Pacchanta Hot Springs

Pacchanta is a small herding community at about 4,300 metres below Ausangate, and its thermal pools are simple - stone and concrete basins fed by hot springs, with no facilities to speak of - but the position is exceptional: you sit in hot water at the same height as the summits of most European mountains, looking directly at the glaciated south face of Ausangate, at 6,384 metres the highest peak in the Cusco region and one of the most important apus in Andean religion. Trekkers on the Ausangate circuit finish here after four or five days above 4,500 metres, which is when the pools are most appreciated. It can also be reached by rough track from Tinki. The community keeps alpaca herds and there is basic lodging; nights at this altitude are severely cold and the water cools fast once the sun goes.

What you actually see

• The pools - basic stone and concrete baths fed by hot springs.
• Ausangate - the 6,384-metre glaciated face directly in view.
• The altitude - hot water at 4,300 metres on open puna.
• The trek end - where the Ausangate circuit finishes.

When to go

May to September. Two to three hours; longer if staying. Reached by rough track from Tinki or on foot at the end of the circuit.

Honest expectations

Facilities are minimal - basic changing, no hot showers, simple lodging. At 4,300 metres it is bitterly cold outside the water, and altitude affects those arriving by road. The track from Tinki is rough. Water temperature and cleanliness vary.

Nearby

Tinki and Ocongate are on the road; the Ausangate circuit and Rainbow Mountain are in the same massif.