October 3rd 2014

I wake up early in time to down a quick breakfast of croissant’s and jam before heading out on what is sure to be an adventure.  I was supposed to be going with a young man from Belgium but he had a late and lucky night, so I don’t bother waking him or the girl next to him and head out on my own, with some ideas of how I might reach Colombia’s highest waterfall, somehow a location very much off the beaten tourist trail.  At the end I will include a summary of how to get to the falls without a tour or guide.

From my hostel on Carrera 1 I walk down to Carrera 7 and the main square of Bogota featured in my earlier blog and stop to buy some water and snacks for the trail.  That in hand I continue further away from the hostel down to Calle 6 and Carrera Caracas (Around 15)  I walk through a big park and as I move further South in the city the signs of poverty become more clear, though there’s still a lot of beauty.  My path takes me down one street which seems to be entirely made up of military supply stores, then I’m out walking through a large open park to the corner where I find a large police station.

I don’t see any buses so I ask one of the swarm of officers and he directs me a little further down Calle 6.  On my right I see what looks like a carwash full of buses, one is moving and is labelled Choachi  so I climb aboard confirming with the driver specifically that he can in fact drop me at the road to La Chorrero.

The bus winds it’s way through the southern most reaches of Bogota, past incredible street art and up into the heart of the Andes mountains.  The next 55 minutes are electrifying and more than a little scary as the bus zooms up through the mountains on narrow roads carved into sheer cliff faces that seem endless looking both down and up. We pass in and out of thick clouds which render visibility incredibly limited

Blind passes are the norm and you’re left just hoping a truck doesn’t come around the corner in it’s own lane, as the abyss or a crash seem the only two options.  the driver’s an expert though and I place my faith in him.  Sure enough, about 10 minutes into our descent into another valley he pulls the bus to the side of the road and smiles back at me.  “La Chorrera”

I pay my fare of 6,500 COP and climb out of the bus with my daypack and water slung over my back. I’m let off below a huge green sign welcoming people to Choachi.  The paved road continues on ahead of me, but my path takes me to my left down another road, with only sections of pavement.  The whole bus ride I’ve been looking up at the mountain paths and questioning my ability to make it anywhere, let alone a 3 hour hike to a waterfall, but I figure it has to be worth trying.

The road leads me down into a valley below a few huge stone monoliths where I find a sparsely dotted village throughout the endless green fields. I get smiles and waves as I pass the local school whose entire population seems to be out playing games (mostly football).  I continue along the road which winds atop the smaller hill peaks under the mountains taking me back countless farms and all the livestock that comes with it.  I don’t know if there’s something in the water but the cows here look somehow how cows should look.  They have a beauty I have never noticed in North American cows, and they all seem to glance at me curiously, perhaps confused to see a human being so much closer to their actual size than what they are used to.

I pass by any small homes and am always greeted with smiles and waves from children and grown ups alike.  The sign from the turn off said 4 kilometers, but just from looking at the road ahead I’m guessing it’s a bit longer, maybe 4 km as the vulture/hawk/eagle flies, sadly though I’m wingless.

I start up one incline and around a corner hoping to see the falls and the entrance to the park but I’ve a ways to get yet.  I follow the signs which keep me continuing straight for a long while before finally turning left onto a smaller road up a somewhat significant hill walking past a shop at the corner. Here at least there’s another sign, marked 1 km, though again I strongly suspect I’ve walked more than 3.

Here the hills only get steeper and soon I’m bent at a 90 degree angle sucking in air with every couple of dozen steps.  (Kids, stay in shape.)  Of course there’s waterfalls involved so I’m not giving up easy.  I finally crest the biggest upslope yet and see below a bright blue house and a big sign for the waterfall.  I also catch a glimpse of the cause of the ever growing roar past the house and into the jungle.  I’m only seeing the small falls at first, then my eyes drift to the right and the sharp slope of one of the mountains.  There’s an opening in the trees and my eyes go wide.  Even from such a great distance La Chorrero is a sight to behold.

I hurry down the hill with a 17th wind and turn into the pathway leading to the blue house.  There I find free bathrooms and just two men up on the second floor.  They explain to me that the only guide here today is already out with one other person, and that It’s unlikely she’ll be back in time to lead me.

I ask how to get to the big waterfall and they inform me that without a guide it’s not possible to go.  I shake my sweaty head broken hearted and almost ready to give up.  But it’s a waterfall, a 590 Meter tall waterfall. I ask again, promising caution, just on the off chance I don’t find the guide and he relents.  Giving me instructions in spanish I manage to understand most of them and head back to the main road, continuing another 300 meters until the road turns into a small footpath, a single house marking this forks end.

Out front of the house a friendly old man offers me fresh yogurt and a few other food stuffs, but exhausted as I am I don’t dare stop now.  It took 75 minutes to get to the blue house, picture stops included and I’m worried if I stop now I’ll lose momentum.  I tell him I’m not hungry now but when I come back maybe I will be, he smiles and waves me along my way.

As the path narrows I encounter three cows firmly blocking my way.   It works out though and they provide me an escort until just fifteen minutes later when I come to a gate on my right and a sign advertising the waterfall park where entry is supposed to cost 8,000. I tried paying the men in the blue house but they refused and there’s nobody here at hat looks like a restaurant perched nearby the small falls.

Leaving my bovine escort behind, I undo the wired closing mechanism of the gate and step inside, quickly hurrying down towards the echoing crash of the falls.  Heading gown a muddy path I reach the rocks below the falls.  The air is soaked with the crashing water, mountain winds whipping up the falling water into a frozen frenzy.

