A hike “flat up the hill”- On the road with photo enthusiasts - Colombia 2025 - 10
2025-02-21/22 - A hike “flat up the hill”
I slept very poorly again today. Our hotel is right by the central plaza and the atonal bells of the cathedral ring throughout the night.
Even in Germany, I find church bells rather annoying. But at least they usually sound reasonable. Here in Colombia, you could also beat an iron pan with a wooden club. Wouldn't sound any worse.
Last night I also canceled the optional swimming trip in Cartagena. The speedboat ride is supposed to be intense for the back, especially on the way back (they even warn against it in the official Spanish description) and as I had a slipped disc some time ago, I don't want to take any risks. This is especially true as Thomas confirms that this is a typical event for American tourists. Mass processing par excellence.
We meet at 7:30am for breakfast in one of the cafés, as our hotel here, like the last one, doesn't offer any. An hour later, we leave in jeeps to a coffee plantation. This was initially not on the agenda too. But many of the group have never seen one before and don't want to miss out on the opportunity. The drive is not long and, as we see at our destination, can also be done by tuk-tuk.
We are greeted with a coffee and outfitted with a poncho and hat. Here we also take the obligatory group photo.
We are provided with all kinds of information about coffee farming. Whoever wants to can also pick a few red beans. It's nice that you can also see the further processing steps up to the finished product. The only thing missing is roasting which, as is so often, not done on site.
Here you can also see why “fair trade” is a scam. The pickers receive the equivalent of 75 cents per kilo of coffee beans. Even if the coffee farmers were paid three times as much, the 500-gram pack should be just 75 cents more expensive for us. Suppliers and the various trade levels take the rest of the surcharge into their pockets.
We are back at the hotel shortly before noon. We now have a 2-hour break until we meet up for another hike. I use the time to work a little on the photos and submit one for the photo review in the evening.
The hike should be easy. Just “flat up the hill” as Thomas says 😉.
The start is indeed easy. First stop is at the Cascada de Amor waterfall. This is a beautiful fall that drops down several steps. Here we can enjoy ourselves photographically. There is another waterfall 50 meters further on, but that one is not quite as attractive.
I am one of the first to leave the waterfalls. A short distance further on, there is a bridge over a torrent. Sadly, the light is quite harsh.
Three of us now make our way up the mountain. At some point we reach the somewhat hidden summit station of an adventurous cable car. Thomas, who is with us, has shared his location, but none of the others show up. After enjoying ourselves for an hour in the adjacent restaurant, we take the cable car to the bottom. It's not as wobbly as it looks. But it is all the louder.
We walk to the bridge over the bird park, but don't go inside. After all, it's already 5:30pm and the sun will set in half an hour. Here we meet most of the rest.
Before it gets too late, I leave the others to photograph the cathedral in the evening light. As soon as I arrive in the streets around the central square, a short but heavy downpour starts. Luckily, the houses here have large balconies to shelter under.
I take my photos and then have a quick shower before we're heading to dinner.
The next day is a transfer day. We drive back to Medellin to fly from there to Cartagena. As the flight doesn't leave until late in the evening, we make a stop in Santa Fe [↗].
First, we drive to the old Puente de Occidente [↗] over the Río Cauca. It has long been closed for cars, only tuk-tuks, mopeds and pedestrians are allowed to cross it. The whole thing is a typical “as-we-are-here" destination.
We continue to the large central square. We are given 2.5 hours, but at 30°C and what feels like 90% humidity, the entrepreneurial spirit is limited. Beyond the main square, Santa Fe is an ugly place. So, seven of us flee to the nearest restaurant and later to an ice cream café.
At 3pm we make our way to the airport. Even though we are stuck a bit in a traffic jam, we are much too early. The flight has been pushed back to 10:15pm and is due to land in Cartagena [↗] at around 11:30pm. I will hardly get to bed before 1am.
The majority of our group spends the time until boarding in the nice bar after the duty free area with draught beer and snacks.
