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Not too far outside of Bogotá is Tequendama Falls (Salto del Tequendama). It’s a popular tourist attraction and an important part of Muisca mythology.
Muisca Legend
According to the indigenous Muisca people, the waterfall was created during a major flood that covered the Bogotá savanna. The god Bochica, the founder of their civilization, created the falls by using his staff to break the rock and release the water.
The Falls
We visited the falls on a weekend and were shocked by the number of cars parked along the road. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay more than a few minutes because of the traffic and there were no safe places to park the car. We got a 30 second look at the falls and left. We couldn’t really see anything anyway because of the mist coming from the falls.
Sadly, the waterfall is considered to be the most polluted waterfall in the world. The Bogotá River, which feeds the falls, contains untreated waste from the city.
Museum
At a spot overlooking the falls, there’s a historic hotel that has been turned into a museum, the Tequendama Falls House Museum (Casa Museo del Salto del Tequendama). Built as a mansion in 1923, the building was converted into a hotel in 1928. It was abandoned in the 1990s and opened as a museum in 2013. We couldn’t visit because of the parking situation.
