Hiking Valle de Cocora in Salento, Colombia: What You Need to Know
Salento, Colombia is one of the major destinations in Colombia. It’s a small town in Eje Cafetero, Colombia’s picturesque coffee region, located a few hours west of Bogota as the bus drives (OK, so more like 12 hours). The region is popular because in it grows one of the world’s most popular drugs: coffee. The town of Salento has numerous coffee farms – including our favorite, Ocaso – but it also has plenty of gorgeous and picturesque hikes. None of those hikes are as notable or as popular as the famous Valle de Cocora hike (Otherwise known as the Cocora Valley hike).
We had seen postcard-perfect photos of the towering wax palms and bright green hills, which convinced us – amateur hikers though we are – that we needed to do the Valle de Cocora hike! We arrived in Salento bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, ready to tackle the Valle de Cocora.
What we didn’t realize was that the Cocora Valley hike is as difficult and potentially dangerous as it is beautiful.
Flash forward to us hiking the Valle de Cocora. My pants are covered in mud. My shoes are soaked. My wrist is killing me from a fall earlier. My poncho is a sweat lodge. Lia is flirting with death as she slides down a mountain nearly in tears and I think, “Where was this shit in Lonely Planet?”
My dear reader, please allow me to fill you in on the REAL Valle de Cocora hike in Salento.
Table of Contents
Psst: We’ve got a ton of other resources for Colombia that you’ll want to look at before your trip!
- What to Pack for Colombia
- The Best Hostels in Colombia
- Colombia Itinerary: Ultimate Guide to 1 Month of Backpacking Colombia
- 30 Things Nobody Tells You About Backpacking in Colombia
- A Complete Guide to Transportation in Colombia
- The Best Colombian Food: What to Eat in Colombia
Tips for Hiking the Valle de Cocora
Here’s what we wish we knew before hiking Valle de Cocora. You’ll find out why shortly.
- We did not make it up to Primavera, which has the most iconic views. As it turns out though, there’s a shortcut. We took the long way. Oops.
- You can hire horses to take you through the hike. However, the trail isn’t good for them, they’re not taken care of well, and they’re not good for the trail conditions. So we don’t recommend it.
- We were told it’s easier to do the full hike in the reverse of our instructions, because the uphill will be on road and the downhill is trail.
- Start early. Rain is unpredictable and the more horses that go through, the more beat up the trail gets.
- Don’t forget: the last Willy (that’s the public transportation in Salento) leaves at 6pm. You must finish well before then to avoid post-hike panic and a very long hike back into Salento.
What to Pack for the Valle de Cocora Hike
Pack carefully for the when preparing to go to the Cocora Valley! Here’s what we recommend.
- 50-100oz of water: We have a Camelbak Hydration Pack that fits 100oz of water, snacks, AND has some room for gear, too.
- Trekking poles to help with the deep mud. We brought our Black Diamond trekking poles with us, folded down and tucked into a side pocket of our backpacks, for our entire 5 months in South America and they were SO useful on hikes.
- Rain Gear: We love our Ultra-Light Packable Rain Jackets (His & Hers) and we recommend Waterproof Socks to wear under our Trail Runners for river crossings & wet mud puddles.
- Hiking Shoes & Socks: We both hike in Trail Runners rather than heavy duty hiking boots – they’re lightweight and travel friendly, more flexible and comfortable, and they dry super quickly when it rains or after a water crossing, so your feet will stay toasty and try. Pair them with well-made wool socks. Our favorite wool sock brand is Darn Tough: soft, durable, and they come with a lifetime guarantee in the event of holes (that’s how you know it’s real). When things start getting wet, pull your waterproof socks on over top of your wool socks to keep your feet dry and blister-free.
- Hiking Clothes: We prefer wool hiking gear thanks to its ability to cool you down in the heat and keep you warm in the rain – both of which you’ll encounter on the Valle de Cocora hike. You’ll want to bring layers: it’s hot at the start of the hike in the valley, but up in the cloud forest it’s cold and rainy. Also make sure you bring clothes that are safe to get muddy and will wash off easily, especially your hiking pants. We’ve tried a lot of different hiking clothing over the years, and these are our favorite tried and true picks.
- Hiking Clothing for Her: T-shirt | Sports Bra | Half Zip | Hiking Pants
- Hiking Clothing for Him: Short Sleeve shirt | Long Sleeve Shirt | Hiking Pants
- Snacks: You want something nutritious, with a good mix of complex carbs, fats, protein, and electrolytes to fuel your body. My favorite hiking snacks are peanut butter filled pretzels, dried fruit (like apple rings or dried mango), and almonds. Hit up a mercado to pick up some dried snacks for your hike.
