Peru Adventure: Ausangate – If you’re looking for a beautiful and more remote trek for your Peru Adventure; then the Ausangate Circuit Trek is a perfect fit.

The Ausangate Region is a special place; it’s far enough outside of Cusco to be considered remote but it’s also near enough to be accessible for a wonderful adventure. Often you will encounter small poblados (small local communities); with many farming llamas for their way of life. Many children will greet you, often after ‘dulces’ (sweets) to savour. Also a lot of the houses & shelters in the area don’t have basic utilities such as electricity, gas, tap water; things we take for granted in more developed countries.

This is a remote region to trek in, but close enough to Cusco to be accessible. You’ll trek close to the Ausangate Nevada along with taking in Rainbow Mountain (Mt. Vinicunca) and Red Valley. Whilst circumnavigating the Ausangate nevada you’ll hit many high mountain passes, getting up to around 5,200m.

For more information about the Ausangate region you can read our article.

Highlights

Visit traditional herding villages nestled in the mountains
Soak in the hot springs of Upis and Pachanta
Summit the impressive 5,050m Campa pass
Get a chance to spot endemic wildlife such as vizcachas and Andean foxes

Day 1

Cusco - Tinqui - Upis

You'll depart from your hotel in Cusco early this morning for a scenic 3-hour drive to the village of Tinqui (3,800 m), located at the base of the Vilcanota mountain range. Along the way, you'll observe local farmers and herders with their alpaca flocks. In Tinqui, you'll meet your crew of mules and their handlers, and start your trek by heading towards your campsite in Upis (4,400 m). The first day of trekking is relatively smooth and passes through hilly grasslands where you may encounter vizcachas (chinchilla-like rodents), condors, and foxes. Once you arrive in Upis, you will be rewarded with views of the Ausangate glaciers rising above the site. End the day with a refreshing soak in the nearby hot springs.

Accommodation: camping
Overnight: Upis
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 2

Upis - Jatun Pucacocha

Get ready for a day of more intense trekking. From your campsite in Upis, you will climb through the Arapa pass (4,800 m) before reaching Uchuy Pucacocha (“little red lake”), one of the several dazzling mountain lakes in the region. Marvel at its waterfalls, and continue onwards to Jatun Pucacocha (“big red lake”), where you will camp along its shores.

Accommodation: camping
Overnight: Jatun Paucacocha
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 3

Jatun Pucacocha - Ausangate Base Camp

After a healthy breakfast in Jatun Pucacocha, you'll start your journey to Ausangate Base Camp. You will cross two different passes today. The Apuchata pass (4,900 m) comes first, followed by a descent to the turquoise Laguna Ausangate Q'ocha. After taking some time to rest and enjoy the scenery, you will continue up Palomani pass. At 5,200 m, this is the highest pass of the trek. The ascent is challenging and steep, but well worth it. Upon reaching the summit, you'll be treated to spectacular views of the snowcapped peaks of Tres Picos and Puka Punta. Now, you'll start the descent toward Ausangate Base Camp (4,510 m). Here, amidst the highlands meadows and icy moraines, you'll set up camp for the night.

Accommodation: Camping
Overnight: Ausangate Base Camp
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 4

Ausangate Base Camp - Pachanta

The last day of pass crossing begins with a tranquil hike from Ausangate Base Camp to Lake Ticllacocha. Along the way, more vizcachas and perhaps even rare camel-like vicuñas may be roaming the green grasses of the valley. Then, rise up for your final challenge: Q'ampa pass (5,050 m). You'll see some strikingly beautiful glaciers as you tread over the snowy scree to summit the pass. Once you reach the top, you can see the towering Apu Salkantay. After descending the pass, you'll set up camp for the last time at Pacchanta (4,360 m), and rest in the soothing waters of the site’s hot springs.

