Colombia has two southern land borders with Ecuador. Mark, Maya, and I drove to the western one via a detour called El Trampolin de La Muerte (Trampoline of Death road). Why? Mainly because we really wanted to visit Santuario de Las Lajas near the other border in Southwest Colombia. We’d seen photos of this impressive church straddling a deep ravine; an image straight out of a fairytale.
Mark, Liesbet, and Maya in front of Santuario de Las Lajas
After passing through the Mocoa road block, we could have easily continued to the eastern border and leave the country. We briefly considered it, when being stuck at a landslide before even entering the Trampoline. But that one cleared up in “no time,” so we could stick to our initial plan.
El Puerto
On the other side of the Trampoline of Death, we decided to stop for two nights in El Puerto. Also called “Little Switzerland” or “The Venice of Colombia,” it is the lakeside neighborhood of the town El Encano. A blog about this destination on our friends Susan and John’s site Latitude Adjustment encouraged me to add it to our itinerary.
(As always, click on or hover over photos in galleries to read their captions.)
Because of all the rain, however, the canals were a deep brown, and because of it being a long weekend, the hamlet was incredibly busy. While located at Laguna de La Cocha, good public lake access or views were missing in El Puerto. We enjoyed our strolls with Maya, the colors and cuteness of the buildings, and the setting, but it felt weird to be in a place solely geared towards tourism. Where were the panaderias (bakeries)? Or the produce stalls? Or the friendly locals living in typical Colombian pueblos?
Pasto
Susan and John also raved about Pasto, so we made sure to stop. It’s a big city and iOverlander, our go-to camping app. mentioned two spots where we could potentially park and spend the night. We arrived on a bank holiday (May 1st), which was good and bad. We found an elusive parking spot alongside the attractive (dog)park because it wasn’t a workday, but everything was closed, so no “last” Colombian pastry, lunch, or dinner out for us. Our second option to camp, on an open parking lot by a mall, was non-existent. We made sure to update the app.
The three of us spent the afternoon exploring Pasto on foot, walking by a lot of churches, squares, and green spaces, and taking in the holiday scene at the park. Our one night was very loud with honking cars, backfiring motorcycles, blaring music at 4am, followed by police sirens, and aerobic classes with thumping music at 6am. Pasto is a city after all.
The following morning, we had a bunch of errands to run on the way to Ipiales. We managed to buy good motor oil at a garage and had the oil of our truck changed for free (included when you purchase the oil there). Then, we topped off our propane tank, since this is easier and cheaper in Colombia than south of the border. And, while we were at it, I asked Mark to pull over at a weigh station along the toll highway to finally figure out how much Thirsty Bella weighs. It took some convincing in my best Spanish, but the employee eventually agreed to give us a read out.
Santuario de Las Lajas
To offset the rhythm and noise of bustling Pasto, we found refuge at the peaceful parking lot of the teleférico (cable car) of Las Lajas, near the border city Ipiales. By the time we were settled and finished with some administrative work, it was almost 5pm. We took Maya for a walk to the viewpoint over the ravine for a first glimpse of the basilica. Then, we had one of the quietest nights in Colombia!
But first, my communications with a Belgian overland couple lead to them pulling into our parking lot as well, around 8pm. They had driven in the dark to get here after a challenging day, so we briefly met and retreated into our respective campers for the night. It was still raining a lot and quite chilly.
Both truck campers at the quiet parking lot of Las Lajas
On our only full day near Santuario de Las Lajas, we woke up with more rain and lots of fog, which kept us indoors. In the afternoon, we lucked out with better weather and convinced the Belgians, Saartje and Tim, to hang out with us for the rest of the day. They were finishing up their South American adventure, flying out from Ipiales two days later.
Our new friends joined us to the Las Lajas basilica and we had a fun afternoon and evening together. Las Lajas Sanctuary is renowned for its stunning architecture, for a series of legends involving the appearance of the Holy Virgin Mary, and for a mysterious mural of unknown origin. It sits on a 50-meter(130-foot) high bridge built over the Guaitara river, less than 11 km (7 miles) from the Ecuadoran border. The neo-Gothic church was erected by worshipers between 1916 and 1953, to replace a shrine first built in the middle of the 18th century.
