Colombia High Passes

Overview

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A tough mountain trek through the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy National Park in the Northern Andes - unique to Jagged Globe

Introduction

The Sierra Nevada del Cocuy is located on Colombia’s border with Venezuela in the far north east of the country. There are twenty two snowy summits above 5,000m in the National Park. These deep cut valleys, with cascading waterfalls and lakes is the home to tapirs, spectacled bears, Andean condors, eagles and páramo deer. This trek takes you from north to south, through the heart of this protected wilderness area, over five high passes. The terrain is rugged and some of the passes are occasionally covered in snow. To join this trek you need to be a regular mountain walker and be prepared to walk for 5 to 8 hours each day. Porterage is provided, so you only need to carry a day pack.

Following your arrival and a city tour of Bogotá, you transfer by road to El Cocuy at the entrance to the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy National Park. El Cocuy is one of the most beautiful towns in Colombia, reminiscent of the charming white-washed towns of Andalucia in Spain. You spend two nights here and over the next three days, we walk in the surrounding mountains to 4,500m as part of a careful process of acclimatisation. You then embark on the main seven-day trek, before visiting Villa de Leyva and travelling back to Bogotá.

Join us on Colombia's High Passes

• A splendid compact mountain range with wonderful towns/scenery
• Trek through isolated valleys and over high passes
• The itinerary ranks as highly as the Huayhash Circuit, Paine Circuit or the Santa Cruz trail

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Tailor-made option

We can organise this trek on a ‘tailor-made’ private basis for groups of friends, families, clubs, charities or any other group. Depending on your trekking experience, you may want a Jagged Globe leader or go ‘self-led’ with the assistance of local guides. The cost of going private can be surprisingly reasonable, particularly if you take the self-led option. Please contact us to discuss the itinerary and your preferred dates. We will then send you a quote, with no obligation.

Experience Required

This is a remote and rugged area with multiple days of tough trekking. Porters are employed to carry team members' gear, but you still need to be prepared for some difficult ground.

Additional Information

If you wish to discuss any aspect of the trek or your suitability for it, please phone +44 (0)114 276 3322 or contact us.

What the price includes

• Economy class return airfares from the UK (unless otherwise specified.)
• UK airport taxes.
• Good standard hotel accommodation in Bogotá and El Cocuy on a bed and breakfast basis.
• Camping accommodation throughout the trek.
• All road transport by private vehicles.
• All meals during the trek.
• All porterage costs.
• All costs for leaders, guides and local helpers detailed under Team Composition.
• Jagged Globe kitbag or fleece.

What the price does not include

• Visa fees.
• Overseas airports taxes not paid in advance through the international airline ticket.
• Bar bills and laundry.
• Travel insurance.
• Lunch and evening meals in Bogotá and El Cocuy.
• Optional trips.
• Tips.

Tailor-made option

We can organise this trek on a ‘tailor-made’ private basis for groups of friends, families, clubs, charities or any other group. Depending on your trekking experience, you may want a Jagged Globe leader or go ‘self-led’ with the assistance of local guides. The cost of going private can be surprisingly reasonable, particularly if you take the self-led option. Please contact us to discuss the itinerary and your preferred dates. We will then send you a quote, with no obligation.

Insurance

You will need a travel insurance policy that caters for the activities you will undertake on your trip with Jagged Globe. It is a requirement of our booking conditions that you have such a policy. For a list of insurers who specialise in mountaineering, trekking and skiing, please see our Travel Insurance page »

Itinerary

Here is an outline itinerary for this trip. A more detailed day-to-day itinerary is available as a downloadable PDF »

Outline Itinerary

Day 1:	Fly to Bogotá
Day 2:	City tour
Day 3:	Drive to El Cocuy You leave Bogotá in the morning for the long drive by private bus to El Cocuy (2,850m).
Day 4:	Acclimatisation walk to 3,850m The aim today is to trek up one of the hills outside of El Cocuy, before travelling to Kanwara tomorrow.
Day 5:	Transfer to Kanwara (3,990m) You drive for 30 minutes to Güican, where you begin the trek to the mountain huts at Kanwara. In the afternoon, you take a short acclimatisation walk to 3,900m.
Day 6:	Acclimatisation day Trek up an easy ridge for three hours to gain a high point of 4,350m. This is helpful for your acclimatisation, as tomorrow you cross the Paso de los Verdes (4,400m).
Day 7:	Cross Paso de los Verdes (4,400m) This is really the first of five days of trekking across the range. You cross two high passes; Paso del Cardenillo leads into the Valle del Cardenillo, where you cross a river and climb to the higher Paso de los Verdes (4,400m). Camp on the shore of Laguna Grande de los Verdes at an altitude of 4,050m (7 hours walking).
Day 8:	Trek to Valle de los Cojines Trek across the Paso de los Frailes (4,300m) and El Paso de la Avellanal (4,750m). It's here that you enter the most attractive of all these high mountain valleys; the Valle de los Cojines. Camp beside the Laguna de la Avellanal, at an altitude of 4,500m (7 hours walking).
Day 9:	Trek to Laguna del Pañuelo The route today takes you down the valley and past some strange vegetation, that gives the valley its name. 'Cojines' means 'pillows' in Spanish and is the name given to the floating vegetation on the swampland in the middle of the valley. After a couple of hours walking, you reach El Castillo. From here you head up to the next pass at 4,650m, which has a small glacier on the top of it. The descent is straightforward and takes you to another alpine lake called La Laguna del Pañuelo at 4,350m (7 hours walking).
Day 10:	Cross Paso de los Balcones (4,500m) to La Laguna de la Plaza The climb up to Paso de los Balcones is on steep moraine and should take about 1.5 hours. Descend through high altitude vegetation to the biggest lake in the range; La Laguna de la Plaza at 4,400m (7 hours walking).
Day 11:	Trek over the Cusiri Pass (4,530m) This is a tough day trekking over three passes; Patio de Bolos (4,370m), Paso de Cusiri (4,530m) and a final un-named pass to reach to La Esperanza Farm (3,600m, 7 - 9 hours walking).
Day 12:	Transfer to Villa de Leyva It takes about 6 hours to transfer to Villa De Leyva for a relaxing afternoon and evening at our hotel.
Day 13:	Transfer to Bogotá
Day 14 - 15:	Fly home

PLEASE NOTE: Please note that this itinerary is a guideline only. Although every effort will be made to adhere to it, unforeseen circumstances may force changes to be made at the last moment. Please be prepared to be flexible if necessary.

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Reports & Reviews

First Trek: Dec 2011

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