Who doesn’t like a rainbow? We get opportunity to see it very rarely. What if you get a chance to touch it and roam on it? Yes, you can feel it by visiting Peru’s Rainbow Mountain.
Vinicunca, also known as Winikunka or Rainbow Mountain, is a striking geological landmark because of its colorful stripes which are made up of layers of 14 different minerals. Located in the Andes Mountains near the city of Cusco, the mountain has become a popular side trip for travelers.
Vinicunca, also called Montaña de Siete Colores (Mountain of Seven Colors), is located in the Andes in the Cusco region of Peru, and until 2013 when the ice that had always covered the mountain melted away, the colours beneath were completely unknown. The colors look more natural in person, but they’re not dull either. You can still see the distinct red, yellow, green, and purple layers even in overcast light.
The colours are a result of the ice that once covered the area. When it began to melt, the water mixed with minerals in the ground, turning the Earth into the many colours you see today. Red areas are due to rust mixtures, yellows are due to iron sulfide, purples are from goethite or oxidised limonite, and greens come from chlorite.
Colourful rock formation of the Andes Mountain range that is located at 5,200 metres above sea level on the majestic Ausangate glacier. The uniqueness of this place lies not only in the breathtaking beauty of the landscape, but also in its priceless geological naturalistic value.
According to the Cultural Landscape Office of the Decentralisation of the City of Cusco, the seven colours of the mountain are due to its mineralogical composition: the pink colour is due to red clay, fangolitas (mud) and arilitas (sand); the whitish colouring is due to quartzose, sandstone and marls, rich in calcium carbonate; the red is due to claystones (iron) and clays belonging to the Upper Tertiary period; the green is due to phyllites and clays rich in ferro magnesian; the earthy brown is a product of fanglomerate composed of rock with magnesium belonging to the Quaternary period; and the mustard yellow color comes from the calcareous sandstones rich in sulphurous minerals.
In mid-2010, mass tourism came, attracted by the mountain’s series of stripes of various colours due to its mineralogical composition on the slopes and summits. The mountain used to be covered by glacier caps, but these melted due to climate change.