This is an amazing journey through the beautiful high mountains in El Cocuy and Los Nevados National Parks, as well as the Igüaque Flora and Fauna Sanctuary, located in the Colombian Andean Mountain range.
Los Nevados National Park is located in the central mountain range of the Colombian Andes, close to the Eje Cafetero (Coffee Axis). In the Park geography we can find three snowy volcanoes, big extensions of paramo (moorland), forest, lagoons and rivers. Those are ecosystems that become the habitat of large number of species of flora and fauna. The Park has an extension of 61,200 hectares, a maximum altitude of 5,321 meters above see level located in the Summit of Volcán Nevado del Ruiz, and a minimum elevation of 2,600 meters above see level in the Andean forest.
The Cocuy National Park is locates on the oriental mountain range of the Colombian Andes. Its majestic geography gathers more than 21 snowy peaks, paramos, jungle, valleys, lagoons and rivers, and it is known for being a place where a great number of animal and plant species converge. The Park has an extension of 306,000 hectares, a maximum altitude of 5,330 meters framed by the Ritakwba Blanco Peak, and a minimum altitude of 700 meters in the jungles of the Andean foothill.
The Igüaque Fauna and Flora Sanctuary is located in central Andes near by Villa de Leyva, one of the most beautiful towns in Colombia. Of its geography stand out the Sacred Lagoon surrounded by different species of frailejones and, also, plants native to the paramo ecosystem up to 3,800 meters above see level. In the Sanctuary we also can find Andean forest and different thermal floors (pisos térmicos) that go from 2,400 meters up. The Igüaque Sanctuary has an extension of 6,923 hectares and a temperature that goes from 4°C to 12°C.
This journey is an experience design for people who love the mountains, enjoy the landscape, contemplation and silence. The traveler will go along three beautiful National Parks: Igüaque, El Cocuy and Los Nevados. All of them located in the high mountains in the Colombian Andes, so the journey will take the travellers through different thermal floors and they will be able to contemplate the immense diversity present in this magic places, besides, during our journey we will be visiting Villa de Leyva, considered one of the most beautiful towns and with a great historical relevance in Colombia. We will have, also, the opportunity to visit the Eje Cafetero and learn about the process of production of this important product.
Once every traveler has finished breakfast in the hotel in Bogotá, we will be picking him/her up in order to start our road trip to Villa de Leyva, a beautiful place with a historical relevance for the country. Once in Villa de Leyva, we will have lunch and then, we will walk its cobbled squares, admire its architecture and will be able to visit different museums. At the end of the afternoon we will have free time to rest, buy crafts and have a delicious coffee in one of its squares, or simply enjoy this magical historical setting.
Bogotá Altitude: 2,600 meters
Villa de Leyva Altitude: 2,150 meters
In our second day, we will go on our first hike to the mountains. After enjoying breakfast, we will take a vehicle for about 20 minutes to the Igüaque Fauna and Flora Sanctuary belonging to the Colombian National Parks system. In the Sanctuary we will receive an informative talk from the Park officials, to then, start our hike through a beautiful the moist forest that will lead us to the paramo, an ecosystem present in only five countries in the world, known for its great importance in fabrication and conservation of water. The trip will take us approximately four hours of ascent until we reach the Igüaque Lake where we will appreciate the amazing view toward the mountain and listen to, from our guides, the legends of the Muisca culture and its close relationship with this sacred Lake.
Road trip: 1 hour
Villa de Leyva altitude: 2150 meters
Maximum altitude reached: 3600 meters
Distance: 9 km
Hiking: 6 hour
After breakfast, we will start our trip to El Cocuy, a beautiful town located in the middle of big mountain in the departments of Boyacá, Arauca and Casanare where we will find El Cocuy National Park. The road trip to El Cocuy will take us about eight hours, this will be a quiet trip embellished by the beautiful landscapes of the Cundiboyacense Plateau where we will be able to see the peasant crops, the mountains and the great Chicamocha Canyon, all of this, before starting the ascent to El Cocuy town. Once we reach the town, we will register at the National Park office and accommodate in a hotel to, later on, enjoy the end of the afternoon in the small town and be delight by its quiet environment and majestic mountains.
