Mark Benny, Palccoyo (PLACES WILDERNESS)

Told to get up at 4 am to climb a mountain, that didn't sound very enticing at all. However, to explore the Rainbow Mountain region in Peru and escape from all the tourists, we travelled to Palccoyo and hiked to the summit of 4900m high. Photos couldn't capture the region's expense and beauty; it couldn't capture the absolute silence and the guanaco (wild alpacas) scurrying away in the far distance, only leaving behind small dust clouds. It was worth the early morning start and every step to the top.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.