We all walked down into the ravine to visit the church and explore the grounds and river trail (at an altitude of around 9,000ft/2,700m), while chatting nonstop. It was so nice to have company, talk to kindred spirits, and practice my native language, Flemish. It’s the first time that we met Belgians from my home province, so that made it even more special.
The five of us took the cable car back to the parking lot, where Mark needed to carefully drain some of the motor oil (the mechanic had overfilled it) for over an hour, making sure nothing spilled. As the sun set, we all had drinks and dinner together, concluding our time in this country on a very positive note. The following day, after six months of Colombian exploits, our trio crossed into Ecuador with Thirsty Bella.
Curious about a previous ten-year chapter in our nomadic lives, which includes eight years aboard a 35-foot sailboat in the tropics with dogs, check out my compelling, inspiring, and refreshingly honest travel memoir:
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June 9, 2023 at 07:29
The Sanctuary is just beautiful. I wouldn’t have missed it either.
June 11, 2023 at 15:28
Thanks, Alex. It was a special place.
June 9, 2023 at 07:42
The basilica is stunning, and how fun to meet people from your home province! Looking forward to Ecuador.
June 11, 2023 at 15:29
I finally wrapped up my Colombia blogs! There is more to write about, but that will have to wait. Another expense report (for May) is overdue! Thanks for your continued interest in our adventures, Margie!
June 9, 2023 at 08:06
Thank you for the opportunity to join you on this incredible adventure.See amazing architecture, & meet some of your old & new friends. And of course great photos of nature, The family & Thirsty Bella. Cheers!
June 11, 2023 at 15:31
Hi Lynn,
You are so nice and appreciative. It makes my blogging journey much more fun and worthwhile, for sure! Thank you for following along and leaving kind and encouraging comments.
June 9, 2023 at 08:28
Santuario de Las Lajas is impressive. I’m glad you could enjoy it with new friends.
From previous posts, I get a good sense of the terrain and culture of Colombia. I wonder if I’ll notice a difference in Ecuador. Of course, time and travel will tell. Happy trails and safe travels! 😀
June 11, 2023 at 15:33
Thanks, Marian. We’ve been in Ecuador for over a month now – can you believe it? – and while it feels very different, there are also similarities, especially regarding the terrain. We’ve been driving through the Andes mountains now for many months and the rains have played a big part in it. Luckily, it seems like the dry season is upon us. Soon, I hope to start posting about our Ecuadorian adventures. 🙂
June 9, 2023 at 10:39
Amazing as usual. I love that Maya found new friends. Is she sociable? (Unlike my Lab–which is probably because we don’t go to many dog parks). And how cool that your new friends met up with you so quickly. I can only imagine how many people you’ve met and probably wonder where they are now. You need a nomad registry to keep track of each other.
June 11, 2023 at 15:38
Hi Jacqui,
Maya doesn’t really care about other dogs. She’s indifferent towards them. All she is interested in is food. Well, what resembles food to her. Believe me, most of it is nothing you or I would ever touch! But, she’s okay meeting other dogs. She’s come a long way to tolerating them. It took a lot of training as she was never socialized as a puppy, or even later in life. Every day, we (still) work with our dog.
Surprisingly, we haven’t actually met a lot of other travelers in South America. Locals, yes, but likeminded overlanders have been rare on our path. Three sets in the last three months or so. It’s probably because we rarely stay in established campgrounds.
A registry wouldn’t be a bad idea. Some of those new friends we keep track of; others have moved on. And some of them we hope to – and will – run into again one day.
June 9, 2023 at 11:07
Good stuff, Liesbet! Do you have a long range plan or do you make this up as you go along? I know Ecuador is a tiny country, relative to Colombia. Any other specific places on your Wish List?
June 11, 2023 at 15:43
Hi Pete,
I think knowing us by now, you won’t be surprised when I tell you we are making it up as we go. Ecuador is, indeed, much smaller than Colombia, but we find ourselves going even slower and desiring six months here as well. Image that, being in South America for a year and only having made it two countries deep into the continent, haha.
Our tourist visas in Ecuador are only valid for three months (and Mark just left to the US for 2.5 weeks), so we might consider getting an extension for another three months. Unfortunately, the process is expensive and not straightforward here, unlike in Colombia. We will see what happens.
