Category: Bogotá Page 1 of 2

15 Spectacular Day Hikes Near Bogotá, Colombia

On November 9, 2020

Bogotá, Colombia’s capital city, is sprawling a metropolis, which more than 10 million people call home. Situated on a high plateau in the Altiplano Cundiboyacense region of the Andes mountain rage, the average altitude is an eyewatering 2600 metres. Bogotá is surrounded by cerros easily exceeding 3000 metres and is the perfect base for numerous weekend and day trips where you can experience unique fauna and eco-systems of the Colombian high Andes which are not found anywhere else in the world.

This post is the result of seven months research and personal hiking activities. I took every opportunity to “escape the city” into the surrounding cerros and mysty valleys, exploring every opportunity that I could find. I have listed them here so that you can also easily find and enjoy the same treks.

For more inspiration read about 7 lesser known locations that you need to explore during your time in Colombia.

Day Hikes from Bogotá

There are a many day hikes that are easily reachable from Bogotá, some even start in the city itself and you can just walk up straight up into the cerros. Others are a short journey from one of Bogotá’s bus terminals or by car. The main problem with leaving the city is traffic and the slow bus system. Do make sure you leave early, and if taking public transport, which I would fully recommend take a taxi or Uber to the bus terminal. They tend to be cheap and the extra cost will save you the nightmare of crossing the city using the Transmilenio.

Note that all of this information was correct before COVID-19 restrictions were in place. Please do check before you travel.

1. Mirador Aguadora

One of the many many paths leading up into the mountains surrounding Bogotá is the Mirador Aguadora hike. This short hike is perfect for a Sunday Morning excursion and definitely one for the kids and when you reach the top you can see panoramic views of the city. Its a great little hike, especially if you have just arrived and want to get used to the altitude or if you are looking for something not to strenuous and want to avoid the crowds at Montserrat. And the best thing about the hike is that its absolutely free! Starting in Usaquen amongst the market and restaurants means you can finish off with a well deserved, beer, ice cream or pizza, whatever takes your fancy. For those looking for a slightly longer hike then this one is easily combined with the Camino del Indio (see below), which follows straight on when you reach the top…more.

2. Camino del Indio

Camino del Indio follows a path that the indigenous peoples of the Bogotá Savannah used to traverse that leads down through the evergreen mountain forests, east of Bogotá, to La Calera. It’s a stunning and short hike that takes you above the Emblase de San Rafael, the reservoir which is the lifeblood of Bogotá, which provides a visually stunning backdrop to this hike through the Andes. The 12km route can easily be completed in around 4 hours and there are a variety of ways to complete the trek as it can act as an extension to the Mirador Aguadora hike…more.

3. La Quebrada la Vija

Set in the Cerros Orientales, the mountains to the east of Bogotá, the great thing about Quebrada La Vieja is that it is 4 hikes in one. The hikes are short, well maintained, not too challenging and at the end you get a stunning view of Bogotá as your reward. Best of all they are completly free! Anyone who has been to Bogotá will know that surrounding the valley are lush green Cerros Orientales mountains often topping 3000 metres. The path was previously closed due to safety reasons and the number of hikers, over 2000 each day, causing damage. The government sensibly stepped in, have spend time re-cutting the paths, protecting the area and after ecological survey there is now limited access. You will need to make a reservation on the website and from there you can select a date and time to hike. The paths are open all year, except on Mondays for maintenance, or if a holiday falls on a Monday they will be closed on the Tuesday. It’s not a complex as it sounds…more.

4. Cerro de Monseratte

Perhaps the number one destination for panoramic views of downtown Bogotá, for both tourists and locals alike, is Cerró de Monserrate. Famous for its church, where on Sundays legions of parishioners make their way up, via cable car, train and hiking, for the weekly service, the Cerro provides a little sanctuary from the bustling city below. Travel up in the evening to enjoy the sun set over the Andes and see the skyline come alive with lights or take an early morning hike and reward yourself with a deserved Agua de Panela when you arrive…more.

5. Cerro de Guadalupe

The stunning Cerró de Guadalupe stands out in Bogotà’s skyline where the statue of the Virgin of Guadalupe, built by sculptor Gustavo Arcila Uribe in 1946 and the accompanying chapel are visible from vantage points across the city. Situated in the eastern hills across from Cerró de Monserrate, Bogotá’s premier tourist attraction, which also offers great views of the statue. Cerró de Guadalupe is much less popular, but arguably the more beautiful cousin, and is well worth a trip. The views of the Bogotà Savannah are stunning, with a better angle to see more of the city and being less popular means that you can have the peak to yourself and enjoy a tranquil respite from the metropolis…more.

6. La Chorrera Waterfall

One of the more frequented hikes near Bogotá, the La Chorrera waterfall is the highest waterfall in Colombia with a 590 metre drop and the sixth highest in South America. A short one hour trip on the bus will transport you to a different world, away from the polluted metropolis of Bogotá, where you can explore the green Colombian Andes valleys and trek Latin America’s 6th highest waterfall. Once off the bus you can either choose to hike along the 4km road or catch a lift in of the 4×4 cars that will whisk you there from the main road. To see the waterfall at it’s best make sure you visit in rainy season or soon after as the falls can reduce to a trickle in the dry season. It’s a great day out and the perfect starter hike if you have recently arrived in Bogotá and want to acclimatise…more.

7. Matarredonda Ecological Park

Parque Ecológico Matarredonda is a páramo situated right on Bogotá’s doorstep. Less than an hours travel by bus you are transported into a different world far away from the pollution and noise of the bustling metropolis. The park is very accessible with well marked and maintained trails taking you through the unique páramo landscape, around blue lagoons and up mountain peaks of 3600 metres. The weather will also change your experience, expect anything from clear blue skies to deep rolling fog, meaning repeat visits are a must. Once you are dropped off by the bus you can grab a hot chocolate to warm you up before the hike and after you hike stop for lunch in the small restaurant close to the entrance…more.

8. Chicaque Park

Parque Natural Chicaque is set in a high mountain cloud forest a stones throw away from Bogotá. The wind blows the clouds around the mountain tops allowing you to snatch glimpses of the valley below as you descend with an ever changing view. The lush green forest has so many unique plants you will feel as if you are in a jungle a world away from the smoggy capital and it is well worth a visit. The well marked paths are perfect for all ability hiking and the park is open for bird watching, camping and horse riding or you can ride in one of the jeeps to the hotel and relax…more.

9. Cerro Quinini

Cerro Quininí is located in a natural park situated high in the Colombian Andes. Surrounded by green mountains from horizon to horizon you can see birds of prey hunting in the warm coffee growing region. Located a only two hours drive from Bogotá you will be amazed how much the landscape and climate change in the short distance as the constant cold is replaced with warm and sunny days, with enough cloud cover to keep you protected when hiking. The small towns in the region make this the perfect weekend getaway from the bustle, cold and pollution of Bogotá. You can come and stay on one of the many coffee farms or in one of the small towns and enjoy playing Tejo with the locals…more.

10. Chuchilla Cerro El Tablazo

Cuchilla El Tabazo is considered the jewel in the crown of the Western Bogotà Savannah. Rising to 3500 metres high it serves as a natural wall the height of the cliff stops the clouds from the warmer climates in the regions below surrounding the palmero and forest in fog. This creates a mysterious landscape that is completly unique to this region. The wind currents that the birds use to glide reveal the beautiful landscape for miles and miles. From here you can hike down to Supatá, a small town set at 1800 metres where the temperature is tropical and you can wash back a beer before taking the bus back to Bogotà. Descending 1700 meters over the course of 14km, you will see the vegetation change feel the temperature rising. This hike is a truly one off experience where you can walk down from the dense cloud forests into the local dairy farms situated in the picturesque lush green valleys far below…more.

11. Laguna de Guatavita

Laguna de Guatavita, one of the fabled locations of El Dorado, was once filled with with Gold and Emeralds. The small lake in a crater was considered sacred by the Musica people who left offerings for their Gods. Today its easily accessible from Bogotá by bus or car and for the more active there is a 7km hike along country green country roads to the entrance. The park is well maintained by CAR and their knowledgeable guides will take you on an extensive tour of the national park giving you detailed information on the history of the laguna…more.

12. Pionono Park

Located just 45 minutes north of Bogotá, Pionono Park is a peaceful mountain paradise located above the small town of Sopó, which is home to Colombia’s favourite dairy, Alpina. After hiking up to the park, or taking transport to the entrance, you will experience the beautiful panoramic views of Guatavita on one side and the Valle de Sopó on the other. You can relax in The Cabana Alpina enjoying freshly prepared deserts and sweet treats as a reward. The park itself is not too large, which makes it perfect for all abilities, and it will be a welcome relief for those who, like us, decided to walk up the steep road from the town…more.

13. Suesca

Situated on the northern edge of the Bogotà Savannah, an hour outside of Bogotà, is Suesca. Famous for the Rocas de Suesca (Suesca Rocks) it’s a mecca for the outdoor activities. For the adventitious there are 500 plus climbing routes across the rocks, plenty of hiking trails, and many cycling routes. For those who require less of an adrenaline rush can take time to relax by Lake Suesca or eat in one of the many restaurants. Hiking along the ridge line along the top of the cliffs provide views of the surrounding area for miles around. The scenery is breath-taking. Or follow the railway and recreate the scenes from the movies…more.

14. Farallones de Sutatausa

The Farallones de Sutatausa are a stunning rock formation that form the back drop of Sutatausa, a small mining town 90 minutes north of Bogotà. Sacred to the local indigenous peoples the 3000 metre peak is one place that you can see the Bogotá Savannah and surrounding valleys at the same time. As you climb to the top the views of the surrounding landscape unfolding below are phenomenal. The views combined with the unique rock structure and plant foliage make this a must visit destination…more.

15. Laguna de Iguaque

The Sacred Laguna de Iguaque (Lake Iguaque) is a high altitude Andean lake surrounded by stunning páramo. The Muiscas, the indigenous peoples from the region, believed that humanity originated from the lake when the Goddess Bachué who appeared from the lake with a baby in her arms. The 14 kilometre hike starts in the green valleys of the Bogota Savannah and upwards through cloud forests which slowly let way to lush mountains giving you a panoramic view of the surrounding area. A three hour dive north of Bogota the hike necessitates staying in the beautiful colonial UNESCO World Herritage town Villa de Leyva for at least one night, which is perfect, as the culinary delights are a treat to feast upon the night before and to reward yourself with cold beers and delicious food the night after…more.

There are of course a few places missing form this list as sadly I ran out of time. There is of course Chingaza National Park, which is only accessible by car, and a few more in the list below if you care to explore:

Along with many, many more. You only have to look at the trails that appear on maps.me to find the places that you can visit. Enjoy!

All the above links are to external sites and I have no control of the information that they provide.

For more inspiration read about 7 lesser known locations that you need to explore during your time in Colombia.

Plan a day trip to Parque Ecológico Matarredonda, Bogotá

By david_lortal

On February 7, 2020

In Bogotá, Colombia

Read my guides to the La Chorrera waterfall, Latin America’s sixth highest waterfall, and Cerro de Guadalupe, that provides panoramic views of Bogotá which are both located on the same road.

Once inside the park there are two main walks you can easily explore without a guide, one to a beautiful blue laguna, and afterwards you can climb the cerro where you might be lucky enough to see Bogotá. The second is to another lake and a waterfall where you can cool off and swim in the very cold water. Both hikes are flat and each one can be completed in half a day.

Information

Our Experience
How to arrive at Parque Ecológico Matarredonda
Equipment to take

Our Experience

The day after the hiking Quebrada la Vija I woke everyone up early to go to Parque Matarredonda. This was another hike that had been in my sights for some time and with the clear blue skies we experienced in Bogotá for the first 10 days of January 2020, which is unprecedented, I wanted to squeeze in one last hike before we left Colombia for Buenos Aires. In the end it was a perfect choice as it wasn’t too challenging for Lorenzo and we had a stunning day and landscape to explore.

We took an Uber to the bus station on Calle 6, Prarda de Bus Intermunicipal Transoriente, in Bogota. You can also take a Transmileno to Tercer Mileno, which is on Avenida Caracas one block away. Leave by the south entrance and cross the road walking directly to the terminal. You will be safe here as you will see the heavily guarded police station and also you are fine in the terminal. I would not advice exploring this area any further as it is a little notorious.

It was a Sunday and we had taken the bus from here previously on a Friday and Saturday with relative ease. Despite it being around 7am the station was full of people heading to the Inglesa in Choachi, which is the final destination of the bus you want to take. You will also see a lot of people heading to the Inglesa at the top Cerro de Guadalupe when you are on the bus. We managed to get passage on one of thebusses leaving taking the last seats next to the driver. Ask the driver to be drop you at Matarredonda, tickets are $4000 each.

The road is narrow, with twists and turns around the mountains. On Sundays, as well as the increased bus traffic, it seems that cyclists, joggers and people walking to the Churches like to dice with death on the road. As our bus and numerous other vehicles were overtaking cyclists riding double on a single lane road with oncoming traffic I was waiting for someone to be hurt or killed. My heart was in my mouth on every corner. Ordinarily, for Colombia, this is a fairly safe road and it wasn’t us on the bus I was fearful for, as the cyclists seems to have no care or knowledge of personal space. My advice would be just to avoid this road on a Sunday.

After around an hour we were dropped off in the car park which is right on the main road. We headed to the restaurant to pay the $8000 entrance fee. This is one place you don’t need bring food as the restaurant serves a wide variety, including hot breakfast and lunch. We stopped to eat our pre-prepared breakfast and brought some hot chocolate and took advantage of the flushing toilets before heading out. We started walking around 9am and I was really excited as the skies were perfectly clear and, as you can see in the photos, there was no one else around as you can see.

There are many hikes in the park, but most of them require a guide to be booked in advance. Luckily there are two which are easily completed in a day. Both should take around 2 hours, but it didn’t quite work out like that for us. You can go to the waterfall, we saw lots of families heading in that direction later on, which is the path that leads away form Bogotá or you can head to Laguna del Verjon, in the opposite direction. I wanted to go here as I had read there was a mirador from which you could see Bogotá on a clear day and I wanted to see if today it would be possible, so we headed to the lake.

The vast open landscapes were stunning and I felt particularly special as normally much of this would be covered in cloud. A distinctive feature of páramo is that it is wet most of the time but for the past few days there had been no clouds.

We began walking and Lorenzo started mimicking me taking pictures with his invisible camera. We played some games as we hiked slowly allowing Lorenzo to enjoy the surroundings.

The paths are well maintained and start off as the gravel trail above and then soon turn into stones. This makes it harder to hike but as this is often wet I understand the reasoning.

