Climbing in Colombia: Some Highlights

Here are some photo highlights from the climbing in December. The first week we spent in Suesca, just north of Bogota:

Danny & Freddy at the 3rd belay ledge

Danny on Cada Cada 5.10+

Scoping the scene

Catching some airtime

Freddy on Cada Cada

Clipping on some overhung traverse

Crux of Betty Blue 5.10+

Danny working on his iron cross

Trango: The lion dog, one of our adopted pets in Suesca

Doña Maria. Our favorite Colombian restaurant.

After Suesca we made a hainus 7 bus 2 day connect to Mesa De Los Santos. We spent a week climbing the canyon crag and exploring the surrounding area called La Mojarra:

Desert climbing

Danny going for the clip and scoping the impeding roof

Sebastian on the crux of La Vaca Loca 5.11a

Sebastian cruising

Danny with the clip. La Vaca Loca 5.11a

Roof to crimpers. Stoked.

Cruising

Tabacco drying hut in the bottom of the canyon

The cascada

Agriculture in the bottom of the canyon

From Mesa De Los Santos we took quite possibly the worst bus ride I have ever had. 9 hours on a dirt road winding up a mountain towards the Venezuelan border. Got stranded at 4am in a grimy town with no idea what was happening.. ended up catching another bus at 5am further south and then finally another at 7am direct to El Cocuy. One of the most scenic places I have ever been. Most definitely worth all of the effort, freezing cold temps, uncooked rice and lentils, lack of gear, semi frost bitten toes, thrashed hands and general lack of oxygen. There is plenty of video footage to edit but photos will have to do for now:

Alejandro and Jenny. First basecamp was pitched at their farm

Danny aclimitizing and making friends with the locals

Native cactus. The leaves can be used for cleaning purposes as well as brewing stoke tea.

Taking in the landscape

Geology at its finest

Approach to second basecamp

Morning light

Pack horses

Paso Conejo aprox. 14,500ft

Gloving out. Making stoke tea

Basecamp 2 in the bottom left of the frame. Pulpito Diablo, the rock monolith on the left and Pan de Azucar the snowcapped peak on the right. Our two objectives.

At the base of the Normal Route of Pulpito Diablo. 2 pitches 5.9

Pulpito in its glory

On the Summit. 16,500ft

Staring into the abyss

Nice weather for the descent

On the glacier looking up towards Pan De Azucar

Topped out. Stoked is an understatement. 16,700ft

Descending to the Laguna for a “rest” day

Danny for the cover of Backpacker magazine

Taking in the sights on the glacial morraine

The lago and cascada

Miguel. Alejandro´s brother. Quite the gent.

Laguna La Plaza. El Cocuy Colombia. 800 total visitors to this park last year.