Last updated on .
After a quick visit to Magangué, we headed north to the small town of Yatí, which is located along the Magdalena River in Colombia. This is where we would take the car ferry across the river on our way to Mompox.
The Ferry
For hundreds of years, the only way to get from Cartagena to Mompox was by crossing the Magdalena River on a ferry. We would be following in the footsteps of countless people before us, but it’s a tradition that’s running out of time.
With the construction of two bridges over the Magdalena River nearly complete, the ferries will dwindle in importance. Why take a 45 minute ride on a barge across the river when you can pay a toll and cross in a few minutes? In any case, we would have preferred to cross over the bridges, but we were excited for the opportunity to cross the river the traditional way. (Note: The bridges opened to traffic in March 2020.)
Loading
We pulled up to the dock at just after 1pm, when the last ferry of the day was supposed to be leaving. An attendant told us to sit back, relax, and have a snack because it would be about another half hour before we’d have to load the car onto the ferry. We took a seat at a small restaurant and waited.
Soon after, a couple of trucks began backing up onto the ferry, taking their place at the rear. Marisol asked if there had ever been any accidents because of too much weight, and the attendant shrugged his shoulders as if to say “don’t worry”.
The attendant asked me to start up my car. He would allow us to be the first private vehicle to drive onto the ferry, for a tip of course. I backed up onto the ferry, following his directions, and positioned the car almost touching the railing along the side.
Cruising
We waited a few minutes, watching the other vehicles drive onto the ferry, and admiring the views back towards Magangué. After the last vehicles and a few motorcycles piled on with us, the ferry started to back up from the dock and turn downriver.
It made its way down the Magdalena, with another ferry passing in the other direction. We then got a glimpse of the bridges that would most likely put an end to the ferries, although the attendant had a more positive outlook. He believed the ferries would stick around for the sake of tradition, albeit on a much less frequent schedule.
Unloading
The ferry turned and left the Magdalena behind, entering the much narrower Chicagua River. As the 45 minute ride came to an end, we approached the dock at La Bodega. The men laid down some planks and shoveled some dirt to make it easier for vehicles to exit. We were the second vehicle off the ferry, and continued for another hour or so down the road to Mompox.