I particularly love this landscape, especially with the mountains in the distance. The plants almost seem not of this world and it a huge contrast to the green cerros surrounding Bogotá.

Lorenzo’s little legs don’t allow him to walk as fast as adults, although he does try, and a 2km hike is more like a 4km hike for him. He enjoyed exploring, looking at the plants and asking questions. Soon the other walkers caught up with us and went ahead and we were left alone again to explore.

There were puddles and tiny streams crossing the path in places so I can only imagine how wet this can get when there is a lot of rain.

As we got closer to the lake the cerros became much larger.

Okay maybe it was me taking a lot of photos taking up all the time as Lorenzo kept running to catch-up with Angela.

Close to the lake we saw this cross.

And soon after we reached the lake. It has taken us around 90 minutes to reach this point and all the other hikers were here already. Although upon our arrival they left as a group and continued. We decided to sit by the lake and enjoy the view.

I saw the other group on one of the cerros and I quickly looked at my map. They had reached their destination pretty quickly and I knew it was close so I said to Angela I wanted to take a look, thinking I would be around 20 minutes. Angela was feeling tired still from all the packing so stayed by the lake. Lorenzo decided to come with me as he thought the lake would be boring, so off we went to climb up the cerro.

The path takes you past the lake before turning right and starting slowly gradually goes uphill to the right of the ridge-line.

From here the path continues around to the other side of the ridge but you need to take a sharp left at the sign pointing to the mirador. From here the path becomes increasingly steep. It was fine on the day we were climbing but I can imagine it is much more challenging in wet conditions.

As is typical when climbing mountains each time you think you get to a point that might be the top you then quickly realise it was a false summit that there is still more to climb. I was keen to reach the top of the ridge where I had seen the others and when we reached that point I realised there was a mirador close to us. Lorenzo was enjoying the climbing and each time we reached one point he wanted to go to the next one, so we kept on walking.

This was one of the last false summits, I could see the other hikers going up and I nearly stopped when we became a little lost in the small peat bog at the bottom, imagine that on a wet day.

And the views made the challenge completly worth while.

From here we could also see Bogota. The Church in the photos below is Monserrate.

As we approached the top it became windy in places and I had to keep taking Lorenzo’s hat so it didn’t blow away. The path was narrow with some big drops, which and made me a little worried, but Lorenzo is pretty sensible and held my hand. I realised later that it might not have been the wisest thing to do to take a 5 year old up to the top of a 3600 metre mountain, but in my defence neither of us realised it at the time. He was loving the views and I feel he is sensible enough to follow my instructions.

The views kept getting better the higher we climbed. As we reached the summit I realised that we have been gone for around an hour, having left Angela at the lake. We also didn’t have any food and I only took a little water as I had thought it would only be a short journey. After taking a few minutes to admire the view we started back down. In my haste I forgot to take any photos of Lorenzo at the top which was something I regret as I feel it is a major achievement for him.

From here we could also see Bogota. The Church in the photos below is Monserrate.

And more photos from the top.

Going down was slow, it was steep and I kept holding back Lorenzo as he wanted to go faster. I ended up sliding a couple of times but he was fine. At one point we took a wrong turn and somehow left the path, walking down what must have been a small stream when it rained. When we got to the path there was a small drop, easy enough for me to climb down, but not Lorenzo. Luckily for me a couple of other hikers had followed us so between us we helped each other down.

Returning to the lake Angela was relaxed, although she had a headache having being in the sun with no shade to hide in. The climb to the cerro had taken us about two hours in total. We replenished out water and had lunch enjoying the view by the lake.

Afterwards the clouds started to arrive, but the day was still really bright. We were all suffering from tiredness and a little from the altitude as we walked back to the entrance.

It had been my intention to go to the waterfall after the lake as it wasn’t too far but the climb had taken Lorenzo’s energy and he couldn’t walk any further. To be fair we were all a little tired but I think I could have pushed on the the waterfall. Instead we decided to head to the restaurant and rested, before we crossed the road and flagged down a bus that was heading to Bogotá. This time the roads were much clearer and the journey was faster. Once back at the main terminal we took an Uber back home.

How to arrive at Parque Ecológico Matarredonda

Getting to the Park is really simple. Go to the bus station on Calle 6, Prarda de Bus Intermunicipal Transoriente, in Bogotá. Take a taxi or the Transmileno to Tercer Mileno, which is on Avenida Caracas one block away. Leave by the south entrance and cross the road walking directly to the terminal. You will be safe here as you will see the heavily guarded police station. I would not advice exploring this area any further as it is a little notorious.

Once at the station book a ticket on a bus heading to Choachi, but tell them you are going to Parque Matarredonda, $4000 one way, and you will be dropped at the park gates. The bus journey takes around an hour. Coming back you can just cross the road and flag down another bus heading to Bogotá. We didn’t wait long and one bus passed us that was already full.

My advice would be not to go on a Sunday as the road and the busses are busy. The park is open from 8am – 4pm daily and it costs $8000 to enter. There is a restaurant selling full breakfast and lunch options as well as drinks and snacks. My advice would to bring food, just in case, and to make sure that you have enough water for the trip.

There are two main hiking trails:

Cascada del Abuela – this walk will take you around 40 minutes and is the steeper of the two trails. Turn left when you enter the park and follow the signs. We didn’t try this due to time but I saw lots of families going there. You can swim in the water, but I think its really cold, but do bring swimming costumes if you want to try. Ther are paths marked on the map up to the cerros but I’m not sure if you are permitted to go further without a guide but the trails are clearly marked on Maps.me.
Laguna del Verjón – this is the tail we took which is described in more detail above. Turn right when you enter the park and the walk to the lake should take around one hour each way. You are not permitted to swim in the lake. The walk is on a well maintained path and is flat, so you don’t worry about getting lost. If you continue after the lake it is possible to climb to the mirador, Alto los Tunjos, as we did, but I was following a group with a guide, and I wouldn’t recommend doing in bad conditions or if you do not have much experience.

If you want more information especially regarding guides try the following contact details: Call 3178657320 or Email vjmatarredonda@gmail.com.

There is a lot to explore in the park and I think a couple of repeat visits are needed to see everything.

Equipment to take

There is a well stocked restaurant but I would always advice to bring some food and all of your water just in case it is not open. Once you enter the park there are no facilities to buy anything outside of the restaurant. This is a high altitude hike in a páramo, which is normally wet and cold, so unless you are in a heatwave, which we were be prepared for the rain and cold:

Gortex hiking boots
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Dry bag or packback cover (I take both)
Cell phone
Cell phone battery
Charger cable
Sunglasses
Sun Cream
Painkillers
Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
Hand soap
Tissues
Water filer
Sun hat
Food – you can never have too much and you will need it on this hike so pack appropriately.
Water 2 litres minimum

Clothes

Base layer
Fleece
Down Jacket
Hiking trousers
Hiking underwear
Hiking socks

If you like páramo hike then read the guides to Laguna de Iquaque a high altitude lake near Villa de Lleva or Cucilla El Tablaza a 20km downhill hike starting in the páramo west of Bogotá.

Hiking the Quebrada la Vija in the Cerros Orientales, Bogotá

By david_lortal

On February 3, 2020

In Bogotá, Colombia

Set in the Cerros Orientales, the mountains to the east of Bogotá, the great thing about Quebrada La Vieja is that it is 4 hikes in one. The hikes are short, well maintained, not too challenging and at the end you get a stunning view of Bogotá as your reward. Best of all they are completly free! Anyone who has been to Bogotá will know that surrounding the valley are lush green Cerros Orientales mountains often topping 3000 metres. The best known is Monserrate with its Church and market, but increasingly the other cerros hills are opening up to hikers and walkers of all abilities. One is Mirador Aguadora, in Usaquen, and in November 2019 the Quebrada La Vieja reopened its doors to hikers.

The path was previously closed due to safety reasons and the number of hikers, over 2000 each day, causing damage. The government sensibly stepped in, have spend time re-cutting the paths, protecting the area and after ecological survey there is now limited access. You will need to make a reservation on the website and from there you can select a date and time to hike. The paths are open all year, except on Mondays for maintenance, or if a holiday falls on a Monday they will be closed on the Tuesday. It’s not a complex as it sounds.

If you enjoyed this hike read about the Mirador Aguador hike, which is a shirt walk to the cerros from the main plaza in Usaquen and can be combined with Camino del Indio. Or escape the city on a sunny afternoon and take the short walk up to Guadalupe.

Our Experience

After the Laguna de Iguaque hike I was hungry for more, even though Christmas was close and we had two weeks to pack, move twice and one of those was to Argentina. I was pushing Angela to go again the week after Christmas but after we started packing I realised that the “afternoon” I thought it would take turned out to take three whole days. I had given up on the idea entirely, as obviously packing took preference, when suddenly in the new year Bogotá was hit by a freak weather condition of cloudless skies. After three solid days of blue skies Angela suggested we go out and take advantage, so we looked for hikes that we could take Lorenzo on. I had wanted to hike Las Moyas, but it turns out this is still closed, but I also had Quebrada La Vieja on my list which had recently opened.

After a little research I was confused as there are four different hikes that are possible and we were only going to have time to do one. I was torn between a Cerro with a view over Bogotá and Páramo. In the end we opted for a Cerro as it appeared that the páramo hike was harder and I wanted to see the city when there were blue skies. I reserved three spaces for the Alto de la Cruz hike. To book you need to go to the website and select a hike, then a date and a time. You will then be sent an email confirmation which is scanned at the entrance, you don’t have to print despite the instructions. If you miss your time then you will not be let in, so make sure you are on-time.

I booked us on a 7am slotas it felt a more realistic achievement over 6am. We later found out that if you want to see the Los Nevados then you need to start at 6am or event better 5amon a weekday. These clear days were the perfect time to view but sadly for us we couldn’t rush as it wouldn’t be fair on Lorenzo.

We jumped into an Uber and were soon as the starting location Avenida Circunvalar with Calle 71. There is a short road with a stream to the south and residential buildings to the north and there should be people ready to check your tickets as you arrive. Once inside we saw more stewards and police and started walking uphill. Before long we came to the final steward position. Here one of the stewards was doing a presentation while the others scanned the tickets and issued all the hikers with numbers. Make sure you don’t lose the sticker as they will want to take it back to know you have checked out and its probably easier if you don’t fold it away in your coats in a bag. Bogotá is generally pretty chilly at this time in the morning but soon after we were warm from walking and packing the additional clothes away.

The first part of the path, Claro de Luna which is also bookable in its own right, is where all of the hikers have to walk until the three trails split off. I did wonder why anyone would just want to walk the first part but on the way back we saw several families with toddlers so it might be something to consider if you are unsure and a great starter hike for anyone with young children.

After being checked in we started walking up the trail. Much of the land is located on the water companies property and this trail is also used for access. Lorenzo was tired and after a Christmas and New Year of random bedtimes he wasn’t best pleased to be up and about hiking at this time. Soon after I gave him some trail mix he perked up and step by step was more enthused about the hike as he discovered new sounds, smells and challenges.

After a few hundred metres you leave the road for a well maintained path, that crosses some small streams several times and starts climbing a little more steeply. There is nothing really challenging in this section other than is can be a little muddy and slippery on some of the rocks. It also gets quite busy as everyone has to hike this section of the path.

As you can see above Lorenzo was having great fun climbing over all the rocks and running ahead. This part of the trail lasts for around 1km and after this you will reach a small clearing with more police and stewards. They will once again check your tickets and will send you onward for your chosen hike, or back if you only selected to hike Claro de Luna.

We had a quick break before continuing and walked further into the forest along the path close to a stream which became a little waterlogged at times.

There are clear signs to make sure that you can’t get lost. Some of the paths have been closed, for good reason, and you can clearly see the tape that has been used. If you look on maps.me, and you may see a sign on the trail, but it is possible to hike to Monserrate from here. I would not advise as the paths were not only closed for preservation reasons but also they come close to some of the poorer neighbourhoods in Bogotá which puts you at risk of robbery. Hence the heavy police presence during these times. It’s completly safe but if you decided to wonder off piste then you might find yourselves in trouble in more than one way.

There was another much larger clearing and we found a farm as well as being able to look at all the animals. We also had our first look at Bogotá from above.

The path keeps climbing steadily through the forest. Nothing crazy but you will work lots of muscles with the constant up.

It was a really beautiful day and the sun shining through the trees made it a little magical. Soon the trees start to change and as you get closer to the top you end up walking through a pine forest.

Soon after you start to see the surrounding mountains.

And then you come out of the forests into the bushes for that last push. This part is the steepest and we were not helped by the strong sun and lack of cloud, oh the irony of all my complaining in previous blogs, is that the sun, even at this early time of around 8am, was really strong and made climbing to the top a little more thirsty work than it might otherwise have been.

Still the scenery was beautiful and once we arrived on the ridge line we were teased with these views. As you can see by this time the sun has warmed up Bogotá and a combination of either clouds in the distance or pollution has made it impossible to see the Los Nevados.

A shot of Angela climbing the final stretch.

Another view of the city just before the top.

The cross in the photos below marks the top of the cerro.

And then just over the ridge above is the Mirador, which I think provides a much better view of Bogota than Monserrate. At the top there were around 40 people and a couple of police officers recovering and enjoying the view. There was a trail that led straight on into one of the more dangerous neighbourhoods and you can see why the police presence is necessary. Honesty, if I lived in those conditions I would probably see it as fair game to take money and phones from richer hikers too. But we are not here to discuss politics, we just want to hike in safety. We overheard an interesting conversation where people were discussing that the hike starts in one of the richest neighbourhoods in the city and in just a few kilometres ends in one of the poorest. Something worth considering.

We rested at the top for a good 30 minutes as we were in no rush. It had taken us a little more over an hour to get here, but we stopped many times for photos, for Lorenzo to discover things and to play. It was a beautiful day and had been fun. We left as we were not sure how long the police would be staying, but were told the police made sure no one was left behind when they returned. Angela was joking with the officer about how fit he must be getting coming up here each day.

We returned via the same way and checked out, jumped in a taxi and were back in the house by 11am, at which point Angela’s brother and his family were still asleep. I smiled as I realised I had turned into one of those people. All in all I really enjoyed the hike and if I had more time in Bogotá I would take on the others. As I’ve said they are short and perfect for children of all ages. Also it doesn’t take long to get out of the city and onto the fresh air, which really is amazing. The paths are aimed at everyone and are free, they are not congested with sellers so they really are a perfect family outing.

