Backpacking in Colombia: Salento and Valle de Cocora
All you need to know about Salento
During a year-long world trip across all continents, we will also visit Colombia! What a unique country and remarkable culture. We fly from Panama to Medellín, the hometown of Pablo Escobar and from there travel further through the Andes mountains. If you go backpacking in Colombia, this may be the highlight of your tour. The coffee region around the town of Salento is a hidden gem that we often think about. Along the way we pass the most colorful places. How about this hummingbird that I spotted in the Valle de Cocora!
Best time to visit Salento, Colombia
Our winter months, roughly between December and March, are the driest and therefore ideal for visiting the highlands of Colombia. The temperature is about the same all year round: a lot less warm than the lower areas in Colombia. When you go backpacking in Colombia you will need slightly warmer clothing.
When the sun shines, I can wear shorts in Salento, but an extra warm cardigan is nice when the sun is gone for a while!
The coffee region of Colombia: Salento
From Medellín we take the bus to Armenia. No, not the country in the South Caucasus, but a city in the northern Andes of Colombia. From there we travel to a small town called Salento, world famous for one thing: coffee! Colombia is not only known for the high quality of its white powder; The black powder here is also unparalleled!
The streets of Salento are photogenic and all look like the perfect postcard. What colors and what a setting!
The town of Salento is located in the heart of Colombia’s coffee region, a picturesque village with historic streets and colorful colonial houses. Near this town there are a number of plantations where the world’s very best coffee is produced organically. The center of the town itself is also worth a visit, just look at those beautiful colors!
Colombia is cheap, I already knew that in advance. Now I’m even starting to think that this is the cheapest country on earth. The meal on the table consists of four courses. We get soup, corn on the cob, rice, avocado, salad, pork chop, a bowl of watermelon, fresh iced tea and a cake.
The price? €2.20 per person. How is it possible?
Backpacking in Colombia is dirt cheap! For a few euros the entire table is full of the tastiest local dishes.
A visit to a traditional coffee plantation
Then it’s time for coffee! We end up at the smallest and most authentic coffee plantation in the area: Las Acacias. Everything that happens here happens organically. The proud owner shows us around his own piece of heaven. We pick the coffee cherries and learn how to make the very best natural coffee.
The red berries are continuously picked and collected, which must be peeled and the coffee beans dried. This is done in self-built greenhouses, in good weather, in about five days. Once dry, they are roasted in special pots and then stored for a while for the best aromas. The result: ridiculously good coffee.
The difficult thing about picking coffee is that one berry is already ripe, while the other is just starting. It’s quite a job to do all this by hand, but that’s really how they do it in Colombia.
Suus and I spent a day at the Las Acacias coffee plantation. The owner shows us the tricks he uses to promote the coffee harvest. The palm trees provide moist, fertile soil. He also makes his own mix of vinegar, chili, garlic and lemon juice, which he lets steep for weeks. He spreads this over the ground as a natural insecticide. Once the flies have eaten the coffee cherries, it is worthless!
Unique nature in La Valle de Cocora
From Salento we take a trip to the next unique place in Colombia: Valle de Cocora. This bizarre piece of nature can only be reached by 4×4 and not just any. These jeeps are cultural heritage of Colombia. In 1945, at the end of the Second World War, the country bought a few thousand of these army jeeps from the US. To this day they are still running and cannot be found anywhere else on earth. Of course they now have all the colors of the rainbow.
Due to the altitude and weather conditions in Valle de Cocora, the tallest palm trees in the world grow here. It is a special sight, because there are usually thick clouds hanging above the valley. The palm trees therefore seem as high as skyscrapers: a beautiful sight! We take a hike through the valley for the most beautiful views.
In the lower part of Valle de Cocora there is a wild jungle with the most beautiful plants and flowers. We walk along a river for a while and pass the most beautiful waterfalls along the way. When we come from the valley up into the mountains, colorful hummingbirds suddenly fly around everywhere. The nature here is so beautiful, I have never seen this before.
The way back to the palm trees is a little easier. After a walk of about three hours we return to Salento to continue traveling through the Andes.
Salento is the highlight of backpacking in Colombia!
We have seen a lot of tropical rainforest during our travels around the world, but every time it is slightly different. In Colombia, especially in the higher areas, the strangest trees and plants grow, which makes me wonder again. Are you going backpacking in Colombia? Or are you making a complete tour in Colombia? Then you really have to go to Salento and Valle de Cocora!
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