After a night of heavy rain, the only road in and out of the village of Columbia collapsed in a landslide. Columbia is just outside of the town I live in – Belén de Umbría. This small agricultural community will be without road access for at least six months. Thankfully, nobody was hurt and no cars or motorcycles were traveling on the road as it collapsed.
Not too far outside Pereira is a great park for both kids and adults. Parque Consotá is a huge recreational area with sports fields, several swimming pools, a spa, nature trails, fishing ponds, paddle boats, a small zoo, restaurants, and a hotel. We took Marisol’s 6 year old nephew, David, to enjoy the park for a day.
If you’re in Guática and feeling adventurous, you can head to the small village of Santa Ana. It’s located down the road from Guática, well off the beaten path. It’s also part of the UNESCO World Heritage listed Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia.
Covering 519 km² of area of Colombia’s western Andes Mountains is Tatamá National Park (Parque Nacional Natural Tatamá). This lesser-known park is spread out over the departments of Risaralda, Chocó, and Valle del Cauca and is one of the more inaccessible national parks in the country.
The small town of Pueblo Rico, located about three hours from Pereira, has almost nothing to offer. I visited on a short trip with my girlfriend Marisol and spent about an hour there.
Quinchía is a town in the coffee region of Colombia and part of the UNESCO World Heritage listed Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia. It has been described as one of the more beautiful towns in the Coffee Region, and has a large indigenous population.
Nothing really stands out about the town of Guática except for its dramatic setting among green mountains of the Colombian Coffee Region.
La Virginia is a hot town in Colombia’s Coffee Region. There’s really no reason for anyone to stop there. It’s basically a town conveniently located on a crossroads to many major cities.