How to book and hike Quebrada La Vieja

You will need to book tickets to all of the hikes at least 24 hours in advance and the space on each hike is limited for each time slot. Entrance is free for all but you will not be permitted to enter if you have not booked. Head to the booking website and using the Google Map select the hike you want. Then you will need to enter a date. Remember that the park is closed every Monday, or the Tuesday if the Monday is a holiday. Choose a time, 5 – 9am on weekdays and 6 – 10am at weekends, making sure there are enough spaces on the hike for everyone you are booking for and then you will need to enter the information for each person indivudally. They are all grouped together for the tickets which will be emailed and there is no need to print them as they will scan form your phone.

It is possible to see the Los Nevados from the miradors on the hikes, providing the day is clear, but you will need to be there early, ideally starting at 5am and make you way quickly to the top. If you do start this early it will be dark so bring a light.

There are several other bookable hikes listed on this map and at this stage I don’t have any information about the others. I will update this section if I can find more information but for now the four hikes that make up Quebrada La Vieja are:

Claro de Luna (1.6km 1 hour) – Is a hike that you will need to complete if you are hiking any of the other hikes listed below but it is also bookable in its own right. Its pretty easy, the first third is along a service road and then it follows a well cut, clear path that has a gentle incline. I’d recommend this for small children and those who are not looking for too much of a challenge. This path can get a little busy as all hikers must walk along to reach the starting point of the longer hikes.
Alto de la Cruz (3.2km 2.5 hours) – Is the longest hike and we were told that is was the hardest, although Páramo Piedra Ballena goes higher and is further away from the city. This is the hike that we attempted, see above. It begins in the forest and is uphill for the duration. The last part is the steepest and there are a few small challenges along the way, but nothing taxing. The forest changes to soft pine about halfway and the final stretch takes up out of the trees and up to the top of the cerro where you can get a panoramic view of Bogotá and the surrounding mountains.
La Virgen (2.9km 2 hours) – Is a slightly shorter and lower trail than Alto de la Cruz, which ends at a different Cerro offering views of Bogotá and the surrounding mountains.
Páramo Piedra Ballena (2.6km 3 hours) – Takes you to a páramo close to Bogotá but up to one of the much higher ridges overlooking the city. Instead of circling back you keep heading east up into the higher ridges. I imagine this path is much steeper than the others as it is higher and its advisable to bring warm clothing.

If you do hike either La Virgen or Páramo please do leave a comment as I would like to provide more information.

How to Arrive

You can begin the walk from Avenida Septima with Calle 72, but the checkpoint is at Avenida Circunvalar with Calle 71. We started form the check point taking an Uber to arrive, but you can also take a taxi or Transmileno busses.

Equipment to take

There is no food or water available on the trial itself, but the hikes are so short you don’t need to plan for the day. I would not advice trying this without water. I’ve seen some comments that you should not take expensive equipment on this hike, even with the police presence, but I felt really safe and will never hike without my camera and phone for maps.me. Although the hike is sort and is done by trail runners and day walkers I always take the following on a hike:

Gortex hiking boots
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Dry bag or backpack cover (I take both)
Cell phone
Cell phone battery
Charger cable
Sunglasses
Sun Cream
Painkillers
Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
Hand soap
Tissues
Water filer
Sun hat
Food – you can never have too much and you will need it on this hike so pack appropriately.
Water 1 litre minimum

Clothes

The hike is not high altitude and I found we brought too many layers getting warm quickly. Having said that is can always get cold in the eastern hills so its best to come prepared.

Base layer
Fleece
Hiking trousers
Hiking underwear
Hiking socks

How to hike to Laguna de Iguaque and Mirador El Santo from Villa de Leyva

By david_lortal

On December 26, 2019

In Bogotá, Colombia

In other blogs there was talk of camping and even a hostel in the park. I can confirm that when we went in December 2019 there was no provision for staying on site and the restaurant was closed. We could see the facilities but they were closed. If it is you intention to camp on site check that this is operating before you go. If you hear that the camping is open again please leave a comment so I can update this message.

For other hikes which you can combine with a weekend getaway take a look at my guides to Cerro Quininí, where the temperature is much warmer than Bogotá and you can relax in the surrounding coffee farms. Or head to Parque Natural Chicaque and spend the weekend camping, or relaxing in the hotel, while hiking,bird watching or horse riding.

Information

Our Experience
From Bogota to Villa de Leyva
How to Hike to Laguna de Iguaque
Equipment to take
How to Hike to Mirador El Santo

Our Experience

Angela came home excited one evening after having spoken to her work colleagues about our hiking they recommended the trail to Laguna de Iguaque. I happily added it to the growing list of hikes but as it required an overnight stay and we were in the middle of rainy season we held off. With our relocation to Buenos Aires fast approaching I selected this as one hike that I wanted to try and it payed off as it has to be the most beautiful hike I’ve taken with Angela.

The hike is 14km by road north of Villa de Leyva. There is one bus that leaves the town at 7am each day and if you are driving make sure you arrive before 10am or you will not be permitted to hike. Villa de Leyva is 3 hours north of Bogotà which makes it tricky to get there and back in one day unless you want to wake up at around 2am. We decided to make a longer trip and go up the day before, returning to Bogotà the same day as the hike. Although I’d recommend staying longer if you can as there are plenty of things to do in Villa de Leyva and it will give you the opportunity to relax after a had days hike.

We arrived at Terminal Norte in Bogotà a little before 10am. We were hiking the next day so decided to take things easy, having dropped our son of at his abuelos. Again we arrived via Uber, I was pretty happy with this transport choice as Bogotà is not the easiest city to leave, for all the wrong reasons, and we had fallen into that trap far too many times. And that day we saw what can only be described as a Transmileno tail back as due to someone parking their car upside down in the middle of the bus lane. But on a normal day you can get there easily on the Transmileno. There were three bus companies that go to Ville de Leyva from this terminal and we opted for Libertadores as their bus left next at 10:30 so we booked passage on that.

It turned out the bus was more of a mini-van than a bus and the driver must have needed the bathroom and the closest one was located in Villa De Leyva because that is how he drove. I had the fortune to sit in the back and spent half of the journey in the air as each bump was amplified. Angela sat up front which was less bumpy but the location of here seat meant she couldn’t see out of the windows, which was fine on the freeway, but not helpful when we were driving around tight curvy mountain roads as if replicating the car chase in Quantum of Solace. She was a little car sick when we arrived.

Our hostel was close to the bus terminal and as soon as we started walking we could see why the special town is a world heritage site and it is surrounded by mountains. Straight away I made a mental note of which ones I wanted to climb, all of them.

We dropped our bags and then went in search of places to eat. Just check Tripadvisor as there are some expensive duds but food in this town is a delight. I wanted a decent sandwich so we headed to Entrepanes, a French restaurant specialising in sandwiches. They are expensive compared to Colombian prices but they are delicious. Service was typically slow, French combined with Colombian does not combine well for speed, but its the end result that counts.

We ordered Roast Beef and Pork. They were hot and the meat was tender and delicious. There is also a good range for vegetarians so put this on your list of places to visit.

Afterwards we had a quick tour of the city as this would be the only real time we had to see it in daylight due to the hike the following day. We didn’t spend long as I wanted to hike up to Mirador El Santo, tomorrows challenge was not enough.

Mirador El Santo

There is a statue of Jesus on the mountain above the town. I had read about it in the blog and the receptionist at our hostel was quick to point it our as one of the local sights. From the trail head the path is 1km to the statue and then 1km to return to the town. We were told that it would take about 2 hours for a round trip but Maps.me said 45 minutes each way and I’m always keen to beat the times, however there is one caveat… the entire path is uphill and its a fairly steep climb. However we had at least 7km of up tomorrow so I wanted to give it a go. We left the hostel around 4pm which is leaving things a little late as the sunsets around 6pm in Colombia. The path starts on Calle 12, you can see it clearly marked on maps.me. You need to walk through the football pitch before you can head up. Seeing this and me happy as its good locals still have parts of the town left for themselves and they don’t have to share everything with the tourists.

The photo below was taken right at the beginning so you can see the up begins right form the start. you begin by going through the trees and soon you climb above them.

Unusually for Colombian hikes with Angela around it was sunny, between the clouds and it became hot pretty quickly. We negated to bring water so don’t make the same mistake as us.

As you go up up get more and more beautiful views of the town.

And also the statue appears.

With maybe a third left of the climb the path turns to rock and gets a little steeper. The plants turn to grasses and its quite challenging to walk on, especially going down.

Angela was still feeling a little sick from the bus so decided to sit out the final part of the climb, but never one to let tiredness get in the way of a decent photograph I decided to press on. And very soon the statue appeared again. After a fair scramble over the rocks the path levelled out and became an easy walk for the last hundred metres.

And then as if someone was watching the sun shined though the clouds.

There was a sign politely requesting that visitors stopped at this point. There is a route on maps.me that will take you further up the mountain. I don’t like to invade natures space I decided to stop and rest before heading back down to Angela. By now the sun was also setting and without a torch I would not have gotten far. The whole trip took us around 90 minutes, but we didn’t stay around for long at the top. Going down was much faster and easier, although the exposed rock did slow me down as I didn’t want to fall in this section.

After we headed back to town we wanted to buy supplies for the next day. There is a D1 and an Ara along with a whole host of local shops. We also found the Astral bakery which bakes delicious bread, another rarity in Colombia, to make sandwiches for the next day. They do a whole range of backed good and are located on Calle 12, near the main plaza, or just keep walking straight when you return from El Santo, and are well worth a visit.

It was soon dark with a beautiful sunset, I actually regret not waiting for in on the mountain as there were a few people going up, but I didn’t have a torch and would not have wanted to return in the dark. Instead we went to the main square to look at the Christmas lights.

On the way back to the hostel we noticed a little restaurant called Comida Corena tucked away on Carrera 7. Intrigued we googled and it had excellent reviews so we decided to make it our destination for the night. Its a tiny restaurant with about 5 tables and was busy when we arrived. We took a little walked around town and returned to an empty table that had been saved for us. The restaurant is run by a Korean woman and her Colombian husband. She does all the cooking and he is the waiter and does everything else, they both seem lovely and the food is devine. Its interesting as Angela has noted several times with husband and wife teams in Colombia where the woman does all the work and the husband just takes the money but here it was definitely a team effort. They were both so polite and after talking to them we found out they wanted to keep it small as they felt the size of the restaurant was manageable. The menu is small but is was all chopped and cooked fresh in front of us. To be honest you are doing yourselves a disservice if you don’t come here at least once during your trip.

We returned to the hostel, which had been empty all day, and was now bustling with people getting ready to party. It was here that I had realised my error of forgetting ear plugs which was something I would regret a lot over the course of the night. The room was hardly soundproof, not that I’m complaining, and the town itself is known as a party town. Angela had been a few times and remembers being pretty drunk in the main square for the Kite Festival. So what should we really expect? And our fellow guests did their best to be quiet but to be honest drunk people trying to be quiet is about as successful as my 5 year old son attempts to be a professional ninja on the walk home from school. Actually he has an equivalent ability of attempting to sneak and whisper at any time of the day. So I didn’t get much sleep that night which was not ideal ahead of the hike the next day.

Laguna de Iguaque

The Laguna de Iguaque is located within the Páramo Iguaque, one of Colombia’s many national parks. This area is protected and the rare páramo is what supplies water to Bogotá. This unique landscape only found at high altitude is particularly sensitive, important and carefully guarded. There is one official path into the reserve, although I’ve read and been told there are others, but people the park is protected for a reason and one trail is more than enough for us humas who have now cultivated 70% of the planets surface to leave the rest to nature. There is a restriction on the number of visitors but you will be fine to just turn up as there were only around 20 people hiking they Saturday that we went. I imagine it is less in the week.

The best time of year to hike is outside of the rainy season either in December – March June – September. You can try in rainy season but the ground was pretty wet for us in places and I’ve read some horror stories about the rain in some blog posts. The park is open 8am – 5pm and you need to begin hiking before 10am. Which is not a problem if you take the bus. The bus leaves from the main station at 7am everyday, when its mostly full and costs $4000 each way. You will be dropped off on the main road and it adds 2.5km to you hike each way. The caveat is also that you need to return to the road by 4pm to catch the bus back to town, otherwise its a long walk. You can pay for your return journey in advance to ensure there is a seat for you on the way back. On the way there some people tried to flag the bus on the main road but were refused passage as it was already full.

A lot has been made of the difficulty of the hike, while I appreciate that some people might have had much more extreme weather than we did on the day, this is not a difficult hike. I would say it say 3 out of 5 or a 3.5 at most based on my experience. Yes, its all uphill and the last third is steep, at high altitude, and hard its no where near as scary or as the route we took at Farallones de Sutatausa. While I appreciate that you need to be reasonably fit and that the hike is not for all but scaring hikers and putting them off before they start is not a good idea. I wouldn’t do the hike if you are overweight, unfit, have a broken leg, are under 5 or are elderly…although I did read a post from a guy in his 70s who completed it so who knows. I mean its a challenge, an enjoyable one that is not easy but its not climbing a vertical rock face which is how it was sold to us.

We were dropped on the corner of the road to the entrance to the park at around 7:40. There were 4 other hikers on the bus which was reassuring. Two of them were pretty fit and were soon far ahead and two were not so fit and ended up behind. It was largely a clear day at this stage and starting to get hot. Its 2.5km to the main entrance and I felt the pressure of time. Which is something else which affected us on this hike. Having to be back by 4pm, as you feel that you are under constant pressure to move. We pressed ahead as fast as we could but in reality you have a decent amount of time to take breaks, especially at each numbered part of the trail. Also note there is nothing to buy in the park, so make sure you bring plenty of food and water.

The first part of the hike takes place on a small road.

And you begin to see the mountains, and yes you will be going up to the top there somewhere.

Around where this photo was taken you will see a small store which sells you insurance. I thought it was a con but Angela insisted so we brought it. Turns out she was right as they asked for it when we reached the park. The insurance was around $6000 pesos per person. This is the only place you can buy supplies, but there is no guarantee it will be open so I’d bring everything you need from the town.

The path here was beautiful and is well worth the extra walk. Those in cars don’t get to experience it.

We reached the entrance by around 8:20am and I was happy with progress. Angela had been feeling sick and was lacking energy all along the road, which worried me as that was the easiest part of the hike. I, perhaps selfishly, tried to persuade her to stop here but also didn’t want to deal with an emergency higher up the mountain, but she insisted on going as far as she could. And actually completed the trail without slowing us down.

We had to chat with the park ranger, pay the entrance fee and then attend a safety announcement which took around 20 minutes. The cost is $18000 for nationals and $52000 for gringos. You can find up to date prices for all Colombia’s parks here. There are flushing toilets so make sure you take advantage of them as they will be the last you will see until you return to this point. Also the hike is broken down into numbered sections. This works quite well until you reach section 7, which is the part where they say many people quit and return, but after that I didn’t see any signs after this point. Its in the run up where this becomes important. Here is a map of the hike.

