfall has a snow covered peak as a backdrop with the bright red sides of the mountain, brightening the view. A farmer and his dog are taking their alpacas to graze by the start point of the trek while in the distance Lake Langui shimmers against the Andean sky.
It’s only about a 45-60 minute trek from the car park to the top of Pallay Punchu, depending on how your body adapts to the altitude. Every step at this height feels like ten. A winding route zigzags up the hill with a mix of slopes and steps which finally takes you to the iconic viewpoint where the mountain looks like shards of metal, pointing towards the sky.
The mountain’s unique geological formations and vivid layers of red and greyish blue are the result of sedimentary mineral deposits over millions of years. Copper and iron create the colours and mining companies are keen to extract the resources from the region. Local villagers are hopeful that tourism will prevent this.
Unlike the more famous Vinicunca Rainbow Mountain, Pallay Punchu is far less crowded, offering a more peaceful and authentic experience for travellers seeking natural beauty and cultural connection. When Simon was there, he was the first person to the top of the mountain, save for his guide Ronald who could have skipped his way to the summit, as Simon struggled for oxygen.
A solo Chilean traveller shortly appeared who was cycling his way from the bottom of South America to the top while far below a small tourist group from Cusco, clearly unaware that the car park was inaccessible, were struggling up the mountain.
It was an incredible feeling reaching the summit and for a moment the effects of the altitude were forgotten as exhilaration took over.
Standing atop of Pallay Punchu with only one other tourist in site was a pretty amazing feeling, especially as the expectation is that the number of tourists to the mountain is expected to significantly increase in the next few years as the mountain gains notoriety.
What goes up must come down and although descending at altitude is easier that ascending, the trek down is still exhausting. Each step now feels like three vs ten though. Unlike Vinicunca, the only way down from Pallay Punchu is on foot, whereas for those struggling with the altitude at Vinicunca you have the option to quad bike back or return via horseback.
When to go? As soon as possible before it gains popularity and ideally during the dry season just so landslides are less likely.
If you’re OK with the long drive there and back, then it’s the perfect destination for adventurous travellers looking to explore a hidden gem of Peru off the beaten path and we highly recommend it.
Contact Simon and the team to plan your own route to the top.
