Peruvian pilgrimage to the Rainbow Mountain

By Nina Karnikowski
February 18 2017 - 12:15am
The beautiful coloured Rainbow Mountain panorama near Cusco, Peru.  Photo: iStock
The beautiful coloured Rainbow Mountain panorama near Cusco, Peru. Photo: iStock
Pristine lakes line the route. Photo: Nina Karnikowski
Pristine lakes line the route. Photo: Nina Karnikowski
Underway up the mountain. Photo: Nina Karnikowski
Underway up the mountain. Photo: Nina Karnikowski
Local Peruvian women. Photo: Nina Karnikowski
Local Peruvian women. Photo: Nina Karnikowski
The beautiful coloured Rainbow Mountain near Cusco, Peru. Photo: iStock
The beautiful coloured Rainbow Mountain near Cusco, Peru. Photo: iStock
Fragile and beautiful mountain blooms. Photo: Nina Karnikowski
Fragile and beautiful mountain blooms. Photo: Nina Karnikowski

I am scuttling along the dry red earth, my bottom dragging along the surface, my hands pulling me forward, my heart beating like a condor in a cage. Splayed on this Peruvian mountain face, I am terrified. I hiked up here, to over 5000 metres above sea level, thinking my acrophobia must have magically disappeared … until it stuck me here, like a crab on a rock. More fool me for thinking I could conquer this landscape, or indeed my fear.

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