We began hiking from the main entrance at around 8:40am and section 1 of the hike is along this stone path. Its actually not particularly nice to walk along and can be slippery so be careful. You soon cross a stream which you will hear and come close to many times on the hike. The water is safe although we did not sample it and it might be worth taking this opportunity to stock up on supplies.

After a decent amount of time hiking through the forest you will come out in this clearing where there was a hostel and restaurant. Everything had long been closed although the buildings were kept in good condition, so they may well reopen in the future.

Soon after you enter the forest you will see the sign for section two. Its all uphill and sections two, three and four roll into one. They are not too long and vary from steep uphill, to flat to going downhill, which is always annoying when you have spent a lot of effort going up and know you will have to climb again. There is not much down so enjoy it while you can.

The path is pretty safe, and although muddy in places was mainly dry when we hiked. It does get close to the edge of the mountain in places but there is nothing crazy. Just the relentless up. Also I always find that hikes go more slowly in the forest. You think you have walked a kilometre and its only 200 metres. There is nothing to judge the distance against. Make sure you stop for a few minutes at each sign to get some rest, it will help rejuvenate you. Just watch out for section five which is particularly long.

Section six takes you out of the forest and you can start to see the surrounding cerros. We were pretty anxious at the point as I was waiting to see a wall of rock that we would have to climb.

And then we arrived at the dreaded section 7 and I started laughing. My imagination had run wild but all I saw was a steep scramble up boulders. This steep climb lasts for 700 metres, which I will tell you now is no easy feat. But its not near impossible as I had been led to believe. I’m not sure that the photos do it justice but you start climbing at a very steep angle. First over small boulders and then the track turns to mud. I completly understand that people would find this section difficult and even dangerous on a wet day, today was not exactly a walk in the park, but keep pushing, rest, count your steps, catch your breath and you will make it up.

Almost immediately the views become stunning as you can see the surround valleys and mountains and more is revealed with each step.

We saw some interesting coloured insects and at this point you have reached the páramo where the plants take on a unique look.

And before you know it you reach the top. There are a few short climbs here but mostly this next section is flat. This is the highest altitude part of the trek so take it easy and just enjoy the view. Here you are on top of the world, well not quite but around the surrounding mountains. Enjoy as the hard work has now been done.

I was walking faster than Angela and so went a little ahead as she wanted to rest. I cam around a corner and then I saw the prize of the hike. The lake! It was pretty cloudy when I first arrived so I sat on a rock and dealt with the altitude while i waited for Angela to catch up, and in that time the clouds started to clear. I was excited as this entire time I had been unsure if we would reach the lake but now I could see it I was happy. When Angela arrived I suggested stopping but she was happy to push on and the next part of the hike down to the lake is largely downhill.

As we got closer still the skies became bluer still and the sun started casting shadows on the mountains.

When you reach the lake there is a feeling of something special. It was around 12:30pm at this time. There were only around 6 other people here and it was so peaceful and quiet. You could imagine the indigenous peoples believing the lake was special. And that is because it is.

We stopped here and had lunch. I’ve read that people do go further and climb the mountain behind the lake but this is now restricted and signs ask you not to go any further.

We waited around half an hour until around 1pm giving us three hours to get back to the bus. On the way back we still saw people coming to the lake and hoped they would make it down in time. The first part of the return journey is up which was tiring as we were already exhausted from the initial climb but after that the return journey is much quicker, although harder on the knees, as it is all downhill.

We took out time and stopped to rest on plenty of occasions on the way back down and made it to the entrance in around two hours. On the way we made a new friend who made up for the lack of dogs on this trail.

We spoke to the rangers to inform them that we had left, which is really important as they might otherwise go looking for you and had plenty of time to walk to the bus stop. We were enjoying the sunny afternoon when some of the other hikers stopped in their car and offered us a ride back to town. We took this opportunity to have a well earned rest and upon arriving headed to the bus station to take the bus back to Bogota. We were exhausted and would have stayed in town for another night if we didn’t have plans the next day.

From Bogotá to Villa de Leyva

Busses regularly leave Terminal Norte, which would be my recommended bus station. You can cake busses from the main terminal in Salitre, but these will al pass through Terminal Norte, so unless Salitre is on the way head straight to Terminal Norte. You can arrive here on the Transmileno or taxis are not too expensive.

The bus ticket is between $25000 and $28000 each way depending on which company you use. There are three, Libertadores, Omega and Valle de Tenza (Timetable), just check all the windows when you arrive and book the next bus. If you are travelling on the weekend make sure you arrive early as this is a weekend destination for people from Bogotá.

The journey will take between 2.5 – 3 hours, more so if the bus decides to stop in other towns, but will take you direct to the main bus station in town.

How to Hike Laguna de Iquaque

Its not possible to make this hike in one day from Bogotá so I advise that you stay a night in Villa de Leyva. There is a bus that leaves the main bus station each day at 7am and will drop you at Casa de Piedra returning to collect you at 4pm. It’s $4000 each way. When you arrive just ask for the bus to Parque Iquaque and after the laughter subsides you will be pointed to the bus.

Make sure you arrive early as there is only one bus each day and it can fill up, as it did for us and people flagging on the road did not get in. Also buy your return ticket when on the bus so that they save space for you. Its a long walk back if they can’t pick you up.

It take around 40 minutes to drive to the drop off point at Casa de Piedra and from here its a 2.5km walk along the track to the park entrance. It should take around 40 minutes and if you are offered insurance along the route at a snack store then make sure you buy for around $6000. It feels like a scam but it actually required and you don’t want to have to walk back.

Arriving at the park you will be met by the ranger who will give you some safety instructions, scare you about the difficulty of the hike and charge the entrance fee of $18500 for nationals and $52000 for gringos. You can find up to date prices for all Colombia’s parks here. There are flushing toilets here and make sure you take advantage of them as they will be the last you will see until you return to this point.

The hike is broken down into numbered sections. This works quite well until you reach section 7 and here is a map of the hike. Once you start on the trek its hard to get lost. Just stay on the path.

Its mostly uphill with one very steep section but take it slowly and you will be fine. Make sure you head back at 1pm as instructed to make the bus. It took us 3 hours to reach the top and then 2 hours to come back down, but you also need to factor in the extra 2.5km at the end to reach the bus.

Equipment to take

There is no food or water available once you get on the bus so make sure that you stock up the day before. There are supermarkets in town, a D1 and an Ara as well as numerous local businesses so prepare the day before. In addition to food and water I would recommend the following:

Gortex hiking boots
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Dry bag or packback cover (I take both)
Cell phone
Cell phone battery
Charger cable
Sunglasses
Sun Cream
Painkillers
Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
Hand soap
Tissues
Water filer
Sun hat
Food – you can never have too much and you will need it on this hike so pack appropriately.
Water 3 litres minimum

Clothes

This is a high altitude hike which can get cold and also can often be wet so be prepared for the cold.

Base layer
Jumper
Fleece
Down Jacket
Hiking trousers
Hiking underwear
Hiking socks

How to Hike to Mirador El Santo

There is a short 2 hour walk that will take you into the mountains above Villa de Leyva, its perfect to do in the afternoon the day before you hike to Laguna Iguaque. In total the walk is around two hours. Starting in Calle 12, head up towards the statue for 1km before enjoying the city and then heading back down again. Its a steep path with one little tricky section which shouldn’t cause too many problems. The route is on Maps.me if you need help finding the path.

There are lots of other things to do in Villa de Leyva so you can make a weekend trip or stay longer. For some suggestions check out this blog. Its also a big party town, most famous for the Kite Festival where Angela has fond but blurry memories drinking in the main square. You can find out more about the different festivals here.

How to hike the Camino del Indio from Bogotá’s Cerros to La Calera with the stunning Emblase de San Rafael backdrop

By david_lortal

On December 19, 2019

In Bogotá, Colombia

There are many stunning hikes up to the Cerros surrounding Bogota which start in the city itself. Read my post about the 4 different hikes that form part of Quebrada la Vija, including one that takes you up to the closest Palmero direct from Chapinero Or escape the city on a sunny afternoon and take the short walk up to Guadalupe.

Information

Our Experience
How to hike Camino del Indio
Hiking Options, including how to combine with Mirador Aguadora
Equipment to take

Our Experience

Once again we decided to put ourselves in the hands of Filipe, which I wasn’t sure I would want to do again after the Cuchilla El Tablazo hike. The the week precious our excursion to Chingaza had been cancelled and it was somewhere I had been excited to visit since I arrived. To make up for the disappointment Angela suggested that we take this easy hike instead as we were tired and for a long time I had also wanted to explore what was behind the mountains I see everyday from my windows so it felt like a good opportunity.

We were again instructed to meet at 7am but this time at Calle 85 y Carrera 7, which is pretty close to us. We ordered an Uber at 6:45 and arrived at the petrol station to see a much smaller and very different group. I was pleased to see there were no small dogs and that only a couple of the better hikers were on board for this excursion. In total we were 12, which was a much better size and more manageable in terms of walking.

After some brief introductions and a quick coffee stop for myself and Angela we headed off, to the bus stop which is pretty much opposite. You will see a road, almost like a slip road, leading up to Carrera 5, and we headed over there to wait for the bus to La Calera, your final stop if you are hiking the hard way. Tell the bus driver that you want to be dropped at Porteria Arboreto, which on Maps.me is close to a bar called Compostela and and hostel called Pachamama. The road you want to find on the maps.me is called Camino del Meta. You pay when you get of the bus and it should cost $3500 per person. And if this starting point is tricky to find then I’d recommend that you combine with the Mirador Aguadora hike as I detail below.

After about 15 minutes we had reached our destination. We crossed the road and Filipe worked his magic on the security guards. So this part of the hike, which is only necessary to walk if you do not combine with Mirador Aguadora, is on a private estate. They have to let you in if you are going to the Mirador Aguadora. So tell them you are going to see the mirador and not completing the hike. They won’t ask any questions and you will be let in. From here you will need to walk a few kilometres up the road to the mirador. Its a gentle incline and if you are walking this way the only part of the hike which is uphill.

I’m not sure this is so much a part of an estate as a millionaires playground. We must have been walking for about 30 minutes before the houses came into view, with their unobstructed view over the lake.

It was a little cloudy, but better than the rain the day before and pockets of blue were fighting their way through the clouds as we arrived at the lake.

The road continued for a little longer and then we found the first mirador which gave unobstructed views of the lake.

Continuing along the road a little longer we came to the point we had reached before, which is the end of the Miradora Aguadora hike. Walk through the barrier and here the road splits, you want to stay to the left where you will see a track that look like the photos below. A fence on the right and trees on the left. From here just follow this straight for at least an hour or more.

You do lose sight of the lake here but you get to walk through some evergreen forests and the air is so deliciously fresh. You really don’t have to go far from Bogotá to find fresh air and peace and quiet.

There are quite a few different paths marked on Maps.me but I only saw one possible turnoff at this stage. There is a road leading to some houses, which is clearly blocked off and you will hear the dogs. There are also signs pointing you to Camino del Indio, so follow these.

As you leave the forest there is another mirador and a place to sit. We arrived here by around 9:30 am and stopped for a break. By this point the road has turned into a path and from here you just follow it along the ridge with panoramic views of the lake.

Watch out when the path comes out on a small dirt road. You want to turn/keep to the right, I didn’t actually realise this was happening as I was talking to other members of the group but note when you are on the road. You need to look for the post in the photo below which takes you to the last part of the trail. At this point he road starts to go downhill steeply, but instead you will take a left at the post and follow the path. From here its about 5.5km to La Calera.

The path heads back into the trees and the view of the lake is lost its stone and all downhill so hard on the knees but easy on the lungs. At one point we rested by a small waterfall which makes a nice stop, again there are some benches if you want to rest.

The path starts to widen and become more green and open as it heads downhill. After a while you will come out on to the roads again and you will see La Calera in the distance. You need to walk there to get the bus back to Bogota. Turn right and follow the road until the end and you will get some beautiful views of the mountains.

At the junction turn left and follow this road into the town. You will end up on calle 3 and you want to turn left into calle 5. If in doubt walk towards the church which can be seen from the whole town. This will take you to the main plaza.

Cross the main plaza in a diagonal to calle 7 and turn right towards the main road. You will cross a few blocks and a bridge. Straight after the bridge is a market where you can have some food, we decided to stop for lunch as it was around 11:45 by this time or you can flag a bus from the main road back to Bogotá. The bus will take you to downtown but you can jump off anywhere you want once you are back. It will be another $3500 to return.

How to hike Comino del Indio

The hike is pretty simple when you have started as you are mostly following the road as it weaves its passage around the mountains to La Calera.

To begin go to Calle 85 y Carrera 7. Cross to the eastern side of Carrera 7 and look for the road connecting to Carrera 5. Wait on this small road which is going up hill and flag the bus for La Calera, which is not the final destination so it will not be at the top in the busses window, $3500.

To follow the same route that we took, as you could easily to this in reverse, you need to get off just after you pass through San Luis. Ask the driver to drop you at Porteria Arboreto, which is a security gate for a private complex. Its on the main road close to a bar called Compostela and a hotel called Pachamama. If you can’t find it then there are other options below. Once you arrive, tell the security guards that you want to see the Mirador Aguadora and they should let you through.

Follow the road until you are close to the Mirador Aguadora, you will see the beginning of the clearly marked trail to your left. Keep going forward but take the left and then its pretty simple form there, just follow the path. When you arrive at the next road from the track make sure you look for a post on your left. Follow this path to La Calera and when you come out on to the road for the third time walk towards the church in the town and catch a bus back to Bogotá on the main road, $3500.

Hiking Options

In Reverse

If you wanted a little more of a challenge you could always hike in reverse as this way the entire hike is uphill. This is also an option if you are unable to find the starting point. In this case take the bus all the way to La Calera. Take Carrera 5 from the plaza and turn right on to calle 3. Follow this out of town and turn right at the first main junction follow this until you see the clearly marked sign that the trail begins, this will be on your left after about 500 metres. From here you just need to follow the trail. When you come to the first road, take the right and make sure you see the trail again on your left and afterwards just keep straight until you get back to the main road. From here you can flag a bus back to Bogotá.

Combining with Mirador Aguadora hike

Its possible to combine this hike with Mirador Aguadora and I would actually really recommend that you do as the first part of the hike as we did it can be confusing and also its a little boring to walk along the road. Before you leave make sure you check out the Mirador Aguadora blog.

