Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Busy hiking in Salento

We are still in Salento without internet. We had two days of hiking around Salento. The first day we caught a jeep to Valle de Cocora, and I had my most technical hiking ever. We had to cross a mountain stream 6 times without proper bridges. I had to apply every bridge crossing skill I know plus event a few new ones. And since it was an "out and back" hike, I got to cross each bridge twice. It was not pretty.

When walking in the horse trenches trails got too hard, I learned to crisscross barbed wire fences. It's a good thing that I am not yet too old to acquire such skills. Of course John learned all this as a boy.

Today's hike along the road to Toche is practically a stroll compared to yesterday's, on a gravel road, among the hills that we see from our porch with very nice views back to the town, and at the peak of the road, a view to Valle de Cocora. Since it is a Sunday, there were more bicyclists and horses on the road than cars or people walking.

The Wax Palms of Valle de Cocora - altitude 2600 meters.
P1040051

On the way up the valley we slogged along the horse track. On the way down we hopped over the barbed wire and walked in the pastures.
P1040054

Sun-Ling crossing a log bridge over the Rio Quindio on her hands and knees.
P1040055


View to Valle de Cocora on our second hike along the road to Toche.

P1040068

5 comments:

Susan in Florida said...

Holy cow! I'm not sure I would have been able to do it. Those logs look very wobbly. And the water doesn't look inviting.

Anonymous said...

Dios Mio!
--wq

Anonymous said...

John, is it a dog or wolf overlooking the valley? great shot. enjoy your photos very much.
--wq

john said...

@wq,
The dogs around Salento were very friendly (unless guarding their territory) and followed us on our hikes. However, this particular dog abandoned us when a group of bicyclists rode by; not to chase the bikes but to run along with them. Very cool!
-john

Sun-Ling said...

It actually looks more scary than dangerous. In fact that evening we met brave young woman that survived a fall into the river with a few scratches and a dunked camera. She did have to walk for three hours in her wet clothes and walk half way into town in the dark. Major inconvenience!

Most Recent Post

Sri Lanka: Trincomalee

Trincomalee, on the east coast of the island, is the least touristed city of our Sri Lankan tour. There are beach resorts a few kilometers t...

Most Popular Posts of Last 30 Days