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Option A:
Day 1:
- Welcome at La Macarena airport
- Visit to Cormacarena and National Parks office for an introductory talk about the National Park Sierra de La Macarena.
- Luggage pick up (depending of the time of arrival, luggage will be picked up before or after the talk), and stop at La Manigua’s office for the check-in. Here you will have time to fill your water bottles with water and change clothes if you need.
- Transfer to the Guayabero river. We will take a wooden boat with our luggage to start our first visit, Caño Cristalitos.
- 20 minute boat transfer upstream the Guayabero river. On the way it’s posible to spot some wildlife on the river bank. We will reach a farmers house where we will get ready for our first hike.
- 25 minutes ascend to reach the Mirador, an amazing lookout where your guide will be able to explain everything about the ecosystems and the social history of La Macarena. The place to have lunch will vary according to the time that you start the hike.
- 45 minutes hike along a semi-flat terrain till we reach Caño Cristalitos, where we will have time to appreciate the Macarenia clavigera plant and bathe at small pools.
- 45 minutes hike back to the Guayabero river to reach out boat
- 15 minutes transfer upstream the Guayabero river to reach La Manigua Lodge.
- Check-in at La Manigua Lodge
- Time to relax and to enjoy the possible visit of some monkeys
- Dinner at La Manigua Lodge
Day 2
- Breakfast at La Manigua Lodge. Our start time will be defined by Cormacarena and National parks randomly (it can be between 6 am and 8 am).
- 15 min boat transfer downstream the Guayabero River
- 40 min 4x4 transfer on a bumpy road entering the National Park Sierra de La Macarena
- We will reach National Parks check point, where we will get ready for the hike.
- 30 minutes hike till we reach our highly expected destination: Caño Cristales.
- Once at Caño Cristales, we will start the trail that was assigned by National Parks and
Cormacarena.
- Inside the National Park we will be around 7 hours, having time for hiking, having lunch, bathing and take a lot of pictures of the colors and waterfalls of this amazing river.
- At the end of the hike we will return by the same we entered to reach again La Manigua Lodge.
- At the end of the day we will have a cultural activity on the river.
- Dinner at La Manigua Lodge
Day 3
- Breakfast at La Manigua Lodge. Our start time will be defined by Cormacarena and National parks randomly (it can be between 6 am and 8 am).
- We will have our luggage ready because it comes with us on the boat so we can seize the morning as much as possible. Our luggage will continue on the boat to La Macarena, where they will be stored in our office.
- 40 min 4x4 transfer on a bumpy road entering the National Park Sierra de La Macarena
- We will reach National Parks check point, where we will get ready for the hike.
- 30 minutes hike till we reach Caño Cristales.
- This day we will visit the lower basin of Caño Cristales, where this Majestic river enters the jungle and because of the shadow of the forest the Macarenia clavigera plant has an intense green coloration.
- At the end of the hike we will return to La Macarena, where we will have a room to shower and get ready for the lunch before the flight.
- Transfer to the airport and farewell.
Option B:
Day 1:
- Welcome at La Macarena airport
- Visit to Cormacarena and National Parks office for an introductory talk about the National Park Sierra de La Macarena.
- Luggage pick up (depending of the time of arrival, luggage will be picked up before or after the talk), and stop at La Manigua’s office for the check-in. Here you will have time to fill your water bottles with water and change clothes if you need.
- Transfer to the Guayabero river. We will take a wooden boat with our luggage to start our first visit, Caño Cristalitos.
- 20 minute boat transfer upstream the Guayabero river. On the way it’s posible to spot some wildlife on the river bank. We will reach a farmers house where we will get ready for our first hike.
- 25 minutes ascend to reach the Mirador, an amazing lookout where your guide will be able to explain everything about the ecosystems and the social history of La Macarena. The place to have lunch will vary according to the time that you start the hike.
- 45 minutes hike along a semi-flat terrain till we reach Caño Cristalitos, where we will have time to appreciate the Macarenia clavigera plant and bathe at small pools.
- 45 minutes hike back to the Guayabero river to reach out boat
- 15 minutes transfer upstream the Guayabero river to reach La Manigua Lodge.
- Check-in at La Manigua Lodge
- Time to relax and to enjoy the possible visit of some monkeys
- Dinner at La Manigua Lodge
Day 2
- Breakfast at La Manigua Lodge. Our start time will be defined by Cormacarena and National parks randomly (it can be between 6 am and 8 am).
- 15 min boat transfer downstream the Guayabero River
- 40 min 4x4 transfer on a bumpy road entering the National Park Sierra de La Macarena
- We will reach National Parks check point, where we will get ready for the hike.
- 30 minutes hike till we reach our highly expected destination: Caño Cristales.
- Once at Caño Cristales, we will start the trail that was assigned by National Parks and Cormacarena.
- Inside the National Park we will be around 7 hours, having time for hiking, having lunch, bathing and take a lot of pictures of the colors and waterfalls of this amazing river.
- At the end of the hike we will return by the same we entered to reach again La Manigua Lodge.
- At the end of the day we will have a cultural activity on the river.
- Dinner at La Manigua Lodge
Day 3
- Breakfast at La Manigua Lodge. The time to start the activity will be defined according to the flight schedule.