The Mirador Aguadora hike is 2.6km and begin on calle 119 in Usaquen. Go to Usaquen along Carerra 7 and then walk straight up towards the mountains, again you will need to pass a security checkpoint but this path is open so you con’t need to provide a reason. You will walk up the road for a few hundred metres but then take the obvious track to the left, the track changes to a path when you reach the water plant but continue upwards.

When you reach the mirador at the top, rest for as long as you wish and then turn left, this will take you down to the road. From here take a left and you will be at the trail that leads into the forest, which has the fence on the right. From here just walk all the way to La Calera.

If you are hiking in reverse when you come out on the main road from the forest look for the path to Mirador Aguadora on the right, which is clearly marked, and it will take you down to Usaquen where you can get some well deserved rest, a beer and some decent food.

Equipment to take

There is no food or water available on the trial itself, but once you reach the end, no matter which way you hike, food is in plentiful supply. Its a half day hike but there are plenty of beautiful spots to stop for lunch. Although the hike is sort and is done by trail runners and day walkers I always take the following on a hike:

Gortex hiking boots
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Dry bag or backpack cover (I take both)
Cell phone
Cell phone battery
Charger cable
Sunglasses
Sun Cream
Painkillers
Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
Hand soap
Tissues
Water filer
Sun hat
Food – you can never have too much and you will need it on this hike so pack appropriately.
Water 2 litres minimum

Clothes

The hike is not high altitude and I found we brought too many layers getting warm quickly. Having said that is can always get cold in the eastern hills so its best to come prepared.

Base layer
Fleece
Hiking trousers
Hiking underwear
Hiking socks

Enjoy the natural wonders of the high Andean Cloud Forest at Cuchilla El Tablazo, Bogotá

By david_lortal

On December 6, 2019

In Bogotá, Colombia

If you enjoy this hike and are looking to explore others then check out Parque Natural Chicaque set in a beautiful cloud forest and surrounded in mist. Or you can visit Parque Ecológico Matarredonda, a stunning palmro right on Bogotà’s doorstep.

Information

Our Experience

We had been toying with the idea of hiking with a groups since I arrived in Colombia. Organised tours, on the whole tend to be expensive here and can be a little hard to find. We found out later that many are organised in WhatsApp groups – once you have an invite all is good but getting invited into one can be a challenge. We tended to hike solo, which is something I would always recommend, but sometimes its not possible and sometimes its good to be sociable and spend time with other people. Angela somehow managed to get us invited to a group and their next hike was to Chichilla El Tablazo costing $5000 each for the guide plus transport.

This hike wasn’t on my list and is relatively unknown, at least on Google, but when I found out it involved hiking from a ridge of 3500 metres down to 1800 metres over a distance of 14km. I really like hikes with dramatic changes in altitude as you pass through so many different landscapes. We had also done our fair share of uphill hikes –Mirador Aguadora, Farallones de Sutatausa and Cerro Quininí to name a few – and I wanted to try something different.

It turned out that the group was largely a group of friends who go hiking regularly and the guide organises the trips for fun. Which is nice as he could easily charge $80,000 or more per person just for the hike. If you are interested contact Felipe (Spanish only) on +57 311 882 6358 and he can add you to the group.

Angela had instructions to turn up at Portal de la 80, so named because it is located on calle 80 on the western edge of Bogotá, for 7am, but we were told that we had until 7:30am to arrive. Being British I was there at 7am taking an Uber direct to the station. When we arrived we approached a couple of groups and Felipe was currently nowhere to be found. So we waited around tentatively until another woman approached us also looking for Felipe, I guess our clothes gave us away, and together we saw a slowly expanding group of people where at least some of them looked ready to hike. As stressed at 7:30 am we headed for the bus, at which point the group had grown pretty larger – I counted 23 plus two small dogs.

The first destination was Subachoque ($5400). Take the bus from the calle 80 outside the terminal – you will see the busses stop and the ticket collects will get out to get you on. Somehow we were all able to fit on board and most managed to grab seats but a few in the group were left to stand. It took us just over an hour to arrive at the town and we were told we had 30 minutes to grab some breakfast.

There were a lot of cyclists on this route and I think this town is one place they stop to eat food and take a break. There are several food places around the main plaza serving up Colombian breakfasts, so if you haven’t brought any food this is likely to be the last place you will be able to get something (on our hike there were people selling snacks form the back of their car up on the mountain but this is not guaranteed). We always bring lunch and breakfast, just in case, and normally eat more on the road.

After our 30 minutes were up we headed to the main church, Iglisia de Subchoque, on the north-eastern side of the plaza and then headed up Via El Plantano to the top of the cliffs. There is a bus stop marked around the corner on maps.me but the bus doesn’t seem to pass that stop. If in doubt ask the locals and you want to look for the bus which says Laguna de Arce – I didn’t actually get a chance to see the sign on the front but that is the last stop. Its due to leave at around 9am and there seems to be a regular service.

From the drop-off by the laguna it was a 2km walk to the top. Make sure you walk on the right of the road as there are cyclists coming down the gravel road really fast. One person in our group nearly managed to come close to causing an accident but luckily the rider had good breaks and reactions. The hike started off easy but the altitude did kick in pretty quickly. Angela started to feel a little sick and said I looked pale. There was no blue sky in sight and we were at times walking amongst the clouds. I knew I was definitely back hiking with Angela and she had brought the clouds with her that day.

After around 40 minutes you will see the radar towers. They were covered in clouds when we arrived but Felipe had told us that last time he was here the sky had been clear. I can only imagine the full view which I could glimpse through the clouds. The reason the towers are here is due to several planes that have crashed into the mountains. On clear days you can spot some of the wreckage but there was nothing to see today.

Just ahead of the towers take a right and walk along the top of the cliff edge. Here the you can get spectacular views over the edge of the cliff. Just don’t stroll to close unless you want to join the planes.

And you get an idea of the views through the clouds. We stayed around on the top for around 40 minutes, enough time for the clouds to clear a little for photographs.

The clouds were blown around by the wind clearing a little at times. Its actually fascinating to see the clouds moving so quickly across the landscape, revealing the world through small holes in the cloud and quickly covering them up again.

Felipe motioned that it was time to move on and we followed him back to the car park. Here there were some people selling coffee, aperas and drinks from the back of their car. If you do want anything then this is your last chance to stock up. So do take advantage. Otherwise its a long wait until you arrive in Supatá. Some of the group were much slower and it took them a while to catch-up so I took advantage and took more photos.

We walked past the towers and then followed the trail along the top of the ridge, around the fences of radar complex and a very aggressive dog. The trail was really wet and muddy and it was easy to slip. I was immediately happy about my waterproof boots and not having to skirt around puddles.

If you are hiking solo then make sure you have maps me and follow the path down from the mirador. We took a detour from the path, which I will come to later, but don’t. Stay on it. When you leave the forest make sure you follow the main road – Maps.me offers lots of shortcuts but I didn’t actually see them on the hike and I guess if you follow them you will end up walking across farmers fields. Instead stick to the main road. One key area you need to watch out for is a farm with a house. I think its the first farm you will come to, and there will be photos later on. There were several dogs and there is a T junction. Take the right path, its longer but it will take you to your destination.

Eventually the path will take a right and into the bushes where there is a very steep descent. Its more of a climb than anything and is the height of 1.5 stories. Although we were near to the front it was initially hard to see why everyone was moving so slowly during this part. When I did reach the front of the line I could see that the path dropped vertically and it was necessary to climb down.

When it was my turn to go down a guy in the shell suit pushed past. I didn’t understand the what he has said but Angela told me to just let him go. He had said “let me go first I need to help” which turned out to be a curse as halfway down he took a fall and plummeted to the path below – luckily he didn’t get much further or we would have never seen him again. He was wearing white trainers with zero grip and I started my descent just in time to see him tumble down, which was pretty scary. It looked like a bad fall, and I hasted to get to the bottom without pancaking and thus falling myself. Another guy wanted to go first so I let him and he quickly reached the bottom and started dealing with the situation.

As you can see in the photo below it was a steep climb, essentially it involved climbing down clinging on to branches and roots. But if you go slowly and carefully and have decent boots you should be fairly safe. He was okay but had hurt his foot but didn’t have any broken bones or a concussion. Instead of turning back as he had been advised he insisted that he could continue but in front of us was about 14 kilometres of trekking and less then a kilometre and a climb were people with cars who could have taken him to safety. He would live to regret the decision – as would all of us.

At this point the some in the group who felt more confident with climbing formed a human chain to help everyone else down safety. It was slow going and took a long time to get everyone down, including the two dogs, but it was worth it.

Straight after this point was another slightly challenging climb. It wasn’t anywhere near as high but there is a rock you have to cross and to the left is a steep drop down the mountain. There is a bit of a tricky climb down and if you do see some wood to step on then just be careful as it wasn’t as study as it had appeared.

After this the next one hundred metres or so is fairly steep down into the forest it levels out and the path treks through the forest. But for the next few kilometres you will be heading down through the trees.

Very soon you will appear in a clearing which after the steepest part of the hike completed you can relax here for a time. We stopped to regroup and you could see the clouds moving around here as they did above. Its a nice place to relax for a time.

Once we had regrouped we headed back into the forest and everything is down for the next few hours. Just continue to follow the path on maps.me. We made slow progress for a time and I wondered why we kept stopping. The longer we kept walking the longer we were waiting and eventually I realised it was the guy with the hurt foot. Most people didn’t realise the distance we still has to travel as especially when you are on a forest trail you go so much slower and the scenery changes so quickly you don’t realise that the distance is much shorter. The views however were spectacular and it was beautiful to walk through the forest in the mist.

We hadn’t gone particularly far and were already far behind schedule when all the hungry people stopped for lunch. It was already about 12pm by this stage and I was left wondering where all the time had gone. I couldn’t believe it when I found out that some people hadn’t brought food with them. I don’t know what they were thinking but I suppose they thought there would be somewhere to stop.

After lunch we continued down and progress was even slower. The guy was obviously in a lot of pain but for each 20 minutes that we walked we had to then wait a further 30 minutes for the last of the group to catch-up. I calculated by the time we exited the forest we had lost over 2 hours just waiting. But it was fascinating to see the foliage change. This is one reason I like hiking in mountains over other terrain, especially when you deal in large changes in altitude, as everything changes so quickly.

Eventually the forest started to thin out and we could see the beginning of the Savannah but there was still a long way to go down. Also looking at my map I could see that we had left the trail. Don’t do this as the main trail down is better. Felipe took the decision to take what he thought was a more direct route out of the mountain. In the end it didn’t help us and we had to cross a few barbed wire fences. Always trust your guide and he did his best to support the injured member of our party.

When we left the forest the sky had turned blue, well mostly blue. We took the direct path down to those buildings, climbing over a couple of fences and walking through fields. I was beginning to worry as the guy with the foot was in a lot of pain. I suggested to Angela that we should give him some pain killers.

We were then in the grasslands and still had a long way to go. It was now around 3pm and our last bus from the town of Supatá left at 5pm and I knew we had at least 7km to go. In the end it turned out we needed to walk much much further.

As we walked I was finally able to see the cliffs and for a time the sky cleared giving us some beautiful views and allowing us to see all of the mountains around. I took a lot of photos.

We began to walk across fields and the land became flatter. The sun was creating beautiful patterns through the clouds and bathing trees, cliffs and and rocks in sunlight highlighting their beauty.

We waited by a dairy farm for him to catch-up, everyone sat around and then started taking group photos. I was desperate to keep going knowing how much further we had to walk and how long we had already waited. We headed off at speed following the first road we had seen since descending from the ridge to the nearest farm to ask for help.

The sun was really opening the clouds up and while we were waiting for the other to catch-up I took advantage and snapped a lot of photos.

Everyone sped along on the hike, most people were now realising the distance that we still had to cover. the temperature was beginning to drop and people were hungry. The landscape was stunning and I was very happy to enjoy it emerging as we reached the crest of every hill.

The cliffs were now completly out of the clouds at times and we were able to enjoy them from afar.

We soon reached the farm but for now no one was home. We waited for everyone to catch up and it took a long time for the guy with the painful foot to join. In the meantime he was lucky as the farmers returned while we were waiting and Felipe bargained passage for the guy on a moto.

As soon as this was sorted Felipe gave us the lowdown and told us which road to follow all the way to the town. We all knew the bus would have left by the time we had arrived so we needed to find another way back to Bogotà. With the sun setting as still a long way to go time was of the essence! It was 4:10 pm and according to the map it was 6.5 km which is over an hours walk. Although it was more like 8 km by the end. We all walked off at speed to the town.

The final part of the journey was long and challenging. We had also run out of water by this point and I wished that I had brought my water filer with us. It wasn’t helped by the fact that we had to rush half of the hike in a few hours when we were tired. Then to top everything off it started to rain. I was thankful for the waterproof coat and trousers we had brought – Angela’s were a new addition. For a time it felt like we were hiking in a cloud but then we came out below it. It was all downhill which made it easier and walking along the road meant we made really good timer. There were a lot of large puddles crossing the entire road and a couple of streams to traverse.

The road was largely stones which makes it more challenging to walk but we kept up a fast pace. Soon the faster members were out of sight and had raced ahead on the road as it twisted downwards around fields and mountains. Occasionally there were switchbacks and I was more concerned about the half of the group that ended up behind us. Although later on I realised some of the better walkers had stayed behind to support the slower.

I knew that we would not reach the town before dark and was worried about the light – we only had our phones as I hadn’t anticipated needing a torch. This might be something that I pack in future as there have been a couple of times where I’ve worried about the night drawing in.

There wasn’t much in the way of houses or shops or passing traffic. About a third of the way into the journey the guy with the foot passed us on a motorbike waving and smiling to everyone. He didn’t seem to grasp that we were all in this situation because of his stupidity. Eventually I realised that the road we were on took us along the longest path on Maps.me. As I said above there are shorter paths but I didn’t see any obvious ones while walking. Then again we just wanted to get to the end of the road as we were pretty much alone by this point.

With about 1.5km to go it turned dark enough to require the torch so I used my phone as a light, and then a lot of motorbikes appeared leaving town. The closer we got the more houses appeared and then I realised we needed to take a left turn to get into the town. If you stay on the road it will take you out again.

There was no one waiting for us and we caught up with a few others at this stage, so as a group we headed for the Plaza and found Felipe and the rest of the group. It was just after 6pm. If you do arrive before the last bus for Bogotá has left then you catch it from here. I’m not quite sure where but ask around.

I went to get some water and crisps and while I did some transport had been arranged. It was for half the group and Angela volunteered to wait for the others. It turned out that the guy who hurt his foot was supposed to help arrange transport when he arrived in town but instead he sat in the plaza and did nothing, turning his phone off leaving Felipe in the dark. A nice way to pay everyone back.