- Sunscreen and a Hat or Sunglasses: The first part of the Valle de Cocora hike is sunny and bright. Bring sun protection!
- Camera: Valle de Cocora is stunning, so don’t forget to pack a camera! Most of my best shots were taken with my tiny little GoPro – the wide panoramic angle is perfect for the sweeping insanely tall palm trees of Valle de Cocora. A perfect lightweight, hike-friendly camera that takes amazing photos while still fitting comfortably into your pocket is the Canon Powershot. We used this camera exclusively during our 5 months backpacking South America and were extremely pleased with it.
- Cash & Small Bills to get yourself home after your hike! The ATM in Salento is unreliable at best. As in it was both empty AND the power in the entire town was out on the day of our hike.
How to Get from Salento to the Cocora Valley
Every day, hikers converge on Salento Plaza in the middle of town to grab a jeep to the Cocora Valley.
Salento doesn’t have moto taxis or yellow cabs; they have Willys. Willys are jeeps that can hold up to 15 people and the driver. I say “hold”, and not “seat,” because 5 of those lucky people stand on the bumper and hold on for dear life.
It sounds sketchy, but you have to try it. It’s so much fun! Read more about the ridiculous and nerve-wracking transportation in Colombia in our transportation guide!
Willys leave for the Cocora Valley every hour from 7:30 AM until 2:30 PM.
The start of the hike is about 5 miles out of town, so you have no choice: you have to take a Willy (unless you prefer your hikes with an extra 10 miles, in which case, this is probably not the blog post for you). Thankfully, they’re cheap; Lia and I paid 3.400 COP (about $1 USD) each.
Entering the Cocora Valley
Once you are dropped off at the entrance of the Valle de Cocora hike, you will be instantly treated to amazing views. The Cocora Valley is lush – the hills are a bright, unbelievable green – and at certain times of the day, the cloud forests in the mountains attract a low-lying fog which only serves to enhance the scenery.
One thing you’ll notice immediately is the primary reason that the hike is so famous: the giant Colombian wax palms. They’re incredibly tall, skinny palm trees that grow up to 180 feet tall! They look like they’re straight out of “The Lorax.” They also happen to be Colombia’s national symbol.
In addition to the enticing rolling green hills and giant palms, there are a couple of little shops that sell snacks, coffee, tea, water, and bathroom admission.
Once you’re ready to get moving, we’re told, head up the hill. As soon as you pass the last building, you’ll see a bright blue gate on the right. Go through and you’re off!
And so off we were…
The Beginning of the Valle de Cocora Hike
The first hour or so of the Valle de Cocora hike is extremely easy, and incredibly beautiful. Lia described it as Wales meets South America.
Thousands of wax palms dot the tops of mountains. Everywhere you look are vibrantly green hills with farms nestled throughout the valley. On the farms, happy livestock graze on grass and observe passers by (I even made a couple of cow friends).
As you hike, groups of families on horseback tromp past, which sounds a lot more pastoral than it is, because the horses look miserable and tend to splash you with mud. But all around you is beauty. Be sure to take lots of pictures. Every view is better than the last.
Depending on how many pictures you stopped for, about an hour in, you’ll reach the end of the valley and the start of the cloud forest covered mountain. This is where the Valle de Cocora hike changes from beautiful and easy…. to gorgeous and insanely difficult.
Entering The Cloud Forest in the Cocora Valley
Immediately upon entering the cloud forest, you’re engulfed in jungle. It’s actually pretty surreal – one minute you’re in a sunny valley, the next you’re suddenly climbing straight uphill in a thick, misty cloud forest.
Here’s the thing about the trail conditions: they suck.
The people at Acaime – the reserve which takes care of the Valle de Cocora hike – do what they can to maintain the trail, but after frequent rain and constant horse trampling, the trail turns into rivers of thick mud mixed with manure by the end of the day.
And I don’t just say this just because it’s icky and I want you to be mentally prepared to end up covered in manure; it’s the sort of mud that can be very dangerous. It’s slippery and thick, and can easily throw off your footing or eat your shoe. Choose your steps very carefully and take your time.
Trekking poles were incredibly helpful in differentiating between “12 inches of mud” and “a rock I can sort of balance on.”
It was at this point, picking our way through knee-deep mud, that we found ourselves moving slower and slower. Uh oh.
The Valle de Cocora Waterfall
About 200 meters into the forest, the trail makes a sudden left turn. At the turn, you’ll notice a gnarled branch that is used to tie up horses.
Upon first glance it seemed like a weird spot to tie them up. However, if you look to the left, you’ll see the tiniest trail, winding through the jungle and past a small cave. Follow this trail and you’ll be rewarded with a great view of a waterfall.
