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Ciénaga de la Caimanera is a huge mangrove system surrounding a large coastal lagoon near Coveñas, Colombia. It’s a popular place to take tours.
Tours
We booked a tour with a local guide through our hotel in Coveñas. It costs COP$40,000 per person (as of February 2024) for a full tour including entrance to the aquarium, and lasted about two hours. There are shorter tours to a few tunnels through the mangroves or to the lagoon in the center as well. Each tour has a different price. The prices in the photo below are from June 2019.
Pickup
Our guide met us at 8am at the hotel and took us to the entrance to the ciénaga by public bus. He then walked us down to an area full of canoes and loaded us onto one of them.
From there, we paddled down a wide canal surrounded by mangroves on both sides. We were able to spot several birds along the way.
Tunnels
We then turned into a narrow tunnel system through the mangroves in which we would spend the next half hour. The guide took us through four different tunnels in all, telling us stories about growing up around the Ciénaga de la Caimanera and how it was an important place for locals.
The first tunnel we entered was the Tunnel of Love (Túnel del Amor). It may sound romantic, but there’s a grim story behind the name. Apparently, locals found the bodies of a couple in the tunnel. They died in the act of making love.
Next, we went through the Heron Tunnel (Túnel del Garzal), which is named for the herons that live and feed in the mangroves. A sign listed the four types of herons found there. We saw a few herons during the tour, but not in the tunnels.
The third tunnel was the Crab Tunnel (Túnel del Cangrejal), named for the thousands of small crabs that live in the mangroves. You can see them climbing up and down the roots as you make your way through the tunnels.
The fourth and final tunnel was the Conquistador Tunnel (Túnel del Conquistador). To be honest, it looked like all the rest of the tunnels.
Caimans
The Ciénaga de la Caimanera is named for the caimans that once thrived there. Our guide told us most were killed off for their meat and skin, and very few remain. It’s rare nowadays to spot one, but he said they can be found in more remote areas of the mangroves.
Lagoon
After cruising through the tunnels, we came to an opening and entered the lagoon. It’s a huge lake that can get quite deep in parts.
In the northern part of the lagoon is the Floating House (Casa Flotante), where visitors can stop and buy souvenirs, snacks, and drinks. We rested there for a few minutes and continued on our way.
Aquarium
Our final stop was at an aquarium, where we were greeted by a friendly raccoon at the entrance to the path. We followed a short dirt path to a place where rescued animals are rehabilitated before being released into the wild once again.
Animals in the aquarium include caimans and turtles. Most of them were confiscated by police from animal traffickers or locals who kept them as pets illegally in their homes.
A larger tank contains tarpons as well as sea turtles.
The End
When we finished at the aquarium, our guide took us back to the entrance and hailed down a couple mototaxis to get us back to our hotel. It was a short by very enjoyable tour through a beautiful ecosystem.