Dinner and rest.
Road trip: 7 – 8 hours.
El Cocuy town altitude: 2.800 meters
Early in the morning, before dawn, we will have breakfast and take a 4×4 vehicle, for about one hour, to a place known as La Cueva in the National Park. At this point, at 4.000 meters of altitude with an amazing panoramic of the entire Sierra Nevada, we will start our experience. During our trip we will see paramo and we will see beautiful lagoons, snowy mountains, the valley and imposing rocky walls. In the middle of our trip we will stop to have a typical lunch to then, carry on to the final part of the path, reach the glacier edge and enjoy the beautiful view that the Púlpito del Diablo (an imposing rock of more than 100 meters high that rests on the snow) offer us. Once we reach the highest point allowed, we will start our descent to La Cueva where our vehicles will be waiting for us in order to takes us to the cabin where we will spend the night.
Dinner at the cabin and rest.
Road trip: 1,5 hours approximately
El Cocuy Town Altitude: 2,800 meters
Mirador de La Sierra Cabin Altitude: 3,200 meters
Maximum Altitude Reached: 4,800 meters
Hiking: 10 hours (19 Km)
We will go along to the Laguna Grande de la Sierra path. Once again, we will have breakfast early in the morning, before dawn, and then, take a vehicle to La Esperanza farm where we will start our hike. The tour will take us through the beautiful valley of frailejones where we will enjoy a typical lunch raped in root leaf. Afterwards, we will continue our ascent to the Lagoon Grande de la Sierra and be able to be delight with the beautiful view f the snowy peaks such as Pan de Azúcar, Toti, Portales and Cóncavo. A little bit ahead of the Lake; we will reach the glacier edge and have a moment to enjoy the majesty of the place. Then, we will take the path back to La Esperanza farm and take the vehicles to Kanwara Cabins in the northern part of the Park.
Dinner at Kanwara Cabins and rest.
Road Trip: 1,5 hours approximately.
Maximum Altitude Reached: 4,400 meters
Kanwara Altitude: 4,000 meters
Hiking: 10 hours
Distance: 20 Km
In this day we will have breakfast early in the morning and start a hike that will take us to the glacier edge of Ritakuba Blanco, Negro and Norte snowy peaks. In our way we will go across streams, frailejones valleys and finally, moraines that will lead us to the glacier. At this point we will have an amazing panoramic of a big part of The Sierra from its north face and an imposing view toward the Boyacá and Santander mountains. After a well-deserved lunch and after reaching the highest point of our hike, we will take the path back to Kanwara cabins to take a vehicle that will take us back to El Cocuy Town, where we will have dinner and rest at the hotel to the next day go back to Bogotá.
Road Trip: 1,5 hours approximately.
Maximum Altitude Reached: 4,800 meters
Kanwara Altitude: 4,000 meters
El Cocuy Altitude: 2,800 meters
We will travel to Bogotá to the next day take a plane to Pereira (Coffee Axis) and then, visit Los Nevados National Park. The road trip from El Cocuy to Bogotá will take us eight hours through beautiful mountain landscapes and across some of the Andean Towns. We will make a stop to rest, take some pictures, have a coffee and have lunch, where we will experience typical food from the region. In the afternoon we will reach Bogotá and stay in a Five Starts Bio-Hotel where we will learn about all of their sustainability policies and enjoy a delicious dinner to later on go to rest.
Road Trip: approximately 8 hours.
