CityView Magazine - Fayetteville, NC
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1498193
30 May 2023 On the trail In total, we endured four grueling days of steep trails, tropical heat, biting insects and tired feet. But the experience was well worth it. e other particulars of the tour — the ride to the trailhead, prepared meals, comfortable beds, showers, swimming in the river, and, especially, the patience and forbearance of our guides — more than canceled out the rougher parts. Starting about 20 years ago, the local and national governments in Colombia, along with the communities of the area, implemented a plan to promote ecotourism. Today, organized cooperatives offer package tours that include accommodations, food, transportation and guides. e indigenous families of the area are actively involved in the program, opening their houses to host and cook for passing travelers. eir efforts serve as a model for sustainable ecotourism, and it felt good to be a part of the whole enterprise. You can pay extra for a mule to carry your pack. Personally, I had enough to deal with just putting one foot in front of the other on some of the steeper stretches, and there's no way I could have made the hike with anything heavier than a daypack. Even though we were the lightest, we were also, shall we say, the most seasoned of the hikers in the group, such that we (OK, me) were usually bringing up the rear. In hindsight, I probably should have done a bit more physical conditioning. But in fact, there is very little to do to prepare oneself for hours of hoofing it up and down the steep, sustained and muddy inclines of the jungle trail to Teyuna. e first day of the tour, we met our party of about a dozen just off the coastal highway and clambered into 4-wheel-drive trucks to make our way up the mountain. Our group was a lively bunch of younger backpacker- types, mostly Spanish and French but also Germans, Dutch and a Belgian. Piling out of the trucks at a small village about 500 feet up the mountain, we readied to bid civilization goodbye. Above, Scott Parker is on the trail to the Lost City of Teyuna. Photo by Liliana Parker Right, chartered panga boats are moored on the beach in Tayrona National Natural Park, Colombia. Photo by Liliana Parker