The body and mind are trained to overcome all limits. This is a challenge for mountain lovers, a physically demanding experience, which will be rewarded with the amount of landscapes you will enjoy and the comfort of spending the night in a mountain refuge in the moor ecosystem.
An intense trip full of landscapes, we will get to know the paramo and the tropical glaciers, we will learn about the surrounding fauna and flora, and we will measure our body in an ascent to 4,964 meters above sea level, the peak of the incredible snowy Santa Isabel or “Poleka Kasue” in the language of our ancestors.
Day 1: We leave around 5:30 am from the city of Manizales. In a 4×4 camper we will take the unpaved road for around 2 to 3 hours to the visitor center El Cisne where we will have the comfort of spending the night in a cozy mountain hotel. The landscapes that we will have the opportunity to see are: High Andean forest, mountains and waterfalls. This day we will make an acclimatization hike to the viewpoint of the Laguna Verde Encantada at around 4.400 meters.
We start the walk along a path where we can see a high level of conservation, surrounded by frailejones and lupinus (species typical of a preserved moorland ecosystem) until we reach the viewpoint of the Laguna Verde Encantada, where access is prohibited due to its conservation, therefore, we can only observe it from the viewpoint, where the guide will give us the respective information and interpretation about the place.
At the end, we will return to rest at the Cisne, where the guide will give us an introductory talk on the equipment we will use the following day on our ascent to the summit.
2 days- 1 night
Specific Tour
Espanol
2 people
We leave around 5:30 am from the city of Manizales. In a 4x4 camper we will take the unpaved road for around 2 to 3 hours to the visitor center El Cisne where we will have the comfort of spending the night in a cozy mountain hotel. The landscapes that we will have the opportunity to see are: High Andean forest, mountains and waterfalls. This day we will make an acclimatization hike to the viewpoint of the Laguna Verde Encantada at around 4.400 meters.
We start the walk along a path where we can see a high level of conservation, surrounded by frailejones and lupinus (species typical of a preserved moorland ecosystem) until we reach the viewpoint of the Laguna Verde Encantada, where access is prohibited due to its conservation, therefore, we can only observe it from the viewpoint, where the guide will give us the respective information and interpretation about the place.
At the end, we will return to rest at the Cisne, where the guide will give us an introductory talk on the equipment we will use the following day on our ascent to the summit.
This day will be full of excitement. Our adventure will take us to the summit of a tropical glacier of unparalleled beauty. We will start very early at 2:00 am with a hot drink and a light breakfast, then we will get into the 4x4 vehicle to start ascending along a dirt road for approximately 45 minutes, there we will find the conejeras sector from where our trek begins.
On this trail we will have a diverse route between paramo, super paramo and glacier. When we reach the edge of the glacier of the snowy Santa Isabel at 4,800 meters we will put on the specialised equipment to begin the safe ascent over the glacier to the summit. Caution should be taken here, as this is a glacier fractured by the process of deglaciation and global warming.
We will reach the peak at 4,964 meters in about 2 hours, however, keep in mind that time is relative in this type of activity and due to different factors the duration may vary.
Here we will enjoy the clear and intense colours of the peaks of these majestic mountains, and if we are lucky enough to have good weather we will be able to have a complete view of the Park. After the celebration, we start the descent, it is important to be careful in this part of the route and to be attentive to all the recommendations of the guide.
When we leave the ice, we will put our equipment in our backpacks and on the moraine we will say a sweet farewell to the mountain. We will continue walking to the place where the vehicle is located, here we will rest and have a snack to recharge our batteries, at 4,200 meters. Finally, we will take the vehicle to continue the way down.