Journey to the sacred mountain

*3-day retreat add-on*

Views of Apu Ausangate

Extend your retreat experience and deepen your connection with these sacred mountains.

We’ll spend 3 days together as we journey to Apu Ausangate, a pilgrimage place for many paqos, shamans, and healers from around the world.

Join us as we embark upon this sacred journey to the high mountain known as Apu Ausangate. In the Andean traditions + cosmovision, “apu” is the Quechua word used to refer to the spirits, energies, and deities that reside within a mountain. Apu Ausangate is one of the highest mountains in all of Peru, standing at a towering 6384 meters above sea level (20,944 feet). During our pilgrimage, we will be housed by a beautiful family in rustic accommodations at the base of this holy mountain, in the village of Pacchanta (about 14,000 ft above sea level).

Known by many as “the father of all mountains”, and “the gran maestro (great teacher)”, Apu Ausangate is a beautiful + magnificent glacial mountain that is said to protect the people and inhabitants of the surrounding villages and mountain ranges. This mountain deity holds a special significance among the locals, and particularly within the Q’eros population. Many of the Andean priests or medicine people (curanderos + paqos) must make a pilgrimage to this sacred mountain at some point in their training before they can move to the next level on their path.

We will be accompanied on our pilgrimage by our dear paqo, Victor Chura Quispe, who has a deep and loving relationship with this powerful mountain being. Victor is a Pampamisayoq medicine man from the Q'ero communities in the high Andes of Peru, and has been leading people to Ausangate for years in order to awaken their highest potential. It is Victor's experience and viewpoint that in order to truly form a meaningful connection, one must sit for at least 3 days with any spirit or energy before it opens to you fully.

We will spend three days together fully immersed in the energies of this humbling mountain, meditating with its spirit and connecting with the sacred lakes + healing hot springs. During this time we will commune with the elemental beings and dive deep into offering ceremonies, karpay initiations, and other Andean ancestral teachings determined by Victor, based on the energies + experience level of the group.

Many people find their way to this mountain from afar after receiving a dream or vision of the mountain calling to them. Apu Ausangate embodies an ancient Grandfather energy, holding the space for you to seek guidance + support on your path. The mountain has a special way of “doctoring” both the physical + spiritual bodies, assisting in creating deep processes of transformation and healing. Ausangate also holds the Altomisayoq energies, those of the most highly respected teachers, that can serve as gateways between ordinary and non-ordinary realities.

This journey is for those that are ready to take the next step on their path of healing, transformation, and spiritual evolution. No experience is necessary, though we highly recommend a willingness to open your heart + mind, and to bring your sense of adventure and wonder!

trip itinerary

june 24 - 26, 2024

Day 1: monday (june 24)

We’ll enjoy a decadent breakfast at our Cusco hotel this morning before our private shuttle arrives to transport us on our 3-hour ride to Pacchanta, the town located at the base of Apu Ausangate. We’ll stop along the way to give offerings to the mountain spirits, an expression of gratitude and a prayer asking that they receive us in a good way. Once we arrive in Pacchanta, we will settle into our rustic accommodations and enjoy a home-cooked lunch together. Afterwards, our Q’ero paqo Victor will lead us in a hallpay ceremony, sharing the sacred coca to open our hearts and begin to forge our connection with this sacred mountain. Depending upon the weather and energies of the group, we may receive further teachings with Victor and/or have an opportunity to soak in the healing hot springs before eating dinner together and getting some rest for the day ahead.

Day 2: tuesday (june 25)

This morning we will wake early to greet the sun and enjoy a hearty breakfast before we journey deeper into the mountain for a day of teachings + ceremony. Options include hiking or riding horseback as we make our way to a sacred lagoon to receive today’s teachings + initiations in the Q’ero Andean wisdom tradition. We will connect to all the elements and learn more about this powerful mountain teacher and how to work with him. Later this afternoon we will return to Pacchanta, where we will soak in the hot springs and enjoy a warm dinner together. **Lunch today will be very light, likely consisting of local potatoes, cheese, and perhaps avocado. We recommend bringing your own snacks to ensure you have all the sustenance you require for the day. (You’ll have a chance to purchase snacks ahead of time in Cusco, or on our way to Pacchanta.)

Day 3: wednesday (june 26)

After meeting for breakfast this morning, we will come together to further deepen our connections to these sacred energies, offer our gratitude to Apu Ausangate, and close in ceremonial circle before departing for Cusco. Once we arrive in Cusco mid-to-late afternoon, our time together will conclude. Please ensure you have your own lodging arranged in Cusco for this evening.

**Please note this itinerary is subject to change based upon weather and availability. While we have every intention of sticking to these plans, Peru can be full of surprises! We will be sure to keep you in the loop should anything shift as our journey unfolds.**

your investment:

$450

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what’s included:

  • Private round-trip ground transportation between Cusco and Pacchanta

  • 2 nights shared accommodations in local family home {rustic}

  • All meals beginning with breakfast on Day 1 and ending with breakfast on Day 3

  • Entrance fee to Ausangate

  • Entrance fee to Pacchanta hot springs

  • Horseback riding (optional)

  • Authentic Andean Q’ero wisdom teachings with paqo Victor Chura Quispe

  • Translation from Quechua-Spanish-English from Dora Fronek

  • All ceremonies + karpay initiations

  • Endless hot herbal tea + filtered water

*Further details regarding lodging, food, and packing list will be provided to confirmed retreat participants with a serious interest in joining us on this journey.