The second half of the group arrived around 20 minutes later and we were soon in the back of a pickup transport to the main road. It was a long quie trip back in the pickup. We were cramped in and all tired so we sat recovering with our own thoughts for company. IT took us as far as the main road to Bogotà where we disembarked and paid the driver. He stayed with us and helped to flag a bus which took us the rest of the distance back t Portal 80. It went further but at this stage we jumped out and took and Uber back to the house. It was around 9:30pm at this stage and I didn’t want to mess around on the Transmileno.

I ordered Burger King as soon as we were in the taxi and it arrived just afer we did. We ate hungrily and sank some beers before we turned in and had a well earned rest.

>How to Hike Cuchilla El Tablazo Solo

You need to take two busses from Bogotá to arrive at the beginning of the trail, assuming that you are going downhill. You can hike starting in Supatá which is worth considering but you will be adding on 9km to the hike and the vast majority will be uphill.

Go to Portal 80 on Calle 80 and from here take a bus to Subachoque $5400, a small town, you can take the bus from the main road. From here you need to get to Laguna del Arce $5000. Its a 9km walk or you can take a bus from the plaza. There is one that leaves close to 9am and I believe that there is a regular service. I would not aim to leave any later than 9am as its a long hike.

When you are dropped off by the laguna take the road to the left, uphill, until you reach the radio towers at the top. From here you can get an amazing view from the top. Fro the car park walk right and away from the towers, which is basically walking along a path which takes you parallel, to the road you have just walked along. When you are finished head back to the car park at the top. Follow the road to the end and then walk around the remaining complex. At this point you should be on the trail that leads to Supatá. From here allow 6 hours to reach the town.

At Supatá head to the main Palza, its not on the map but you can’t miss it as you can see the church. From here you will be able to take a bus direct to Bogotá $10000 and will take at least 2 hours.

In total the busses will cost you around $20000 per person. There are no entry fees on the trail.

Equipment to take

Once you start the hike there is nowhere to buy supplies and with this being close to Bogotà make sure that you prepare for any eventuality. Bring the right equipment and make sure you have enough food and water. This is a long and relatively challenging hike..

1. 1. Gortex hiking boots, if you don’t bring anything else make sure you wear decent shoes. Boots are better as they offer ankle protection.
  2. Waterproof jacket
  3. Waterproof trousers (you could live without these on most day hikes but once you have them you won’t want to hike without them)
  4. Dry bag or packback cover (I take both)
  5. Cell phone
  6. Cell phone battery
  7. Charger cable
  8. Sunglasses
  9. Sun Cream
  10. Painkillers
  11. Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
  12. Hand soap
  13. Tissues
  14. Water filer
  15. Sun hat
  16. Food (make sure you bring high calorie and this is also your change to binge on sugar – you are going to burn in)
  17. Water 3 litres minimum

Clothes

Again make sure you take decent clothes. I might go a little over the top as I brought all my equipment for Patagonia but you can’t go wrong with the following. I don’t always bring all the layers listed below but the layers will keep you warm.

1. 1. Base layer
  2. Jumper
  3. Fleece
  4. Down Jacket
  5. Hiking trousers
  6. Hiking underwear (trust me it stops the chafing)
  7. Hiking socks

Take the short hike up to the Mirador Aguadora on a weekend morning, Usaquen, Bogotá

By david_lortal

On November 12, 2019

In Bogotá, Colombia

One of the many many paths leading up into the mountains surrounding Bogotá is the Mirador Aguadora hike. This short hike is perfect for a Sunday Morning excursion and definitely one for the kids and when you reach the top you can see panoramic views of the city. Its a great little hike, especially if you have just arrived and want to get used to the altitude or if you are looking for something not to strenuous and want to avoid the crowds at Montserrat. And the best thing about the hike is that its absolutely free! Starting in Usaquen amongst the market and restaurants means you can finish off with a well deserved, beer, ice cream or pizza, whatever takes your fancy. For those looking for a slightly longer hike then this one is easily combined with the Camino del Indio, which follows straight on when you reach the top.

Information

Our Experience
How to Hike to Mirador Aguadora
How to combine with the Camino del Indio hike
Equipment to take

Our Experience

This was our third attempt at the hike as on the two previous times we had been unlucky as the path was closed for maintenance. However that is a good thing as it shows that the path is well maintained. Angela and I went for the final attempt on a Sunday and you need to go early as the last admittance to the path is from 6am – 12pm everyday. We also decided to take Lorenzo along, who is five, but he misses out on most of our treks as he is still to young but seems to be a fan of the mountains. He had a great time and the path is perfectly safe for children. Towards the top it gets pretty steep but he was perfectly find holding my hand at this point.

Typically with a lot of places in Bogota the train head is actually on private land, a members club called Aguadora, which means you have to pass through security in order to get there, and you can see the gates below.

The first part of the hike is along the road to the club but you soon leave the city behind and are surrounded by the tranquile lush forest.

After a few bends the road bares off to the right and the trail starts. The first part is a dirt track where you will also find a lot of cyclists. We started later in the day as Lorenzo has a football lesson first thing and there were a lot of people coming back down.

I was complaining that all the people were ruining my photos but Angela suggested I should include them in some shots to show that other people used the trail. So here is a guy bravely cycling up the path.

The path winds its way through the trees steadily going uphill and soon comes out into the open and you can see the mountains surrounding you and the city far below. I climbed up a bank to get a better view before we continued onwards and upwards.

Around halfway to the top there is a small water processing plant and this is where the road ends and the cyclists have to complete their journeys. Those on foot can cross the bridge and continue up the train and from this point onwards it becomes progressively steeper.

There are a lot of benches along the way so do take advantage of them if you need a break. There is no point becoming tired but I’d recommend having lunch with a view, if you brought food, and waiting until the very top.

It took us around 90 minutes to reach the top, and that was with a very energetic 5 year old. We did stop to take a log of photos and to rest so if you allow 2 hours it should be more than enough to reach the Mirador. Here there are some benches where you can sit down to enjoy the view.

We decided to turn right and walk a little further stopping in the clearing which has a view of Embalse de San Rafael and had lunch.

When you reach the ridge you can continue the hike by taking a left or right. If you go right then you will soon see the clearing as we did and then the path heads up to the top of the next mountain. Lots of people were hiking up and down this path, which follows the pipes, and if you look at Maps.me you will see the route continues and then there is a further route back down to Usaquen.

Despite being keen to climb up we felt it was a little dangerous for Lorenzo as it is steep and also we didn’t want to use up all his energy before the end of the hike. Instead we took a few photos of the surrounding area, headed back to the Mirador and headed left as I wanted to explore where the path went.

Going left from the Mirador takes you to a quite road and the entrance to some exclusive apartments. Straight across is another access road that takes you down and we walked a little way to get the views of the lake. If you wanted to go all the way down you need you turn left and follow the paths on Maps.me, although I’ve not tested these and the paths on the map are not always accessible, but it does show a route. Do let me know if you try this, I would if I had more time.

The whole area is beautiful and it makes a nice short hike close to the city which is great, even if you don’t climb to the very top. And there are a lot of routes to take once you get up here for the more adventurous. Just keep checking on Maps.me.

How to Hike to Mirador Aguadora

The entrance to the hike is via the access road to the Club La Aguadora, on Calle 119. First head to the Plaza de Usaquen and then take calle 119, the north size of the plaza (look for Mister Ribs) and turn right. After one block cross the road and from here just go straight until you reach the security gate. This is where the trail begins.

If you are taking a bus you want to reach Avenida Carrera 7 and calle 119. There are many busses that pass this part of town. If you are not sure then Moveit has all the Bogota bus routs as does Google Maps.

Once you start the hike it can take around 90 minutes to 2 hours to reach the top and a similar time to come back down depending on how fast you walk. There is no charge an the cost of travel is as little as $2400 for a Transmileno ticket.

How to combine with the Camino del Indio hike

Its possible to combine this hike with Camino del Indio and I would actually really recommend as when you reach the top of the ridge you are already at the Camino del Indio. Its a further 12km to La Calera, all downhill and will take you another 2.5 hours form this point giving you beautiful panoramic views of the lake, but trust me the hard-work is already done. .

When you reach the mirador at the top, rest for as long as you wish and then turn left, this will take you down to the road. From here take a left and you will be at the Camino del Indio trail that leads into the forest, which has the fence on the right. From here just walk all the way to La Calera.

Equipment to take

There is no food or water available once you leave Usaquen, but in all fairness Aguadora in itself is a couple of hours walk. Most people on the hike were wearing normal sports clothes and trainers but as I have the equipment and like to be prepared this is what I would always bring. Do take water as a minimum precaution.

Gortex hiking boots
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Dry bag or backpack cover (I take both)
Cell phone
Cell phone battery
Charger cable
Sunglasses
Sun Cream
Painkillers
Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
Hand soap
Tissues
Water filer
Sun hat
Food – you can never have too much and you will need it on this hike so pack appropriately.
Water 1 litre minimum

Clothes

The hike is not high altitude and I found we brought too many layers getting warm quickly. Having said that is can always get cold in the eastern hills so its best to come prepared.

Base layer
Fleece
Hiking trousers
Hiking underwear
Hiking socks

Have an Adventure Weekend, Hiking, Climbing and Cycling in Suesca, Bogotá

By david_lortal

On November 12, 2019

In Bogotá, Colombia

Situated on the northern edge of the Bogotà Savannah, an hour outside of Bogotà, is Suesca. Famous for the Rocas de Suesca (Suesca Rocks) it’s a mecca for the outdoor activities. For the adventitious there are 500 plus climbing routes across the rocks, plenty of hiking trails, and many cycling routes. For those who require less of an adrenaline rush can take time to relax by Lake Suesca or eat in one of the many restaurants. Hiking along the ridge line along the top of the cliffs provide views of the surrounding area for miles around. The scenery is breathtaking. Or follow the railway and recreate the scenes from the movies.

The town is well set up for outdoor sports and you can hire climbing equipment and guides from many places in the town. Visit Cañon de la Lechuza (Owl Canyon), Laguna de Suesca (Suesca Lagoon) and hike to Santa Rosita and for lunch. Its the perfect place to escape for a day or even longer. There are options for staying overnight either in the campsites situated at the bottom of the cliffs or in one of the many hotels.

If you enjoy hikes in the lush green mountains that surround Bogotà then mountains that try read my guides to Cuchilla El Tablazo, a downhill hike which starts overlooking lush green valleys from a palmero covered cliff at 3500 metres ends in a warm town at 1800 metres far below. Or head up to the rocky Farallones de Satausa where you can also go bouldering when you make your way along the ridge line.

Information

Our Experience
How to get to Suesca
Equipment to Take

Our Experience

On one of the many holiday Mondays in Colombia I decided to visit Suesca. It was my first solo hike since returning to Colombia, which was actually quite nerve racking. Despite having hiked solo in more remote places this many, many times the year before I was out of practice. But my Spanish is better now and so is my planning. Angela was not well, which was a shame as the weather was beautiful, so I left her at home to enjoy some solitude and took an Uber to the North Terminal.

While in the taxi I realised that this is how we should have started all of the hikes. Getting across Bogotà is difficult, slow and not much fun. On so many occasions it had easily added 1-2 hours to the journey, just to get to the bus terminal to leave the city. Uber is cost effective enough that you are not really saving much in cost vs the time of taking public transport. This time it was it was really easy! The cycle paths had not opened and being a holiday there was much less traffic than usual. I arrived at the station just before 7am, brought a tickets, snacks and was on a bus by around 7:15 am. Initially I headed into the main building and was directed around to the far end of the terminal. When facing the terminal there are a set of more local busses that leave from the bottom right corner, there is a huge sign which details the destinations of the busses. I grabbed some water and walked around the complex and waited in line for my bus.

Tell the driver that you want to go to Rocas de Suesca and you will be dropped you off just before you reach the river, outside of the town itself. You do not want to go all the way into the town or you will have to walk back outside of the town. A single trip is $7600. Assuming you are dropped in the correct place, it will be on the same side of the road in which you leave the bus, then there is a short walk to the train tracks and you will see the views in the photos below.

Despite the sign above telling you that its dangerous to walk along the tracks I decided to head off in that direction. This is a working railway but its only used for cargo trains. I don’t know how often they run and being a holiday I felt fairly confident I’d be safe. I didn’t see or hear any trains pass on the day that I hiked. The only way to access the bottom of the cliffs is along the railway line so there are plenty of people taking the route along the lines. But just take into consideration that a train could pass you at any stage during the hike. I didn’t see any areas where it would not be possible to stand back and let the train pass and you should hear it coming from a long distance but again, just be careful.

There is also a path that leads straight across the railway and up into the hills, this is where I ended up when I returned. I wanted to follow the train track and recreate scenes from the movies I watched as a child. In hindsight stones are not the best for hiking on but there are well trodden paths along the sides of the track and you can also walk along the sleepers. So after taking some photos I immediately headed to the left to follow the tracks.

After curving around to the right the track levelled out and I could see the cliffs and very soon saw climbers making their way up the rocks. I also spotted a Virgin Mary which I’m hoping is not a tribute to anyone who has died.

I was lucky to be able to hike on a beautiful day and it had only taken me an hour to arrive so I started early around 8:30am. The initial leg of my trip was just over 5km and I wanted to go to Cañón de la Lechuza, a mirador on maps.me which is you can find by just following the tracks and if you wanted to go further then just under 1 more kilometer takes you to the town of Santa Rosita. I decided not to walk that far, but you will see it in the photos below. There you could have lunch as there are some restaurants, bakeries and hotels if you wanted to stay. But this whole hike is easily done in 3-4 hours. I was on a but by 12pm and I stopped a lot to take photos.

I really enjoyed the rugged terrain and the foliage growing out of the rocks. The photos don’t really do it justice but some of it seemed like giant spiderwebs.

I soon came across a camp site where plenty of families had decided to spend the night. I also got the impression that any of the climbers were using it as a base because there were a lot of people in climbing gear walking to and from the camp. Although as I went further up the tracks I didn’t see so many people.

The mountains close in as you travel further along the train line forming a canyon with the river right at the bottom it provided some beautiful views and sounds.

The surrounding trees and rocks were beautiful. Everything was so lush and green, I assume it was because I was here on a rare sunny day in the middle of rainy season, but the trees gave me the impression that it was autumn so the colours were particularly spectacular. Being close to the equator Colombia doesn’t really have seasons but the climate changes so much from place to place. The Bogota Savannah is around 2600 metres in altitude and you only have to travel 90 minutes and drop to 1500 to find the weather mush more tropical or head another way and go up to 4000 meters to find yourself in the middle of a Palermo where it is cold and wet. Its one reason I love mountainous regions.

