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Overview

Highlights:

  • Explore one of the most beautiful snow caped ranges in Colombia
  • Impressive views of Pulpit of the Devil and Pan de Azucar peak.

Trip details:

  • Duration of the trip: 3 days and 2 nights (We depart from Bogotá on the first day at 8:00pm)
  • Trekking time: 2 to 8 hours daily.
  • Distance: 2-15 kms each day.
  • Ecosystem: rain forest, paramount and glaciar.
  • Climate: cold.
  • Elevation: 2.750 – 4.900 meters above sea level (m.a.s.l).

For decades the Sierra Nevada of Cocuy, Guican y Chita has been visited by mountaineers and climbers, both foreign and national.  For those who enjoy climbing rocks, ice, and snow, or those who enjoy hiking or camping, the Sierra Nevada of Cocuy is a true paradise.  Its majestic mountains, highlands, and forests represent different altitudes which offer the delights of the most daring adventures.

This mountain ridge is made up of a series of snow-capped peaks that are unique in the eastern mountain chain. The group represents the largest snow mass which still exists in Colombia. In the zone of perpetual snows in the park, elevations are from 4,700 to 5,330 m.a.s.l.

The Sierra Nevada is ordinarily reached from Guican and El Cocuy. These are connected by a navigable road, 43 kilometers in length, which passes through Alto de la Cueva, from which three main access roads are available:  Valle de Lagunillas (to the south), Hacienda La Esperanza and Cabañas Kanwara (to the north).

 

Ubication

Dates

You can also book this trip year around. Please contact us to send you a quotation.
 

Dates for open groups:

  • 13 al 15 de diciembre de 2024
  • 20 al 22 de diciembre del 2024
  • 27 al 29 de diciembre de 2024
  • 4 al 6 de enero de 2025
  • 10 al 12 de enero de 2025
  • 17 al 19 de enero de 2025
  • 24 al 26 de enero de 2025
  • 31 de enero al  al 2 de febrero de 2025

 

 

Price

Prices for the Púlpito del Diablo expedition in Sierra Nevada del Cocuy:

We accompany the group from Bogotá if the number of participants is 6 or more, otherwise we organize everything so that one of our guides is waiting for the participants in the municipality of Güicán and everything works like clockwork!

The price depends on the number of people who sign up.

Prices valid until January 15, 2025:

  • 1 participant – COP2,490,000 in single accommodation

  • 2 participants – COP1,690,000 per person in double accommodation

  • 3 or more participants – COP1,590,000 per person in multiple accommodation

Notes:

  • Foreigners not residing in Colombia have an additional charge of $50,000 per person
  • To register you must pay 50%, once the payment is made there are no refunds in case the person cannot go except for serious medical reasons or COVID19.
  • This price already has a discount for cash payment (a place is reserved with a 50% advance payment as soon as possible because the places in the good cabins are scarce!).

 

How to book

To reserve your quota on the Púpito del Diablo Sierra Nevada del Cocuy expedition, make a 50% deposit and please write to us at info@ecoglobalexpeditions.com with the names of the interested parties and their phone numbers (the phone number is very important to be able to inform you in case of any changes in the schedule)

 

What’s included

Our expedition to the Devil’s Pulpit in Sierra Nevada del Cocuy includes:

  • Transfer Bogota – El Cocuy – Bogota / public coach
  • Transfer El Cocuy – to the mountain / prívate 4×4
  • 1 Hotel night at Güicán
  • 2 Lodging nights in mountain cabins
  • Full board
  • English speaker guide and Logistics
  • Medical insurance

 

What’s not included

Our expedition Devil’s Pulpit Sierra Nevada del Cocuy, does not include:

  • Last day meals
  • National Park Permit
  • Personal equipment
  • Tips
  • Additional drinks
  • Local, national or international calls
  • Activities not included in the itinerary

 

Itinerary

Note: the following itineraries are informative and may change without notice according to weather conditions or unforeseen events that may arise.

Día 0

At 7:30pm we will meet at the Bogotá Transport Terminal – Red Module, to leave at 8:00pm towards the town of Güicán in the north of the department of Boyacá.

This tour lasts 11 hours leaving Bogotá via the Autopista Norte. Along the way the bus makes a few short stops where you will have the opportunity to have a hot drink or a light snack.

Día 1

Early in the morning we arrive at the town of El Cocuy and head to one of the town’s restaurants for breakfast.

