LOST in the ANDES | Solo Hiking 200 km in Bolivia’s Cordillera Real (Part 1)

No guide, just me and my backpack on one of the hardest treks in South America.

In June 2022, I spent 11 days solo hiking through the Cordillera Real, a 200 mile (300 km) subrange of the Bolivian Andes. Reaching nearly 17,000 feet (5500 m) in altitude, a faint to nonexistent trail, and minimal resupply, I caution against this hike for the average person. But for the experienced hiker with good navigation and first aid skills, this trek may offer a unique cultural experience and a potentially harrowing adventure in one of the most remote and beautiful parts of the Andes mountain range.

#travelvlog #bolivia #southamerica #hiking

00:00 Intro
01:15 Cohoni
04:20 Campamento Puente Roto
12:00 Calchani
15:10 Palca
18:15 Laguna Chuxna Quta
21:30 Chiyar Qullu Pass
24:25 Palcoma
25:35 Laguna Hampaturi
27:40 Cruce la Cumbre (Laguna Estrellani)
31:00 Hotel Europa, La Paz

Some advice for those wishing to attempt it:

1. WHEN TO GO: The best time to go is during their dry season, which is realistically May - August. Unfortunately, this is also their winter, and temperatures can drop well below freezing at night. I didn't bring a thermometer, but I'd estimate nighttime temps were in the low 20's F (below -4 C).

2. ACCLIMATIZATION: Spend at least 3 or 4 nights acclimatizing in La Paz (~12,000 ft / 4000 m) before getting on the trail. I suffered bad headaches during the first few nights on the trail.

3. NAVIGATION: There is no maintained trail. I used Gaia to plan my routes and navigate in the field. However, some of these trails faded in and out of existence and occasionally dead-ended into nothing (see 27:40 on). I suspect many of these trails are simply llama and herder trails that are picked up by satellite imagery. Following roads was by far the easiest and quickest way to make progress; however, the landscape is so dynamic due to the soft soil and washouts during the rainy season that even roads are not 100% reliable. I walked over several deep washouts that would have forced even a motorcycle to turn around.

4. RESUPPLY: Between Cohoni and Cruce la Cumbre, only Palca offers a minimal resupply (pasta, rice, and maybe some dried soups), but otherwise the only thing you'll be able to buy along the first half of the trek is candy, chips, and soda. If you have a strong stomach, stop for a hot lunch in Palca (I would avoid anything uncooked, just to be safe). At the midpoint of the trek, you'll have to take a taxi or hitchhike back into La Paz and then take a taxi or tour bus back out to the Huayna Potosí basecamp. As I discovered, there is no "through" trail, so there's no point in having a resupply box delivered to a refuge at Huayna Potosí basecamp. Just leave your resupply box at the hotel where you plan to stay that night in La Paz. For the second half of the trek, there is no resupply unless you want to drop down out of the mountains along the gravel roads into the small towns.

5. ACCOMODATIONS: For the first half of the trek, only Palca has accommodations (though, I didn't try any); the smaller towns have nothing to speak of as far as I could tell, so you'll have to bring a tent. For the second half of the trek, you can stay in a refuge at Huayna Potosí basecamp, and then Tuni offers a small ecolodge with very basic accommodations. Beyond that, it's tenting all the way to Sorata.