While trying to work out how to loop around Bolivia to get back into Peru, including visiting Salar de Uyuni (a bit of ground covered in salt) that Rebecca was keen on seeing, we struck on the idea of popping down to Toro Toro National Park; exploring caverns, canyons and, hold your breath, DINOSAURS! Or at least their footprints.
Decision made, we researched how to get there and what to expect. A new road had been built connecting La Paz to Cochabamba in 2022, replacing the knackered old bumpy route that everyone online had been bemoaning; a smug 1-0 to us!
We also discovered that to get into the park we needed to purchase an entry ticket, once you have your ticket you then need to hire a guide, or you cannot enter the park. We were reliably informed that the guides only speak Spanish or Quechua, and after almost 4 months of travelling, our Spanish is still truly awful (Admin – true enough) and I can’t even pronounce that second word, think it might be “ketchup”, but don’t quote me. Duly scuppered! A miserable 1-1!
So, the race began to find a tour company that could provide an English speaking guide that could accompany a Spanish/Quechua speaking guide; confused yet?!
We stumbled upon (tripped over) El Mundo Verde Travel (The Green World Travel), a company run by Remy van den Berg, who speaks Dutch, Spanish, English and a little German. Perfect! A winning 2-1!
Having booked Remy – who’s royalties must have dried up since his Lady in Red days (Admin – that’s Chris de Burgh!) – we travelled to Cochabamba using another ‘lovely’ bus company and, having experienced yet another walking tour there, we sat back and relaxed, waiting for our 3 day/2 night Toro Toro adventure to begin.
Day 1
We were picked up from our hostel around 8am by Remy in his 4×4 and journeyed south towards Toro Toro. Our first, unexpected, stop was Tarata, the capital of the Esteban Arze province and the birth place of the 15th president of Bolivia Mariano Melgarejo; it seems most presidents back then ascend to power by using a Coup d’état, where they bought these from I’m not sure, I haven’t seen any for sale?
What followed was an extremely interesting history and cultural lesson around the Tarata town; we probably learnt more about Latin America with Remy than all the walking tours we have taken put together!
After a visit to a local restaurant – which again wasn’t on the itinerary, but Remy hadn’t had breakfast – and a taste of Chicha while there (a drink made from maize, and extremely popular in Bolivia, especially the fermented versions), we headed for Toro Toro town and our accommodation for the next few days, receiving geology lessons along the way that tallied with the stunning scenery.
Our ‘digs’ for the next couple of days where the Umajalanta Ecolodges, just a few incredibly bumpy minutes outside the town.
Ok, so enough of the fluff, that afternoon we explored Umajalanta Cave, the deepest cave in Bolivia. Rebecca and I were a little apprehensive since neither of us particularly like confined spaces, but this was a unique opportunity not to whimper out of.
The reason Remy took this ‘romantic’ photograph is that it’s the image present on the 10 Boliviano bank note.
The caving was really great fun and not something you’d likely be able to do in the UK. Remy gave us the option of taking the regular or ‘alternative’ route out. Since we’ve, quite wisely so, learnt to mistrust guides, we opted for the regular, which was still a particularly tough hike out.
We also saw some blind fish in the pools down there, we didn’t get to photograph them, but here is an image to give you a flavour of what they looked like:
Day 2 – Rex and the gang
After the usual breakfast of food, our day continued with a visit to the Carrera’s Pampas ( ‘Pampas’ is a large grass covered area of lowland in South America). It contains what is considered the largest concentration of Toy Story characters in the world! (Admin – think his confusion here is between real dinosaurs and fictional cartoon characters). I must admit I was a little sceptical about this bold claim, but I was proved well and truly wrong!
What really brought all this to life was that Remy’s passion for dinosaurs – and these footprints in particular – was incredibly infectious. Sadly there is next to no funding available to carry out further excavations in the area; the government in Bolivia just isn’t interested. Remy feels there would be some truly astonishing finds here, the area already holds 7 world records in Paleontology. To date they have uncovered around 15,000 footprints, and this appears to be the tip of the iceberg.
Direction change for the afternoon, a hike around Ciudad Itas, which has some amazing rock formations, luckily the route was relatively easy going, which was just as well as the 4,000m altitude had me panting anyway.
Day 3
Our final day involved a visit to a canyon and waterfall. The hike began with a trip down a dried riverbed where we were treated to the largest footprints found in the area, made by a Titanosaurus that can growing up to 36m long.
A short but nevertheless stunning hike down the riverbed and the canyon came into view, and how gobsmacked we were.
The End…
(Admin – looks like Richard has run out of steam for this blog! Anyway, what followed was a walk down to the bottom of said canyon, being treated to soaring condors all the way. And at the bottom they found a lush oasis and series of pools that allowed for a refreshing dip, for at least one of the duo, before hiking back out again to finish the tour and head back to Cochabamba. They both agree that this trip was one of the highlights of the whole adventure so far).
Now it’s The End!
Sloth Journeys 