Qoyllur Rit'i

Qoyllur Rit'i, the Star Snow festival, brings tens of thousands of people to a sanctuary in the Sinakara valley at about 4,700 metres below the glaciers of Colquepunku, in the days before Corpus Christi. It is a Catholic pilgrimage to an image of Christ painted on a rock, and it is simultaneously an Andean rite directed at the apus, the mountain deities, and to Ausangate above all; UNESCO listed it as intangible heritage in 2011. Nations of dancers from eight regions attend, each with its own costume and repertoire, and the ukukus - masked figures in dark wool representing bear-men - police the crowd and keep vigil on the glacier overnight. The custom of cutting blocks of ice to carry down was ended by the communities themselves as the glacier retreated. Conditions are severe: the walk in takes hours, nights are far below freezing, and people camp on open ground.

What you actually see

• The sanctuary - the painted rock image in the Sinakara valley at 4,700 metres.
• The nations - dance groups from eight regions, each with its own costume.
• The ukukus - masked bear-men keeping order and holding vigil on the ice.
• The dual devotion - Catholic pilgrimage and mountain worship in one rite.

When to go

Late May or early June, in the week before Corpus Christi; dates shift each year. Two to three days including the three to four hour walk up from Mahuayani.

Honest expectations

This is a religious event, not a spectacle - photograph with care and stay out of the way of the ukukus, who have real authority. Altitude sickness is common at 4,700 metres. Nights are severely cold, there is no accommodation, and sanitation is minimal. Tens of thousands of people on open ground.

Nearby

Ausangate rises above the valley; Ocongate is the road town below.