Here’s what we wish someone had told us before we hiked the Valle de Cocora. For those of you who are short on time (or are slow hikers, like us), or don’t want to get incredibly dirty, or are prone to falling when things get muddy and slippery, this is where you should turn around.
The rest of the trail is an uphill slog through mud and tiny, rickety bridges over a rushing river – and there’s a shortcut to get to the end of the trail anyway.
If you turn around now, you’ll have seen the bests parts of the hike and have plenty of time to go shower off the mud. The valley and the waterfall in the cloud forest were our personal highlights on the Valle de Cocora hike.
But of course, we didn’t turn around. We kept climbing upwards through the mud.
The River Crossings on the Valle de Cocora Hike
If you’re continuing past the waterfall, you’ll head back to the main Valle de Cocora trail and see the first of several forks. You want the one on the right.
For future reference, if you see a fork that isn’t marked, don’t worry. If you take the wrong path, you’ll quickly reach a river and be forced to turn around anyway.
The reason for that is the horses go straight through the river, and the other path is for humans and leads to a bridge. I say “bridge” but that’s actually quite generous.
Soon you’ll reach a rickety , incredibly sketch “bridge” with a sign warning you to take it one person at a time. Don’t worry. If you fall, it’s only like 100 meters down river until you’re tossed off a waterfall onto some rocks. Should be fine.
I hope you enjoyed this bridge, because this hike has EIGHT of those sketchy river crossings. To make it more interesting, 3 of those river crossings are just logs thrown across the river!
And they’re all wet and muddy! And there’s nothing to hold onto! Adventure.
The trail continues for about another hour, depending on your speed (our pace, as always, is very slow). Throughout the trail, you’ll be fighting your way through a lot of mud. Like…more than you actually believe. We’re talking Tough Mudder levels of mud.
The horses trotting past (which occasionally fling mud at you while you stand balancing precariously to the side) churn the mud into a thick, viscous sludge. Your speed will be compromised because you have to hop from rock to rock so you don’t get stuck in the knee-deep mud.
The Mud on the Valle de Cocora Hike
I know what you’re thinking: “um, you warned us about the mud already, dude.” But this bears repetition and emphasis: the mud on the Cocora Valley hike is freaking insane.
As you’re crossing the river 18 thousand times there are a few parts of the trail that are straight up dangerous. The first part that made us legitimately fear for our safety comes after the fourth bridge and is a steep downhill that is akin to a mud slide (but not the fun sexy college kind, unfortunately. Although we tried to look as sexy as possible while slipping and falling).
This short 50-meter stretch took us ages because we had to carefully audition each step, like an old lady with a recently broken hip. To make matters worse, this stretch is uncharacteristically devoid of tall rocks to stand on (or perhaps they were just too deep mud to find).
And as if the trail wanted to really stick it to us for thinking we could handle the Valle de Cocora hike, there’s a handrail … but it was built without supports. So it might as well be a garden hose. Thanks so much for this floppy railing, menacing mud-jungle. We get it, we’re totally out of our league.
At one point, Lia had the brilliant idea to actually stand on the sagging handrail and sort of scoot down it. That might be your best bet. I decided to speed through, and as a result I slipped and landed with my hand bent backwards, shrieking in pain.
Hiking in South America Injury #1. (read about #2 and #3 …) Lucky it was just my wrist and not my ankle, I guess.
After the millionth seventh “bridge,” you’ll reach the La Montana junction. If you have time, take the right to Acaime, which is about 1km away.
Once you’re past the junction, you only have one more “bridge.” Bridge is really a stretch for this one: it’s actually just logs thrown across the mud with a lone wire to hang onto. But like, thanks for the wire, I guess?
After the “bridge,” there’s another steep mud slide. This is another one of the dangerous stretches I mentioned. It’s all uphill and there is NOTHING to hold onto. Good luck!
Sliding back down this stretch and trying not to tumble face-first down the mountain on our return journey to civilization was the point that had Lia nearly in tears and me cursing and shaking my limp, injured wrist at every blog post that didn’t mention the insanity we had decided to undertake on the Valle de Cocora hike.
Consider yourself duly warned!
Acaime: Hot Chocolate & Chill
Once you defeat the mudslide from hell, you’ll see a junction with signs for Acaime. Take the stairs up (screw you, mud-slinging horses! So long!) and continue on for twenty minutes uphill until you reach Acaime.
You might notice signs for La Estrella de Agua as well. I haven’t heard anyone say it’s worth the detour. In fact, I’ve only heard bad things. But hey, hike your own hike.
