The Ausangate snow-capped mountain with a height of 6,384 meters above sea level (the highest in Cusco) rises between the mountains of the Andes, admired not only for its extraordinary beauty, but for the meaning it has for the Andean worldview, being considered a sacred snow-capped mountain so much so that it is known as “The creator of the waters”; because due to its glacial mass it gives rise to natural formations such as: lagoons, among them: the Sivinacocha lagoon, which according to Andean mythology is the masculine energy that fertilizes Mother Earth Pachamama. This lagoon is a hydraulic source for the production of electricity in the region, in addition to this we also find other lagoons with turquoise waters, thermal baths that emerge from the depths of the earth.
AUSANGATE DEGLACIATION
Worrying and regrettable, like many others, the Ausangate has been suffering a slow agony due to the retreat of its glaciers as an effect of global warming. While in the Cordillera Blanca there was a 30% decline in 30 years, in the Cordillera Vilcanota it has done so by 50% in the same period of time, this due to the fact that the temperature in the Cusco region increased by 1.6°C since 1965.
LEGEND OF THE APU AUSANGATE
According to Andean mythology, Ausangate is a symbol of a life of simplicity, generosity, affection, justice, love; this is demonstrated in the legends. They say that Salkantay and Ausangate were brothers, who lived in Cusco and after a hard drought, the brothers ventured to foreign lands in search of help; to be able to save their people from a hard drought. Salkantay went north, towards the jungle, there he found the forbidden love of Wakay Willke (the veronica); Instead, Ausangate went south to the highlands and found a large quantity of Andean products and from there he sent camelid meat, corn, potatoes, among others; only in this way was he able to save the town of Cusco. But these brothers were transformed into two immense sacred snow-capped mountains.
CAN ONE CLIMB AUSANGATE?
Yes, it is possible, but the ascent of the Ausangate Snow-capped Mountain is a challenge, due to its great difficulty and the demanding nature of its steep and extreme walls of ice and rock; few dare to climb it. In addition, many mountaineers are unaware of the existence of the unreachable Ausangate.
The first attempts to achieve this objective were made in 1952 by an Italian expedition, led by Piero Ghiglione, with unsuccessful results. It was not until 1953, when an Austro-German expedition, made up of Fritz Morz, Heinz Steinmetz, Jurgen Wellenkamp and Heinrich Harrer, managed to reach the summit for the first time, climbing the mountain on its southern slope. Later, new routes were implemented to be able to climb the mountain, and thirty years after the first ascent, the summit was crowned by Peruvians.