After I came out of the rocks above the train line goes around in a huge circle, after seeing the landscape I can only assume that they were not given permission to build on someones land. Also take note of the photo above as this is the beginning of the path where you head up to hike along the top of the cliffs.

I continued to follow the tracks and then they took a turn to the right and I was surrounded by trees again and started seeing some properties. I thought there might be a way to meet the main road here but alas the properties were in the way. But soon I reached the mirador.

It was around 10am when I arrived at the mirador and I saw some flowers which I took a some closeups. And very quickly got upclose and personal with a vulture, who I didn’t see until the last second as I was concentrating on sitting down to rest and eat my crisps.

This was my intended endpoint but as views go I was a little disappointed. I sat and rested while a couple of groups passed me and then tried to take some photos. I had read that the canyon was a place you could view owls, hence the name, but its really difficult to get a decent view without half hanging off the edge and that was something I really didn’t want to do. I have seen videos of people kayaking along so maybe if that’s of interest its something you can opt for. I really wasn’t happy with my photos, which you can see below, but I wanted to take some to illustrate. But don’t let this put you off the hike as its beautiful, I just wanted to be realistic about the “mirador”. From here you can either continue to Santa Rosita.

I wanted to see the town and continued to the point below. I decided that i didn’t want to add an extra two kilometres to my journey but I think it would be a nice place to stop on the outward journey.

I retraced my steps along the track a little faster this time as I wanted to find the path that would take me along the top of the cliffs.

And soon I found it. I was about to head up when I saw a security guard with a very excited puppy, who ran up to me and wanted to play. I decided to ask for some directions and accidentally trod on the puppy’s tail as he lay down in front of me. Luckily the security guard took it with good grace and set me on the right trail.

I wouldn’t say it is particularly steep but there is definitely a good amount of up at this stage and I passed straight into the trees, passing a fair few hikers.

You come out into a meadow and from here you can see views of all the surrounding mountains as well as a panoramic view of the canyon.

When you reach this point you will want to take the path to the right, following the side of the canyon. The security guard overtook me on his bike and I found that there was a path leading down but it had a fallen tree across it. The tree was easily crossed but there was another large group coming form the path that came from the left. I thought I had gone the wrong way so took the path to the left and soon realised I wasn’t on the correct path according to Maps.me, but also I wasn’t too far away from it. Luckily the security guard and the dog came back and he informed me that I was going in the wrong direction. So I retracted my steps and headed back to the path going down, but I was quite happy as this is the direction I had originally wanted to travel.

Here is the tree blocking the path.

As the path led down I was treated to some great views and got closer and closer to the canyon itself. Soon I was able to see the places where climbers had reached the top and had left the bolts in the rocks.

I then got to see the train tracks from above which is something I was particularly excited about.

And in the photos below you can see the town of Suesca and the camp site. The trip back is again around 5km and its not a hard route to follow. The path is often pretty wide and all you have to do is stay along the edge of the cliff.

After a while you will start seeing properties and ar which will take other routes down to the main road, but make sure you stay to the right following the main route.

Then I got to see some of the larger mountains surrounding the wider Bogota area.

As you can see the path above turns to rock. As I was busy taking photographs near the end of the hike I disturbed two vultures and was able to quickly switch lenses to photograph them.

And then it was time to head back down to the tracks where I had started. This part of the trail is pretty steep but nothing too crazy. There were a lot of local people walking towards me back to their houses. I arrived back into town around midday and decided to treat myself to a Colombiana. You can of course stop here for lunch as it is fairly touristy and there are a lot of restaurants – it all depends on how much you want to push yourself. When you are ready to head back to Bogota, cross the road and flag down a red and black bus. The return journey costs the same. I wasn’t waiting too long for a bus to arrive so they will be fairly frequent. I was back at home by around 1pm which was a record for our trips.

How to Arrive at Suesca

Its a very easy journey to Suecsa and takes around 1 hour when you are on the bus. You can either take the bus form Bogota’s main terminal or from Terminal Norte. My advice would be to go to Terminal Norte on the Transmilenio or take a taxi/Uber to the terminal. At the terminal do not go towards the main building, but instead head to the right and you will see signs for a lot of towns including Suesca listed on a sign. Follow the path around the bus park and you will see lines with one being for Suesca.

Wait here for the bus to arrive and get on. A one way ticket is $7600 and make sure you tell the driver that you want to go to Rocas de Suesca, which is outside the main town. They should drop you at the right place but look for Vamonos Pal Monte, restaurant, just before the river on the map below and that’s where you want to get off the bus. From here walk to the train line and to follow the tracks turn left, or to go up along the ridge go straight ahead. There are no entrance fees. Or otherwise just explore at your leisure. There are plenty of trains on maps.me and if you ask around in town then you will find out about all the activities that you can explore.

Equipment to take

This equipment list is aimed at those who are going to hike for a day. If you are camping or are planning on climbing then you will need to bring more equipment or hire it from one of the shops on the main street. Make sure you bring enough water and food. The route that I hiked was fairly short and I was back in a few hours. There are shops on the main road and again in any of the towns that you visit but its always best to be prepared, especially when it comes to water.

Dry bag or packback cover (I take both)
Cell phone
Cell phone battery
Charger cable
Sunglasses
Sun Cream
Painkillers
Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
Hand soap
Tissues
Water filer
Sun hat
Food
Water 2 litres minimum

Clothes

It was a warm day when I hiked but this is my standard equipment which I would recommend. Remember you are on the Bogotà Savannah where it rains a lot and the weather can change quickly.

Gortex hiking boots
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Base layer
Jumper
Fleece
Down Jacket
Hiking trousers
Hiking underwear
Hiking socks

Tren Touristico Bogota, to Nemocon and the Minas de Sal

By david_lortal

On November 11, 2019

In Bogotá, Colombia

I decided I wanted to take the train in Bogota as soon as I realised it existed. Living close to Carrera 9 we hear the trains pass our several times a day and also don’t need to invest in an alarm as there is an especially excited driver who loves to press the horn at around 6am in the morning.

I don’t normally talk about my life outside of hiking on the blog but Angela and I have a 5 year old, Lorenzo, who is as excited about the trains as I am and with Angela showing little to no interest in the trip I decided to make it a boys day out and invited Jorge, Angela’s father. You can buy tickets direct from the Tren Touristico de la Sabana website or in person at the stations in Usaquen or Sabana. Being close to Usaquen, I decided to pop down and buy the tickets saving paying the administration fee. The tickets themselves are not cheap and I’ll detail all the information at the end.

The day finally arrived and for the first time on a trip out we had blue skys! Lorenzo was particularly excited and happily posed. The train was scheduled to leave at 9am on the Sunday and we were early to see the train arrive.

The train stops in the station for 10 minutes so there was time to get some obligatory photos before we boarded.

We were on the front carriage and ended up sitting right behind the driver, which was great in this case as unlike any other train I’ve ever been on there was glass between the passengers and the driver cabin meaning that we could see out of the front of the train.

And soon we were off. As this was a Sunday one side of Carrera 9 is a cycle path until 2pm so that’s why there are all the bikes on the street. I’ve never seen Bogota from this perspective and soon realised that although the train is slower than cars it doesn’t have to stop at traffic lights. Instead there is an army of people stopping traffic in various forms and the constant beeping of the trains horn warns the people, who do not always heed it with purpose, to get out of the way. Thankfully on this journey at least no one came close to being hit.

Throughout the journey there are people selling drinks and snacks, including beers. I didn’t feel 9 am was the right time to grab a beer. Also there was the opportunity to by tickets to the mines on the train, I think you can even buy them from the ticket office. Jorge was buying the tickets and it was only possible to pay by cash on the train, which we later realised was a mistake – if you can make sure you buy the tickets for the Salt Mines on the train or before you depart.

The train follows Carrera 9 to the end and then past buildings in the suburbs. There are lots of houses built really close to the track in this area, it is a poorer neighbourhood and you can see how people live. This is juxtaposed alongside a lot of high-rises of the rapidly expanding city.

Soon you are out of Bogota and surrounded by the green fields of the Savannah and the mountains.

We seemed to be building up a rapport with the drivers, as Lorenzo was happily chatting with the woman across the isle, which would pay us dividends later in the afternoon. The drivers invited Lorenzo into the cabin to help drive the train. I was hoping they would invite me next but sadly no invitation followed.

The journey is around 2 and a half hours and there is plenty to see.

One of my favourite aspects of the journey was the variety of ways the traffic is stopped for the train. As I mentioned above in the city there are special crossings with barriers that are operated by someone close by. Outside initially I noticed there was someone on a motorbike rushing ahead of the train to each of he crossings, they stopped the traffic and sped off to the next position before the train arrived. Further on there was police who blocked off the larger roads.

At Zipaquira we were joined by this small train which went ahead of us. At each road the two guys hanging on to the back would jump off, stop the traffic and jump back on again, all while the yellow train kept moving.

And there were more mountain scenes. Lots of animals can be spotted from the train, especially cows which seem to be Lorenzo’s favourite animal to spot.

The train arrived in Nemocon at the scheduled time of 11am and when we got off the train the local school band was playing. We were led through the town by the one of the guides to the Mina de Sal – there didn’t seem to be anything official about this and if you wanted to do something else then you by all means can – the ticket does not include entry to the mines and the train stops for around 3.5 hours, which seems like a long time.

The mines are the other side of the town which is really picturesque and definitely set up as a tourist attraction based on the number of restaurants available. If you came on your own time its a nice way to spend a day relaxing.

Then we reached the entrance and those with tickets went straight in and those without lined up at the ticket desk. We wasted away a good 15 minutes and then missed the preceding tour having to wait for the next one.

I’ll warn you now that the tour is not short. At this stage I wasn’t really paying attention to the time and after a shortish wait we were invited into the museum part of the tour. This covered a lot especially geology, how the andes were formed and all the ancient animals that could be found in the area. It’s all in Spanish so if that is something you are still not to grips with, like me, then you can read one of the few signs in English. I wouldn’t have a problem with it but it was so long and I could see the Spanish speakers becoming agitated.

Then we were given our hair nets and hats and sent down into the mine. Its important to note that this is still a working mine. The areas that you see are just for tourists but worker access other areas.

You go down several set of steps and are told to be careful and then begins the longest tour of a mine in history. I joke, I do think this is a fun day out with some spectacular views but the tour is overly long. The second chamber is great, especially with the light reflections on the water.

You and your friend can pay to have some whacky photos taken. We decided not to take up the opportunity but I enjoyed taking photos of proceedings.

The three of us went a little rogue and started following at our own pace, I’m sure to the annoyance of the guide but finally I was able to fulfil my long term plans and send Lorenzo down a mine – sadly he was costing money and not making any. But baby steps.

I really loved the markings and textures of the rocks.

And of course the tunnels. I’m also a big fan of tunnels.

Its also important to note that this mine was used for the setting of The 33, a movie about the Chilean miners trapped in 2010.

And of course being in South American there was a dog in the mine!

We were able to leave the mine just after 1:30pm which didn’t give us much time for lunch. We squandered precious time looking for a restaurant before settling on one that was close to the mine. This is why I suggest you buy the tickets in advance, just to give you time to have some food and explore the town afterwards rather than rush like crazy as we did. In about half an hour we ordered, had piles of food delivered, had a take away arranged for the food we couldn’t eat. Then to top it all off there was a problem with the bill that needed fixing, Lorenzo wanted a balloon so the waitress fetched that rather than sorting the bill and we managed to eave the restaurant with about 2 minutes to spare before the train left, with a 10 minute journey to get there.

I put him on my shoulders and ran and we arrived about 10 minutes late. Somehow the train was still in the station waiting for us, but I think it was only because the woman at the front had asked the driver to wait and they of course had remembered Lorenzo – if we had been sat anywhere else they would have left. And I know that as pretty much as soon as we sat down the train pulled out of the station. I wondered if we had messed up the timings for the crossings.

The journey back was largely the same taking around 2.5 hours. I was exhausted after the stress of getting the train and running but it was a fun journey. We grabbed a few more photos of the train before it left the station when we arrived back in Bogota. All in all it was a good day, a little expensive for Colombia but trains here are few and far between so if you want to take one this is the perfect opportunity.

And here is us together after disembarking.

Train Information

For the most recent information do check the Tren Touristico de la Sabana website, which is also in English. Currently trains go to two destinations Nemocon, only on Sundays for the Minas de Sal, and Zipaquira, for the Salt Cathedral on weekends and holidays.

Tickets can be purchased online or at the stations in Usaquen or Sabana stations. Check the departure times as these are subject to change and make sure you get back to your station on time. I would advise you to buy tickets for the attractions at the same time as your tickets or in advance on the train so you do not waste time on the day. Only cash payments are accepted on the train.

The train does sell drinks and snacks including sandwiches, but not hot food. I would advise that you bring your own as it will be cheaper.

Prices

Nemocon: Adults – $72000, Children and Seniors – $65000

Zipaquira: Adults – $60000, Children and Seniors – $54000

Entrance to the Mina de Sal: Adults – $29000, Children and Seniors – $20000

Entrance to the Salt Cathedral and transportation: Adults – $64000, Children and Seniors – $54000

Embrace Adventure and Climb up to the Farallones de Sutatausa, Bogotá

By david_lortal

On October 10, 2019

In Bogotá, Colombia

The cliffs are a mecca for bouldering and the many hiking trails that wind their way up through the forest to the top of the cliffs offer a range in challenges. Once at the top there are plenty more options for bouldering as you scramble across the rocks along the entire ridge line. This is one experience that is not for the fainthearted so do make sure you have a level of experience before you attempt this hike.

The town is another weekend getaway akin to Suesca and Villa de leyva where you can visit for a day or spend the weekend enjoying the surrounding form the lush green valley floor. There are many beautiful hotels, hostels and camping spots all secluded in the valley with options to hike, climb, cycle or just relax. We hitched a life from a family who were returning home from a family birthday party. It is entirely possible to enjoy the cliffs from afar, but whatever level of adventure you decide is right then you are in for a a fun time.

If you enjoy hikes in the lush green mountains that surround Bogotà then mountains that try read my guides to Cuchilla El Tablazo, a downhill hike which starts overlooking lush green valleys from a palmero covered cliff at 3500 metres ends in a warm town at 1800 metres far below. Or head to Suesca where you can also go bouldering and spend a weekend enjoying hiking, camping or relaxing in restaurants.

Information

Our Experience
How to arrive at Farallones de Sutatausa
Equipment to take

Our Experience

I was really excited to go to the Farallones de Sutatausa ever since read about the hike and saw photos of the views in another blog. There wasn’t much information in English, or Spanish for that matter, so I did my best to piece together the information and we had a fun, and at times scary adventure, but lived to tell the tale.

