Trekking the El Cocuy Mountain Range

Trekking the El Cocuy Mountain Range

Sierra Nevada del Cocuy is a mountain trekker's dream located in the easternmost Colombian Andes. The highest areas of the range are perennially snow-capped and are a striking contrast of glaciers and sheer rock faces. Amidst the clouds, glacier melt feeds sapphire blue lakes with the purest water. Peculiar plants abound, species that can thrive only at high altitude in the tropics. Below its glaciers and moraines El Cocuy is a lush paradise that is home to spectacled bears, foxes and Andean condors.

This adventure takes you to the most spectacular areas of El Cocuy and gives you a south to north tour of the mountain range. You will see El Cocuy's most impressive peaks and trek on the park's most scenic trails. You will see rich valleys full of exotic plants and streaked by streams and waterfalls; its barren but beautiful moraines that are dotted by glacial lakes; and its towering mountains, covered in ice and snow and considered sacred by the indigenous people of the area.

Itinerary

Day 1: The town of El Cocuy

Stop At: El Cocuy Mountain, Cra. 5 #5 83, El Cocuy, Boyacá, Colombia
From Bogota, you take the long bus ride to the town of El Cocuy, passing through quaint pueblos and scenic countryside along the way. When you arrive in El Cocuy you check into your hostel and do a quick tour of the town and its surroundings before having dinner and getting some rest for your first day of trekking.
Duration: 5 hours

Meals included:
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight in a hostel in El Cocuy town.

Day 2: Lagunillas

Stop At: El Cocuy National Park, Calle 4 #41, Guican, Güicán, Boyacá, Colombia
You begin your hiking adventure in the southern part of El Cocuy mountain range and trek to the Lagunillas, an area with small lakes surrounded by mountains. From there you can see some of El Cocuy's most well-known and imaginatively named peaks: Pan de Azucar (sugar loaf) and the two Campanillas (bells) – Negro and Blanco. After about 7 hours of trekking you end the day at the scenic Pulpito mountain cabanas.
Duration: 10 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight in Pulpito mountain cabanas.

Day 3: Laguna Grande de la Sierra

Stop At: El Cocuy National Park, Calle 4 #41, Guican, Güicán, Boyacá, Colombia
Today you hike to the Laguna Grande, the largest of El Cocuy's glacial lakes. You trek through the Valley of the frailejones, an area filled with the strange-looking succulents, before arriving at the sandy shore of the lake. If not for the five snow-capped mountains surrounding you, you might think you were at the beach. Millennia of glacier movement has ground rock into fine sand. The sapphire blue lake and its backdrop of sheer rock faces and snowy peaks create one of the most impressive landscapes in Colombia. Your 7 to 8 hour trek ends at the Hacienda de la Esperanza, a charming inn and sheep farm in the mountains.
Duration: 10 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight in Hacienda de la Esperanza farm and inn.

Day 4: The Ritacubas

Stop At: El Cocuy National Park, Calle 4 #41, Guican, Güicán, Boyacá, Colombia
For your final day of trekking you visit the northern part of the Cocuy mountain range and see the big one: Ritacuba Blanco rising to 5,320 meters above sea level. It lords over several adjacent peaks – Ritacubo Negro, Picacho, Ritacuba Norte, San Pablines and others – all of which are over 5,000 meters high. After your 7 hour hike to the land of the giants you drive back to the town of El Cocuy where you spend the night back at the hostel.
Duration: 8 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight in a hostel in El Cocuy town.

Day 5: Back to Bogota

Stop At: El Cocuy Mountain, Cra. 5 #5 83, El Cocuy, Boyacá, Colombia
After breakfast you say goodbye to El Cocuy and travel back to Bogota.
Duration: 2 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
No accommodation included on this day.