We arrived miserable and defeated from slogging through the mud and rain (although it wasn’t raining when we started the hike, the further up you go, the rainier it gets – cloud forests will do that). Acaime is a neat little house in the hills, run by the reserve that maintains the Valle de Cocora hike.
Here, you pay 5.000 COP ($1.66 USD) and you’re treated to hot chocolate, coffee, or tea. They also have water, a bathroom, and food (limited supply…we didn’t get any. I almost cried). Around the property are a bunch of hummingbirds for you to enjoy.
There’s even a pet coati (closely related to a raccoon but approximately 40 times cuter)! It’s a nice reprieve from the mud, sweat, blood, and tears of the cloud forest.
Lia and I have this thing (kind of like a curse, or just a shared character flaw) where we always start hikes too late, don’t give ourselves enough time to finish them, and end up scrambling to get back before dark – or in this case, before the last Willy leaves from the Cocora Valley to Salento (6 pm).
To make matters worse, we had run out of water, which is a death knell for Lia – she drinks water like a dehydrated camel whenever she hikes. So when we finally arrived at last at Acaime, we could barely talk – much less in Spanish.
We breathlessly flomped down on a bench and after a mug of watery hot chocolate, we felt much better and were able to discuss our game plan.
Finishing the Valle de Cocora Hike … Sort of
After Acaime, there are two options, and they both take about two hours: go back the way you came, or go up further into the cloud forest, which – after some even more strenuous hiking – reveals some incredible views.
We considered our time limitations: the last Willy leaves at 6, it was 4, and we’d already been hiking for 5 hours. Clearly, time estimates mean nothing for us.
Given our typical pace of very, very slow, we didn’t really stand much chance of making it back in time to catch our only transportation option. So, sadly, we decided to give up on the beautiful views and the further uphill climb, and try to make up time on the way back down.
Note: If you choose to complete the hike, you’ll go back to the junction and head uphill for as long as you can. You’ll be rewarded with spectacular views of Valle de Cocora from above. After you’ve drained your camera battery, take the road down the hill and you’ll end up where you started!
Heading back down
Having made our decision to turn back, we turned around and slipped and slid back the way we’d come. At this point it was even more wet and muddy, and each river crossing was more and more slippery than before.
Going downhill was just as difficult as uphill, and we took our time and tried not to fall as much as we could. Somehow, miraculously, we made it out of the cloud forest in exactly 2 hours, despite it taking us so long to climb up.
Emerging from the forest into the slightly more sunny valley, with its rolling green hills and mooing cows, we felt light on our feet.
We laughed at tiny mud puddles which had slowed us down on the way in – both of us were covered in mud from the neck down at this point anyway.
We skipped through the valley in exactly an hour and caught the very last Willy at 5:59 PM back to Salento. I even got to be one of the people standing on the back all the way to town, which is the BEST.
Leaving the Cocora Valley
Timing had worked out perfectly, and we rode the high of our good luck for the rest of the night. Even when we realized we were completely out of cash, and then the entire town of Salento suffered a mysterious power outage causing all of the ATMs to stop working, everything seemed like it would somehow work out.
We were experiencing that truly Colombian vibe: tranquilo. The driver took us home and waited while we searched our hostel for spare change to pay him – tranquilo.
We made it back to our hostel 15 minutes before the family-style dinner by candlelight was served. We were famished, and it was magical and delicious. We made new friends, chatted by firelight, ate chocolate cake, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves (read more about our amazing hostel in Salento).
It was such a good feeling that even an ice-cold shower in the dark (thanks, power outage) to scrub off our mud couldn’t bring us down!
What an incredible hike. It’s true what they say (or, well, even if *they* don’t, it’s what *I* say): the harder the hike, the better the food and shower feels afterward.
All in all, it was worth the stress, mud, and exhaustion. I just wish we were better prepared, and had started earlier. Learn from our mistakes!
Psst: We’ve got a ton of other resources for Colombia that you’ll want to look at before your trip!
- What to Pack for Colombia
- The Best Hostels in Colombia
- Colombia Itinerary: Ultimate Guide to 1 Month of Backpacking Colombia
- 30 Things Nobody Tells You About Backpacking in Colombia
- A Complete Guide to Transportation in Colombia
- The Best Colombian Food: What to Eat in Colombia
If you are looking for more tour tips during your visit to Colombia the amazing guys over at ViaHero will connect you with a local person who will share all their juicy knowledge and help you plan your perfect itinerary. Check it out here.
So, reader, get out into that cloud forest, but know what to expect! One day we’ll be back to finish the second half of the Valle de Cocora hike….
What do you think, does hiking Valle de Cocora sound worth it, or would you rather take the shortcut for a photo op?
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