- 10 minute hike to from La Manigua Lodge till we reach the horses.
- 45 minute horse ride along “morichales” and natural savannahs till we reach Caño Piedra. If we have enough time it’s posible to bathe at a natural pool.
- Return to La Manigua Lodge bu horse (60 minute)
- We will pack or luggage and get ready to return to La Macarena by boat. If our return flight is in the afternoon, we will have lunch at the town.
- Transfer to the airport and farewell.
TRAVEL TIPS :
• We recommend your trip to be at least 4 days, so you can enjoy Caño Cristales as much as possible and even know other beautiful spots in La Macarena.
• On long weekends you can only visit Caño Cristales once due to the amount of people that visits La Macarena, so it’s better if you can travel inside the week or in a normal weekend!
• Caño Cristales opening and closure depends mainly on weather conditions.
• Our trips are designed for people who like to hike and do activities all day. If you prefer a softer option, we also have options for you, ask for them!
• Lunches and water are carried by the guests to the hikes, if a carrier is needed please ask for this additional service.
Micro adventure tours :
RAUDAL DE ANGOSTURAS I AND CIUDAD DE PIEDRA (Tinigua National Park)
Upstream the Guayabero River the complex geography of La Sierra de La Macarena creates a beautiful rock canyon that tightens the flow of this river and delivers a strong and amazing rapid that no one dares to sail. During the dry season the rapids are softer and you can enter the canyon inside a boat letting those huge rocks dazzle you and witness the beautiful petroglyphs that ancient cultures like the Tiniguas and Guayaberos left on the side of this river as a memory of their existence before they were banished from their homeland.
During your visit to this natural spectacle, it ́s possible to hike to Ciudad de Piedra, a valley of huge stones and strange formations that only the wind, the water and the time could have sculpt. Get lost inside a rock labyrinth that belongs to the Guaiana shield, one of the oldest rocks on earth and enjoy the silence of nature while you rest on top of this amazing rocks.
All the hikes are on a semi-flat terrain and will have a máximum altitude of 300 masl. Ciudad de Piedra is the best spot to visit, but requires a mid-high physical fitness to enjoy it.
Places to visit:
- Ciudad de Piedra :
- Distance/ time : 8,4 KM / 7 Hr
- Difficulty : High
- Season : Color/ Dry
- Aguas Claras
- Distance/ time : 2,2 KM / 5 Hr
- Difficulty : Low
- Season : Color
- Petroglyphs - Miradores de Angosturas
- Distance/ time : 3 KM
- Difficulty : Medium
- Season : Dry
- Angosturas I canyon
- Distance/ time : by boat
- Difficulty : Low
- Season : Dry
CAÑO CRISTALES (Sierra de La Macarena National Park) :
The main attraction of La Macarena is Caño Cristales, a majestic tributary of the Guayabero River, which owes it’s beauty to the colorful aquatic plant Macarenia clavijera, beautiful waterfalls and intriguing rock formations. To explore Caño Cristales well we recommend to visit it twice, each day you would go to a different trail. Besides Caño Cristales there’s other rivers that have this colorful plant, like Caño Cristalitos, Caño Escondido and Caño Piedra. All the hikes are on a semi-flat terrain and will have a máximum altitude of 300 masl., only Caño Cristalitos has a 25 min ascent that’s considered of high difficulty. Along the hikes you will have time to bathe, have lunch and do multiple stops to take pictures of this wonder.
SERENADE AT THE RIVER :
Flow with the rythm of the Guayabero River while you enjoy the sunset and listen to our local “llanera” music, played by a local singer and composer with his 4 string guitar, on a boat that goes paddling slow and silent downstream till you reach again La Manigua Lodge. The “cantos del llano” were declared intangible heritage of humanity and make a very important part of La Macarena’s culture.
CACAO WORKSHOP :
Visit our neighbors and have a great moment while they explain to you how they make chocolate from their own cacao crop. Get your hands dirty while you help them with the process and understand the effort this families have to make to create the chocolate that you probably take at home. At the next day you will be able to taste the chocolate that you processed.
RIVER SAFARI :
The Guayabero river is great for spotting and photographing wildlife like turtles, alligators, different species of monkeys, lots of birds and if you’re lucky maybe some nice mammals like tapirs, capibaras or pink river dolphins. Take your camera and get ready to shoot at any animal that your guide and boat rider points, they will do their best to help you getting the pictures you want. This is a full day activity and you will have lunch on the Guayabero river.
HORSEBACK RIDING :
La Macarena is home to different ecosystems since is located in the border of the Amazon and the flat lands of Colombia. One of those ecosystems are the natural savannahs, which allow you to enjoy beautiful landscapes and a clear view. The best way to enjoy the savannahs is by horse and you will have time to bathe at small streams like Caño Piedra or Caño Escondido. Horses are very calm and well trained, so you don’t need to be an expert to ride one.
LAGUNA DEL SILENCIO :
La Laguna del Silencio is a lagoon that receives all the water from Caño Cristales before it reaches the Guayabero River. This place can be reached walking (1 hour aprox.) or by horse (30 min). Once you reach the lagoon, a small canoe will be waiting for you to bring you along this beautiful mirror of water surrounded by birds and calm.
