Perhaps 50 thousand Peruvians (and a handfull of bewildered foreign tourist) arrive on foot or horseback to worship the lonely Lord of Qoyllur Rit'i in the region of Sinacara near Ausangate. At over 4600m!

This pilgrimage is demanding. Some devotees ascend up the glacier to 5000m, withstand temperatures well below 0°C, to carry down ice for Holy Water.

Qoyllur Rit'i (or snow star) is an Andean fiesta, but one much influenced by the Catholic Church. The Indian worship of the Apus (hills, mountains and snow-capped peaks) and the spirits living in them, the Wamani, goes back to before the Incas. But this event got Church sanction when Christ appeared at this remote spot in 1783.

The fiesta runs 3-days & 3-nghts without pause. It is exhausting — a cacophony of noise, a riot of costume, a spectacle of movement.

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Details:

The festival is also known as El Señor de Qoyllur Riti (the Lord of Qoyullur Riti)

Different spellings for the festival including Qoyllur Rit'i, Q’oylla Ritti, and Coyllur Riti & even Coyllur-Riti