We set off to Terminal Norte early and had luck with a bus arriving pretty quickly. We needed to get a bus to Sutatausa, the final destination is Ubate. We were charged $12500 pesos as I had only told Angela the final bus destination, which we will come back to later. Do make sure you tell the bus driver that you want to get off at the Farallones de Sutatausa and you will be dropped off about 5 minutes south of the town, which is where the main trail starts. Despite having not told the driver of the location we were fairly confident that we would be able to get to the location as I had placed a pin in my map where I believed the tail started – we would later learn, several kilometres into the hike, that I had marked the wrong location. This was because I was transposing the map information from Google Maps to Maps.me and not having zoomed out enough on both to check. But back to the adventure.

If you get a direct bus to Satatuasa then the journey is around 90 minutes, the bus we flagged back to Bogota seemed to want to stop at every village and hamlet on the way resulting in a much longer journey. When we reached the town I surprised our driver by asking to be dropped off. Instead of heading straight up to the hike we decided to check out the town and I wanted to see if there was some tourist information to ask questions as this had been helpful for the Pionono Park hike and another blog had suggested that you can start the hike from the side of the church.

We arrived around 8:30am and the town was deserted. Later we found out that most the people that live in the town work in mines and they start early. There are a few shops along the main road but not so much further into town, at least not open, although if you follow the instructions below you will not come into the town. Make sure that you do bring what you need for the trip ahead of time. We didn’t have enough water with us, I had lost a bottle that week, and I was fairly confident there was a shop closer to the cliffs. We, however, didn’t find the shop but that is because we were looking in the wrong location.

The tourist information was closed, so we took a left and headed the 2km to where I have put the pin in the map. That was where we made another mistake as the route to the cliffs and the first point we had missed is accessed by taking a right from the church, as the blog had told me, and following the signs. We never saw any signs to the cliffs on any part of the journey. My advice would be go to to the location I flag below as I’m not sure the path from the Church is the best one to take.

It was a few kilometres to where I believed the trail started and we made good progress along the road with Angela leading. I was excited to be hiking even if I had seen a completly blue sky slip behind the clouds. This is Bogotà after all. The road was a bumpy dirt track and a few cars and motorbikes passed us but very easy to walk on and pretty quiet.

We soon reached the pin I had placed in the map and expected the shop to be located. I still hadn’t realised that we were in the wrong place as there was a trail on the map which led up and we were right in track. There was no sign of the shop but I guessed it was either further ahead or no longer here.

We had a choice of turning right, which would have been a very long way around but would have instead taken us to the correct trail or turning left and follow the trail that I thought would take us to the top of the cliffs and then walk the 2-3 kilometres along the ridge line before descending on the south side. I think all in all I had guessed it would be around a 15 kilometre hike, which is not without the realm of reason, especially as it was still before 10am. Maps.me was behaving a little strangely but trails were marked on the map so I didn’t see any reason not to proceed, so we followed the road to the left and headed down into the valley below.

All the time we were walking down we were in good spirits, even though we knew we would have to go back up again. We walked past a couple of locals and for some reason I pushed Angela to ask for directions. They told us that there was a path up to the cliffs but this wasn’t the normal way for people to come. I may well have realised the mistake by now. The path that maps.me wanted us to follow disappeared across private land and we were told that landowner didn’t let people pass. But the man had pointed to a house in the distance and said that the owner did let people cross his land but to be careful as there was a dog.

We continued along the road which had turned into a very small track at this stage. Upon finding the house we decided to find the owner and ask for permission. I was a little concerned as we seemed to have to walk into the property and there had been a lot of barky dogs, who were not friendly as the other dogs had been at Pionono Park or Cerro Quininí. As we approached the hose we spotted a man working outside who was not friendly at all and did nothing when the vicious dog came to attack us. Luckily Angela didn’t panic and we walked away without incident. We followed the trail a little further to where is appeared as if it would join with the direction that Maps.me wanted us to head but we were blocked by another property. Again it seemed people were home but there were more dogs around and I didn’t want a repeat of what had just transpired so disappointed we retraced our steps. I definitely knew we were in the wrong place by this point, but we had been told there was a path up and up we wanted to go. After a few hundred metres we stopped at a place where Angel had picked up a pigs leg before and exactly at this spot there was a path that headed off in the direction we had been told to take. Although it wasn’t on the map and we were far form the actual trail head we decided to follow and see where it would take us rather than turn back.

The trail ran for a few hundred meters around the property we had just been forced off by the dog. It narrowed passing around a few more properties before ending in what appeared to be the back garden of a farm house. We passed through and found a road which I was temped to follow but sitting the other side of the house were two people who directed us up a path which they said led to the top. Happy we had come luck we eagerly began our steep ascent.

The path leading up to the top was steep from the beginning and was tough work but we made good progress and in good condition, to begin with. I was happy to finally be heading upwards after having walked down into the valley. We soon cam across a small barb wire fence that was a tiny bit tricky to cross, but thought nothing of it as there was nowhere else to go. Inside the field the path was not always clear and we took a could of wrong turns before finding the crossing out on the other side. We went up one more steep bank and found ourselves with a view across the valley. The path here had been washed away in many places but resulted in more rather than less to walk on. It was clear that we were not on the traditional path up.

Soon after passed behind a water pumping station that supplied water to the valley, which the first man had told us about but made it sound as if it were 5 minutes away, not an hour as hit had been. After a few more turns the path opened up into a meadow where we took a short break and saw a mother and her young children pass. We continued up and the path kept splitting into several directions and saw more locals who helped in directing up upwards. After more twists and turns in the trees we arrived on the top of a crest and could see these beautiful mountains.

We took some more directions form the lovely people in this farm house who seemed to think that we were a little strange for coming this way but told us we were on the right path and then we started to climb up again.

The image below gives you some idea of where we were headed and it became much steeper after this point. It didn’t feel too bad going up and there was nothing too challenging, most paths at the top of mountains are a little sketchy and you just have to go slowly and take your time. It didn’t feel like a long time and we kept on moving upwards. Soon we came to a cross roads with another trail, which when I looked at my map, was the trail the map had suggested we take. The one that had previously cut across private land. I felt pretty happy that we were back on the right track and so close to the top.

After a little more climbing the path levelled out and we arrived at the top. There was a lot of thick foliage, so we climbed a little higher and found some rocks to sit down on and eat lunch. For me the hard part was done, it really wasn’t, but in my mind all we had to do was walk along the ridge line and then come back down the other side – it was only a few kilometres away.

The view up there was a beautiful and sadly was obscured when it started raining, the wind struck up and it became really cold. We ate quickly, donned waterproofs and decided to follow the ridge to the path that led down. As I said it was 2-3 kilometres away.

We toyed with visiting another cerro close by but I rejected that and also the idea of heading back down the way we had come. So instead we started to pick out a path around the rocks and bushes which was initially a little tricky to find on the map. At the beginning there seemed to be a trail to follow but we kept hitting dead end and we were either above or below the path. But it was fine as we were quite easily following the ridge line. Soon after the path seems to lead ups off the cliff face, there was something really sketchy going down or a way to go up, which we started to follow but after a while that would have required climbing equipment. I stopped to take some photos before picking our way around on some quite tricky rocks.

This is the view to the other-side of the mountain, it didn’t look at steep and there was no obvious path down but you can see there are houses there and keep this in mind as we will come back to it later.

Around the other side I found that we were far below the trial so I headed back up to where is should be using the GPS but I didn’t find anything obvious. The map kept telling me that we were above or below the right line. Luckily the rain had stopped before we went too far and we found ourselves coming to dead ends where there were deep drops and having to retrace our steps to find a way around. As we continued picking our way across the ridge and found some more beautiful views.

After a while of slowly working our way across the top we reached a series of trenches/gullys that we had to climb down into and then out of again. Some were a lot deeper than others and mostly it was fine but it was long and hard work. At this stage the sun started to come out and we had also ran out of water by this stage. I was really thirsty, tired and dehydrated. And the problem is when you get to that stage is that you start to get tired, and when you get tired you make mistakes.

We pushed on, rejecting the idea of going back as it would not have been any easier and then it was a long way back to the village, going up and down and up and down and then we got to this view, which caused us to have a moment of reflection as we realised we would at the very least need to get to the end you can see in the middle before we stared to go down. I looked at the map as I thought we had been making good progress and realised I had zoomed in a lot. So much so that we had only made it about a third of the distance along the ridge. There were two more peaks on the map which were around the same distance away that we had just come and then the path continued in the same direction for the same distance yet again before turning back to town. We didn’t know when the path would start to go down but it was now about 2pm and at our current speed it would have taken us around 2 more hours to get to the peaks and then who knows the rest. It gets dark in Colombia by around 6pm so I started to panic a little.

We looked at walking down the less steep side of the mountain, I didn’t know if that was even possible as you never know what obstacles you will come across but even if it was posible, and we could see a road it was a long long way to get us back to the road we would take to Bogota. I noticed a route on the map leading down but the path stopped a third of the way. We decided to head to the path and make a decision as to what to do.

After more climbing we arrived at the path, it was overgrown, covered in leaves and was a series of vertical drops, that led down over the side of the cliff before it disappeared out of view. I didn’t want to go. My instincts were to go back the way we had came or to continue but I don’t know if that would have been the correct choice. Sadly it was made for me as Angela decided to take a look and started heading down. At that point I nearly cried, and you can tell by my hiking that I’ve been up a fair few mountains now. The last time I felt this scared was in Bolivia when I hiked Pico Austria and we ended up walking on snow. It was so slippy that if I had slipped there was a long way for me to keep falling. That time I was with a guide. This time it was just us.

I had no choice but to follow as you shouldn’t split up on mountains. Luckily the rocks seemed stable, but honestly, one wrong move and we would have been flying down to the ground below. There were lot of dry leaves which could have made us slip but my biggest fear was that the path ended on the map. Did that mean it would end halfway down the cliff and we would have to go back up again? So the fist few giant steps down were difficult but soon after we were surrounded on three sides by mountain. Then we came out of the trees to a steep part where the path took a right angle and flattened out. Angela went painfully slowly and when I got there I understood. There weren’t really any handholds, imagine a bumpy slide and at the other end would have been your last drop. I got to the right angle, on my arse, and then proceeded to twist my body and slowly inch my way down. The path was no wider than my body so I was sitting on the edge of the cliff. I did not take any photos and had absolutely no urges to do so. All my concentration was placed on not falling.

After that we were surrounded by trees again but it was still steep and there was still the opportunity to go flying, but I at least had the guts to stand up for a while. Until the path left the trees and we had about 30 centimetres between the cliff face and the edge. I sat on my ass and manoeuvred along slowly grabbing on to all the plants I could for support, which is not generally advised as plants can come lose and the support is then gone. I can’t really describe how scary this part was but it happened twice and each time I inched along. After the second we entered back into the trees and found switchbacks and the path going became a lot less steep. I breathed a long sigh of relief and I think this is the closest I’ve come to falling off the side of the mountain. I’m not trying to make this too dramatic as I’m describing it how I remember the path.

My throat was so dry I was in pain and Angela’s legs were shaking so much she could barely stand but we had made it to relative safety. Typically the clouds broke up at this point and the sun came out to play and there was still a long way to go down.

Looking at the photos above and below I can’t really believe that we had just come down from there.

We kept walking following the path as it twisted around rocks ad small rises until we came to some deserted farms, except for some rowdy dogs who wanted to give chase and walked through them until we reached the road. It was at this point I realised that we still had a 5 km walk back to town. I was so tired and dehydrated and desperate to find a shop but there was nothing.

Here are the views from where we reached the farms.

We ended up walking along the main road, which I guessed was the one that we would have walked along if we had taken the right by the church, but the problem was none of the roads quite connected on the map and at this stage neither of us wanted to retrace our steps so we kept following the long road rather than attempting to take any shortcuts. We didn’t see any signs, either leading to the cliffs or the town so just kept walking. I was hoping for a car so we could ask for a ride but all we saw were a couple of motorbikes going in the wrong direction.

After about 2.5 kilometres, which is the longest 2.5 km I’ve walked in my life. My throat was burning and I had to force myself to keep moving forward. My throat was on fire, so let this be a lesson to take enough water! Eventually a car overtook us but we didn’t stop it. Luckily we came across it a short while later and the driver was on the road. At the same time a lorry pulled up behind us as it wanted to get by. Angela alerted the driver and at the same time saved us both by asking for a lift to the town. We were dropped at the main road and I found the first shop and brought the biggest bottle of water i could. We sat there for 20 minutes before Angela suggested we wait on the road for a bus. One came past pretty soon and after we were able to get a seat we both sat back and pondered about how we were still alive. Because honestly at the top I really wondered if we were going to make it. It had been an interesting day, we had had a lot of fun and some scares, having lived to tell the tale. But I was also a little sad that we hadn’t experienced the correct hiking path but we had experience something truly unique. I would advise that you follow the instructions below rather than try to follow our steps.

How to arrive at Farallones de Sutatsusa

Firstly go to the North Terminal in Bogota, you can get there by using the Transmileno or take a taxi or Uber. When you arrive at the station head to the main building. There are lots of little parts tot he station with busses going to different places. You want to get a bus to Ubate, but say Sutatsusa and it should be around $10000 and takes around 90 minutes to arrive once you are on the bus. Make sure that you tell the driver that you want to got to the Farallones de Sutatsusa he should drop you on the correct road which is before the town. If not try and get off near the road that leads toward the pin on the map.

There are several paths up form the shop but you can ask there for advice and this will take you to the top.

If you go too far and end up in town, walk to the church on the main plaza, you can see it from across the town. From here take the path to the RIGHT of the church and you should see signs to point you in the right direction. Ask at the town if you are unsure and it should take around two hours to reach the top from here.

As we did make a little bit of a mess of this one you can also follow the wikilock guides – many people have walked along this route so it should be easy to find.

Equipment to take

There is a serious hike and once you start there are no places to purchase food or water so make sure you have everything you need. The trek across the rocks along the ridge is tiring and you will need to take extra water for this part. Also the weather is changeable and can be cold so again before you attempt this one make sure that you bring the right equipment:

Gortex hiking boots
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Dry bag or packback cover (I take both)
Cell phone
Cell phone battery
Charger cable
Sunglasses
Sun Cream
Painkillers
Blister plasters (better if you have a small first aid kit)
Hand soap
Tissues
Water filer
Sun hat
Food – you can never have too much and you will need it on this hike so pack appropriately.
Water 3 litres minimum

Clothes

This is a high altitude hike which can get cold and also can often be wet so be prepared for the cold.

Base layer
Jumper
Fleece
Down Jacket
Hiking trousers
Hiking underwear
Hiking socks