Trekking Bolivia

We will collect you in the morning, for your tour of the City.  We will visit the most important parts of the city including The San Francisco church, the Witches’ Market and a number of museums before we continue to the Plaza Murillo, where the Legislative and Governmental Palaces are located.  We will visit the Witch’s Market where the necessary items can be purchased for religious, Andean ceremonies and where you can listen to a story or two about local religious beliefs and folklore. We will then head to the outskirts of the city and will pass through some residential areas, heading towards the unique landscape of the Valley of the Moon, an area of impressive, natural, geological rock formations. We will then head back to our hotel for the evening.

Today we will head to the lakeside town of Copacabana on the shores of Titicaca. We will stop off briefly at the village of Huatajata, where we will visit a museum dedicated to the native reed boats. Later, we cross the Tiquina stretch at the narrowest part of the great lake. This divides the Greater and the Lesser Lakes which together form the ‘Magical Lake of Titicaca’. We will continue by road enjoying the surrounding landscape until we arrive in the town of Copacabana, where you can see the ancient mysticism of both colonial and pre-colonial civilisations. As we enter Copacabana, there are distinct types of archaeological remains, such as Intinkala, El Asiento and the Horcadel Inca. We will also visit the towns church and the rest of this town before taking our boat to the Island of the sun in the afternoon.   

Bright and early, we will hike around the three communities of the Island; Throughout the day we will observe Huacani Bay, Chincana Ruins and the Sacred Rock. We will take the boat back to the mainland before heading back to La Paz City for the evening.

Departure from La Paz will be at 8 a.m. to the village of Tuni, which will be our starting point for the trek. To the Tuni lagoon. After hiking around the shores of the lake, we will climb a pass at an elevation of 4900m, before descending to the beautiful Juri Khota lagoon. This is about a 4 hour hike. From the lake, we have an amazing view of the “Cabeza de Condor”, (Condor’s Head) also known as El Condoriri, at 5648 m elevation. It forms a part of the Condoriri mountain range, with the two adjacent summits, and is said to be shaped in the form of a condor with its wings tucked in beneath it. Here, we will set up camp for the night.

From the Juri Khota lagoon, we will ascend the steep hills to reach The Frozen Lagoon (Laguna Congelada), a stunning, hidden lake at an elevation of 4900, at the foot of Condoriri (5650m). Two glaciers literally drop into its frozen water, giving it its chilly name!  We will then climb the Austria Pass at a massive 5160 m. Before we reach the top, we have the option to climb Austria Peak at 5300 m. with a spectacular view of the Condoriri and of the Cordillera Real range 

We will then start our descent to Chiarkhota lagoon at 4670 m. This is the base camp for the ascent of Condoriri and of Pequeño Alpamayo.

Hiking time: 6h; Elevation gain: 460m

Today we leave the Condoriri behind us. We will pass at the base of the Black Needle, before reaching the Jallayko Pass at 5025 m. We will then climb the Tillipata Pass and cross through the beautiful valley of Jistana and its many lakes. Another downhill stretch will take us to the Wichu Khota lagoon, which will be our campsite for the night, at the foot of María Lloco at a 5522 m.

Hiking time: 7h; Elevation gain: 645m

We will continue our hike amongst the lagoons, to the ancient mine of Santa Fe. A short detour to a small summit above the camp allows us to get a superb view over all the lagoons. We will then climb up to our campsite at4.800 m., which is surrounded by the snow peaks of Imilla Apachita, Maria Lloco and Huayna Potosi standing at a massive 6088 m. high and with some of the best views on the trek. If you are feeling adventurous, we will be able to hike over to the Glacial Lagoon of Huayna Potosi. This spectacular trail, made from an ancient stone canal on the hillside, offers spectacular scenery. 

Grade II/AD - with a specialized mountain guide. 

 After loading up the llamas, we will head for the Milluni pass 5000 m, arriving mid-morning, where we can appreciate the Milluni Valley on the other side. We will head around the Huayna Potosi mountain range until we arrive at the refuge at 4700 m. elevation. From here, we can see the Andes plunging into the Yungas, the green, lush jungle region.

We will then ascend to the “Rocks Camp” base camp at 5100 m. 

Hiking time: 6h; Elevation gain: 600m

The earliest morning of our hike and arguably the most rewarding as we attempt an ascent of the summit. Let’s see how far we get!

After our ascent, we will then head back down to the shelter (approximately 10h total). Our car will be waiting to take us back to the city of La Paz in time for dinner.

 Ascent time: 10h; Elevation gain: 1000m