Accommodation: Camping
Overnight: Pachanta
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 5

Pacchanta - Tinqui - Cusco

This morning, enjoy an easy 3 to 4-hour hike downhill from Pacchanta back to the village of Tinqui (4,237 m) where you'll eat lunch. After lunch, bid farewell to the muleteers, and transfer to your hotel in Cusco for some well-deserved rest.

Overnight: Cusco
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch

Tour Info

whats included

Breakfast x 4
Lunch x 5
Dinner x 4
Private Transport – collection & drop-off
Professional bilingual guide
Cook
Horsemen & mules
All camping equipment (Sleeping bags to hire + Walking sticks)

whats not included

Hotels before & after (can be organised as part of trip)
Extension trips to Machu Picchu
Tips for crew
Domestic flights (can be organised as part of trip)
Any additional extras

Joining arrangements

There will be a pre-trek briefing held usually the evening before departure, at your hotel, to go over the details of the trek and any specific requirements not already captured

Food & Water

Prior to setting off we recommend you steer clear of street food and only eat in good restaurants, to avoid any stomach complaints. Peruvian food can be spicy, it can be strong and rich for many European diets. Likewise with tap water, it is largely untreated, so please avoid at all costs on arrival and stick to bottled water only or sterilised water if you have the right equipment.

Special Diets

We’ll ensure that we cater for all of your dietary needs, at the point of booking we’ll collect this information from you. We can secure special menu requests also for your trek party.

Trekking Crew

We are able to customise our treks to suit you, but usually our treks are guided by a professional bilingual guide, arriero (horseman) and mules to carry all equipment (passenger horses also available on request), and a mountain cook. They become a large part of your trekking expedition and it’s a great experience working together.

Rated 5 out of 5

Michael H – Feb Sun, 2019

ALONE IN THE BEAUTIFUL RAINY WILDERNESS WITH A WONDERFUL TEAM FOR 5 DAYS

Wow! The trip was really amazing. I can absolutely recommend it, if you like to stay outside! Trust me.

I did a private tour with a 4-person team (guide, nurse, horseman and a cook). They took really care about me. The guide were very flexible, so we could spontaneous add the rainbow mountain to our tour (we arrived before the tourists so we could create perfect pictures).
The guide (Edu) was an excellent storyteller. I took the time to explain me a lot about the Inkas (incl draws in the sand for better understanding).
The nurse (Roxana) was a very kind and lovely person! She was really caring about me.
The trekking it self was most of time with the guide and the nurse only. At the camps and while the eating, the cook and horseman were with us (and did an awesome job).
The cook (Theo) was an amazing chef. Every meal was created on gas and consisted three courses. All of the meals were “muy muy muy rico” (yes, really delicious)! We ate soup, dessert, lasagne, pasta, banana cake, pancakes, fish and much more (yes all was created on the fire! Crazy, isn’it?)
Sure, also the horseman (Wilfredo) was a absolut nice person.

You see, the team was really great.

And also the landscape. We were while the rainy season (in february). We had every kind of weather (sun, rain, hail, snow) multiple times per day. No problem if you have a good equipment. And the nature looks very breathtaking. The green is so nice and everywhere nice rivers. If I would go again, I would also pick the rainy season. Because I think the nature is much more impressive.

Most of the time, there was nobody else (not even locals). Only the nature.

Before the tour i stayed in contact with the tour operator (James). He was very courteous. We changed the phone numbers and i could ask him every question i have while packing at any time and did a quick response via whatsapp.

Tips:
– Take a water filter system with you. There are a lot of rivers with water from the glacier.

At last: The tour was quit long, strenuous and the evening/nights were cold. I liked it. It’s just important that you be aware of this. There were two hotspring on the way (first and last day). According to the plan, we would only spent ca. 1 hour there on the last day. So if you can, maybe you should do the trekking in 6 days, instead of 5. Then you have more time, to enjoy everything. But the most hard thing for me was the cold weather in the evening and night. So i was lucky with 5 days ;).

So thanks to Unu Raymi Expeditions and their wonderful employees.

Best Michael