Once we have recovered from the trip, we will stop by the national parks office to register. There, the officials in charge will give us a short talk about the park and give us some environmental and safety recommendations.

We will then be picked up by the vehicles that will take us to the mountain. This journey takes approximately an hour and a half through the rural area of ​​the municipality and we will have the opportunity to enjoy a beautiful landscape in which the small plots of land owned by farmers with their crops and cattle grazing areas stand out.

At midday we will arrive at the cabin and we will go deeper and deeper into a remote territory of imposing landscapes and large mountains. Little by little we will discover the snow-capped peaks of this area of ​​the park.

At the cabin, lunch and hot coca tea await us to adapt to the altitude.

After lunch we will take an acclimatization walk in order to adapt our bodies to the altitude and at the same time we will enjoy the landscape surrounding the cabin.

Dinner and accommodation.

Día 2

After breakfast, the vehicles will take us with all our luggage to the Lagunillas Valley sector, from where we will set off towards the Devil’s Pulpit and the Sugar Loaf.

The landscape is breathtaking, the Lagunillas River Valley extends towards the northwest in all its immensity and towards the east a spectacular canyon shows us the way that goes into the forests of Arauca.

Our objective for this day is to reach the snow edge at 4,900 meters above sea level at the foot of the imposing and mysterious Devil’s Pulpit, a gigantic perfect cube of rock that stands out in the landscape of the Sierra.

This walk to the snow edge takes about 4 hours always uphill. To our right we are accompanied by the Campanillas Negro and Blanco peaks. The path ascends to the Conejo pass at 4,500 meters above sea level, from where we will have the first view of the majestic Devil’s Pulpit and the summit of the Sugar Loaf Peak.

From there, the slope of the path becomes less steep and we begin to walk on the moraine, extensive slabs of rock where there was once ice and snow. Finally we reach the edge of the snow at 4,900 meters above sea level. There we will enjoy the snow and the landscape for as long as the weather allows, we will have lunch and then we will begin our return to the vehicles that are waiting to take us to the town of Güicán.

Once in the town, we will check into the hotel where we can take a hot bath and have dinner.

Height 4800 m.a.s.l.
Distance 16 kilometers round trip
Travel time 7 to 9 hours round trip

Día 3

In the morning we will take the bus that will take us back to Bogotá. On the way we will stop for breakfast and make other short stops to rest.

Approximately at 5:00 p.m. we will arrive in the city of Bogotá.

 

 

Travel tips

 

Personal equipment list:

  • Canteen, Thermos or Camelback, the use of single-use plastic or PET bottles is prohibited. Required capacity 2 liters
  • Two (2) changes of clothes (the one you are wearing and an additional one) made of quick-drying synthetic material (lycra, polar fiber, etc.) Please do not wear denim or jeans pants or cotton in general, they do not protect from the cold and if they get wet they will not dry during the entire expedition. Also avoid cotton t-shirts, sweatshirts and jackets.
  • One (1) set of thermal underwear or sweatshirt made of polar fiber or thick fabric to stay in the cabin and to sleep in.
  • Two (2) or maximum three (3) pairs of thick socks, preferably wool
  • One (1) wool or polar fiber hat that covers the ears (can be a balaclava)
  • One (1) pair of wool or polar fiber gloves
  • One (1) cap or hat
  • One (1) pair of hiking boots that cover the ankles and ideally are waterproof
  • One (1) pair of sandals or light tennis shoes for use in the cabin
  • One (1) jacket and one (1) waterproof pants
  • One (1) polar fiber or synthetic material jacket to protect from the cold
  • One (1) quick-drying towel
  • Small flashlight and spare batteries for three (3) days
  • Sunglasses (400 UV filter)
  • Small backpack to use on hikes
  • Sleeping bag (optional), in the shelter where we stay they provide sheets and blankets but if you prefer your own sleeping bag you can bring it. Emergency thermal blanket with aluminum foil
    Cash for hydration, tips, souvenirs and personal expenses
  • Personal documents (ID, EPS card)
  • Personal hygiene items in small quantities
  • Sunscreen with a protection factor greater than or equal to 60SPF
  • Plastic bags
  • Toilet paper
  • Lipstick, cocoa butter or Vaseline
  • Sweets / chocolates / peanuts / snacks / energy drinks
  • Camera
  • All of this should fit in a medium backpack and should be packed in plastic bags. Travel light but with what is necessary.
  • Although all our guides have first aid knowledge and carry a first aid kit for emergencies, every good hiker should carry their medicines and a small personal first aid kit