I smile, laugh and even do a little dance as I am totally alone at these falls, and already the effort so far is worth it. The water is cold. Not South America cold, but Canada cold and then some. I suppose thats too be expected at roughly 9000 feet above sea level.  Regardless I edged towards the flow and managed to get slightly soaked by the flow before running away from the chill that shot through me.

Entering the waterfall done I cross the ankle deep stream and head up along a path destined to take me into a narrow passage just behind the heavy flow of the falls.  It’s an easy walk and a simple shuffle through the mud path under the rocks of the falls, but here the overpowering rush envelops everything and a tick screen of tumbling water obscures your view of the bottom in the most sensational way.

As I head down back towards the abandoned restaurant I encounter one man and a young woman in clothes that mark her as the guide.  She says she cannot lead me there now, and that I’d need a group of 8 people to go this late.  I smile and ask her to confirm my directions.  Reluctantly she does, though again suggests I should not go alone. I promise to be careful but am still determined, especially since their main concern seems to be me taking the wrong trail and getting lost.  I try to pay her the entrance fee but she too refuses.

They continue towards the back of the small falls and I head back out the gate and onto the main path, taking a right from the gate and heading further up into the jungle.  I follow the given instructions crossing a bridge above the small falls and reading the signs taking two right forks and following the path, emerging atop a cliff face to another set of endless fields.  This section of the walk provides yet more stunning views of the waterfall which seems to start up in the clouds themselves.

I walk though the fields following the only path there is and wondering how people get lost. After 25 minutes spent dodging cow patties which cover the ground until I come to an arch and a small gate in the wire fence on my left marked by a blue bag.  Here, following the instructions I’ve written down, I cut left through the fields when I come to a gate that wasn’t mentioned in the instructions.  It’s labelled private property, and makes me hesitate a second.  I check and find that while it looks locked it does in fact open, and again the fact that the tallest waterfall in Colombia lays at the end of my quest sets my path.

I duck through the gate and truly into the jungle again, along a muddy dirt path which winds through thick foliage and up closer to the waterfall.  I cross over small streams and a few tiny caves and underground water sources emerging alongside me.

Finally, 70 minutes after leaving the smaller falls I reach the end of the path with a perfect if soaked viewpoint of La Chorrero.  I leave my bag under the shelter of a large bolder, put on my rain coat and climb down onto the rocks below the cascades.

They are surprisingly slippery and getting up under the falls themselves becomes quite a challenge.  Of course I need not tell you whether I made it, it’s Colombia’s tallest waterfall, of course I did.

Soaked and chilled to the bone I manage to make it out of the tumbling flows of water and find a perch on a rock.  I glance up at the infinite droplets of water pouring off the edge of a mountain and lose myself in their journey.  It looks almost like snowfall, at the edges a gentle winter flurry, in the main streams of water it is a full on Canadian blizzard.

I feel a rush of triumph and pride, glad that I made it all the way to the waterfalls edge.  I snap some photos and then, checking the time decide I’d best head back since the bus arrives in a bit of a sketchy area of Bogota where I’d rather not be late at night.

I’m exhausted, sore, and covered in sweat, but utterly enthralled by life as I head off back through the jungle. I make it back out to the road in one piece and am joined by a friendly old man in a cowboy hat who’s walking to a town meeting.  He’s in better shape than me, though he looks about 40 years older.  We talk and I share some candy with him before our paths finally part. I’m pleased noticing how much better my spanish is becoming in the past month.

As I re-enter the more populated sections of the road my legs start to cramp and I suddenly find I’m unable to stop for breaks, which leaves me well and truly exhausted by the time I leave the town behind and begin the final ascent back to the main road I’m truly exhausted.

The sun begins to hide behind the massive rock faces of the Andes just as I reach the main road.  A minute later I’m on the floor of a sadly already full mini bus bound to Bogota. The ride is insanely beautiful, a rainbow blooming in the sky above the valley which holds Choachi and the incredible Cascades of La Chorrero.

Of course the ride is not for those lighthearted as you weave along narrow roads with surprising speed and sheer drops of thousands of feet.  Being on the floor of the bus instead of a seat doesn’t help, and neither does my cramping legs, which are taught ropes crammed and folded into too tight a place.  Despite the sudden spurts of Agony and the constant fight to keep from puking though, it’s an enjoyable ride, and the descent back into Bogota is stunning, the last embers of the dying day’s light glancing off the endless urban sprawl of Colombia’s captivating capital.

How to Get There: (Times are based on my level of fitness which is poor and include time for photos)

Sept 1:  Walk From the Candelaria to Calle 6 and Avenida de Caracas. 15-20 minutes  (there is a Transmilenio station here)

Step 2  Continue just pass the police station on Calle 6 and look for the tiny bus terminal on your right. 2 minutes

Step 3:  Board bus to Choachi and inform driver you want to be dropped off at La Chorrero.  Cost 6000-7000 45-55 minutes

Step 4:  Get off bus and take main turn off under Green Sign Welcoming you to Choachi.

Step 5:  Continue along main road through towns following signs For La Chorrera. 75 minutes to blue house

Step 6:  At the blue house stop in to see about a guide.

Step 7:  Continue back along main road and follow it as it turns to a footpath. 15 minutes to small waterfall.

Step 8:  Explore the smaller waterfall to your hearts content.

Step 9:  Exit the smaller waterfall park and continue further up the original path.  70 minutes from small waterfall to La Chorrero

Step 10:  Cross a small bridge and take the right fork, following the signs and blue bags.

Step 11:  Continue following trail into the fields.

Step 12:  walk until the wooden small arch and before going under it take the gate on the left marked by a blue bag.

Step13: Go through the gate marked no trespassing and continue on the only path available.

Step 14:  Enjoy Colombia’s biggest waterfall.