Sports, recreation and physical activity cluster
Pedaling through Cundinamarca
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Sports, recreation and physical activity cluster
Sports, recreation and physical activity
Sports, recreation and physical activity
Chingaza Route
La Calera – Parque Chingaza
Level of complexity: ◉◉◉◎◎
This route travels through some of the region's most striking landscapes, including high-altitude cloud forests and the endangered páramos that provide 70% of Bogotá's water supply. It is a journey into the bowels of the country's most important water factory, culminating in the beautiful Chingaza National Park, in a high mountain paramo more than 3,000 meters above sea level, which exists only in East Africa, Central America and South America.
With 93% of the route unpaved, this 51.5-kilometer route is ideal for mountain bikes, preferably. It starts in the main park of La Calera and ends at the entrance to the Chingaza National Natural Park, on a road that intersperses dirt and gravel roads with an occasional stretch of pavement. Over the course of the journey a multi-layered story unfolds that, again, has its origins in the ancient traditions of the indigenous Muisca people who once inhabited the area. It is said that the name La Calera originates from the limestone that the Muisca used to build their houses centuries ago. This practice was later inherited by the peasants and then became the engine of an industry that extracted tons of sediment for the manufacture of cement and quickly built the emporium of the cement factory La Siberia, where the first cement factory in the country, Cementos Samper, operated, inaugurated in 1933 and closed in 1998 due to the economic recession of the time. Many say that paranormal phenomena occur in the rubble of the old church and the dozens of abandoned houses and eaten away by dust, the truth is that this point has become one of the references for cyclists coming from La Calera because it is there where the cyclists turn left onto the Santa Elena-Chingaza road, to begin the ascent to the Chingaza National Natural Park. There are approximately 15 kilometers of constant climbing between the ruins and the sign that welcomes the Park. This stretch has some double-digit ramps at the beginning, more exactly on kilometers 5 and 6.5. Then come a couple of curves between 3 and 5% of inclination that will allow to recover some strength for what will be the 9 kilometers of ascent to the Paramo de Chingaza, whose maximum slope is 14.5% of inclination. After reaching the maximum altitude point (3,600 m/snm), huge red rocks will appear announcing the arrival to the sector known as Piedras Gordas, to later, after a descent of almost 2 kilometers, connect with the Administrative Center of the Park, where the entrance of tourists is controlled.

Please note that to visit the trails it is necessary to make a reservation at least three days in advance through the website https://www.parquesnacionales.gov.co/ and that it is mandatory to hire the services of a tour guide or environmental interpreter endorsed by the Park, either through the Community Ecotourism Corporation Corpochingaza or external operators such as Tingua Hidden Journeys, which also offers bicycle rental services. The return leg to La Calera is another 25 kilometers more, over predominantly downhill terrain and a single point at kilometer 41, which includes a small 10% incline. Arriving at La Calera, a good meal is just the thing. You choose whether you want a traditional picada accompanied by a good curd arepa in the market square; or if you prefer a country restaurant that allows you to stay in touch with nature. In that case, El Carnero Restaurant, at kilometer 6 on the La Calera - Bogotá road, offers a wide variety of cuts for meat lovers, as well as various desserts and many other delicacies to complement your lunch. Likewise, the Balcón de Teusacá, at kilometer 9 of the same road, is a very good option that offers from traditional soups and seafood to barbecue.
Flying goal:
Just 11 kilometers from La Calera is the Hummingbird Observatory, a place that will allow you to have direct contact with iconic birds of Colombia, especially hummingbirds, and learn about the more than 15 species that inhabit this Andean mountain. The place also offers lodging services and is open from Tuesday to Saturday, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Another great destination is the Cerro de la Pita, a place 10 minutes from the town center in the villages of La Toma, San José and San Rafael, from where you can observe the municipality of La Calera and the city of Bogotá, while enjoying nature at an altitude of over 3,000 m/snm. It is also one of the scenarios for paragliding in the municipality and the perfect opportunity to live the experience of flying over the beautiful San Rafael reservoir and the beautiful landscape of the Savannah.