Bogotá Altitude: 2,600 meters
After breakfast at the Bio- Hotel, we will go to the Airport to take a plane to Pereira (Coffee Axis). From the Pereira Airport we will take a vehicle to the lovely and picturesque municipality of Salento. Once we reach Salento we will register to the Hotel and have lunch. Afterwards, we will visit a beautiful Hacienda where we will learn about the coffee process and production and be able to taste this iconic Colombian product. In the afternoon we will go back to Salento and have time to spend shopping handcrafts and be delight by the amazing view.
Dinner and rest.
Flight Duration: 30 minutes
Road Trip: 1,5 hours
Salento Altitude: 2,150 meters
After breakfast, we will take a Willis Jeep, typical from the region, for a trip of about 12 Km to the enchanting Cocora Valley. Once we see the wax palms, Colombia’s national tree, and go around the surroundings, we will star our ascent along lush cloud forests, embellished by many streams that make the environment suitable to harbor multiplicity of birds and vegetation. A beautiful gift that the nature offers and where we will make a pause to have the time to appreciate it closely while having a typical lunch that comes wrapped in leaves, a common practice in that rural area. We will carry on our hike until we reach a humble, yet, heartwarming peasant house called La Argentina which has an astonishing view over the Canyon full of mountains covered by the forest. We will have the afternoon free to enjoy the place and share with the family that lives there. We will have dinner in La Argentina and spend the night there in shared rooms.
Distance: 10 Km
Duration: 5hours
Initial Altitude: 2,400 meters
Maximum Altitude: 3,400 meters
Final Altitude: 3,400 meters
We will start our hike to the Paramillo del Quindío after having a good breakfast that will give us the fuel for our six hours ascent across the forest to the paramo; a special ecosystem present in five countries only, known for its importance in water production and conservation. After crossing the paramo, we will reach the paramillo’s wetlands where we will walk over sand and rocks, a volcano typical soil, until we get up to 4,750 meters, the Paramillo del Quindío Summit. There, we will be able to take advantage of its strategic location to watch Los Nevados National Park vast extension including the snowy peaks, forest, lakes and paramos.
After enjoying the incredible view and a deserved lunch, we will go back to La Primavera, a small farm located at 3,700 meters above sea level, where we will find an amazing view toward the Nevado del Tolima. We will have the afternoon to enjoy the place and share with the family that lives there. We will have dinner and spend the night at La Primavera in shared rooms.
Distance: 18 Km
Duration: 8 – 10 hours
Initial Altitude: 3,400 meters
Maximum Altitude: 4,750 meters
Final Altitude: 3,700 meters
After a typical breakfast we will start our descent to The Cocora Valley. Our way down will be different from the one we used to go up, which will give us the opportunity to connect to different environments and landscapes like the Andean Forest and canalones that intersect with small streams. Once we reach The Cocora Valley, we will take a vehicle to Salento where we will pick up our luggage at the hotel. We will have lunch at one of the restaurants in Salento and close our adventure in the mountains with a toast.
Note: Once the journey is over we can provide you with help to find an accommodation in Salento or transportation to the place you want. The city of Pereira is the closest one and has an international airport where you can take a flight to your city of origin or any other destination if you chose to keep traveling around the magical Colombia.
Distance: 16 Km
Duration: 6 – 7 hours
Initial Altitude: 3,700 meters
Maximum Altitude: 4,000 meters
Final Altitude: 2,400 meters
+ Complete privet transportation to all of the destinations described in the itinerary, including the flight.
+ Airplane ticket Bogotá – Pereira (one trip).
+ Professional qualified high mountain guide, internationally certified in first aid in remote areas, who also has his own satellite communication equipment.
+ Complete 10 nights accommodation in shared rooms. We will sleep in hotels, peasants’ houses and cabins in the mountain.
+ Food (breakfast, lunch and dinner) starting with lunch in our first day, ending also with lunch in our last day.
+ Medical assistance insurance.
+ Permission to enter to the three National Parks.
+ All the activities described in the itinerary.
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+ Snacks
+ Alcoholic beverages
+ Expenses not specified.