I think our next countries will be Peru and Bolivia. We hope to always stay the maximum allowed time in these places, as long as they are welcoming and interesting enough. After that, who knows? Either we keep going south to Patagonia or we circle up through Brazil via the Amazon. But we are talking about at least another six months out from now. If we don’t return to Colombia before that… 🙂
June 9, 2023 at 12:22
Did your friends rent their camper?
June 11, 2023 at 15:45
Hi Marie,
No, our new Belgian friends bought this truck camper in Peru. They already have a seller for it and have it currently stored in Ipiales, Colombia, before the new owners pick it up and start their own South American travels. I don’t think it’s possible to rent a camper like that in Colombia/Ecuador.
June 9, 2023 at 15:54
Hi, Liesbet – Stunning post and photos as usual. I look forward to exploring Ecuador with you.
June 11, 2023 at 15:47
Hi Donna,
Ecuador has been treating us well so far. We feel a bit more at ease here than in Colombia based on some experiences, yet bad things happen in this country as well. I’m hoping to start my Ecuador “blog series” soon and plan on keeping those more up to date. 🙂
June 9, 2023 at 22:22
Hi Liesbet, That’s a wonderful end of your time in Colombia, at a beautiful place and with new Belgian friends from your home province.
June 11, 2023 at 15:48
Hi Natalie,
I’ve been thinking about you here in Ecuador, when discovering – and soaking in – more hot springs. The volcanic scenery is pretty and interesting, but I just wish that the sun could come – and stay – out more!
June 10, 2023 at 01:54
The Sanctuary looks so beautiful, the location is just amazing. I have seen it on travel programs and other blogs and would love to visit it. Was it worth it for you?
June 11, 2023 at 15:52
Hi Gilda,
That’s so cool that you were aware of this place and have seen photos/video footage of it. To answer your question: yes, it was definitely worth a visit and I would recommend approaching the site the same way we did: park at (or take a bus to) the cable car parking lot, walk down from there and follow the river trails to really appreciate all the angles of the basilica, definitely have a glimpse inside, and then take the (slow) teleférico ride back up to the parking lot.
I hope you get to visit Las Lajas one day. It should be part of every Colombia itinerary, despite being a bit off the beaten track and only needing one day/half a day to visit.
June 10, 2023 at 12:40
Wow, that cathedral is amazing! What a spectacular setting. The elaborate structure seems so out of place compared to the other buildings in your photos – are there other architectural styles similar to the basilica, or is it truly one of a kind in the area?
June 11, 2023 at 15:55
Hi Diane,
Yes, this structure looks very out of place in South America and Colombia. And the setting is super special as well.
I have not seen anything else like it until recently. The big Neo-Gothic basilica in Ecuador’s capital, Quito, has similar elements to it. I’ve posted photos of that on Facebook, but it will certainly make one of my future blogs and then you can see it for yourself. Of course, I’m not a church – or architecture – expert at all! 🙂
June 10, 2023 at 16:07
That church is amazing, I’m not surprised you wanted to go out of your way to visit it.
June 11, 2023 at 15:56
Hi Anabel,
We are glad to have witnessed this amazing structure, especially since there were a few times we feared we might not make it there. Certainly worth the detour! 🙂
June 10, 2023 at 16:46
Great to go out on a high note! That basilica looks like it belongs in a totally different country – very cool.
June 11, 2023 at 15:58
Right, Lexie? This basilica totally looked out of place, yet that was some of its attraction, of course. We just love the setting and how the structure is built against the rocks and has a bridge spanning a river. Definitely worth the visit, especially during the week. Not sure how madly busy it would get during the weekend/on a Sunday!
June 12, 2023 at 21:07
Wow, such beautiful architecture. And the houses that surround the brown canals are unusual and beautiful too. <3
June 13, 2023 at 12:44
Hi Debby,
Every place we visited has been special in its own way, creating favorites and “ordinaries.” 🙂
June 13, 2023 at 12:20
All of your posts are interesting, but this one had a very special appeal to me. It includes so many different aspects of your travels, and the high notes at the end topped it off perfectly. The fantastic sanctuary which you shared with new friends from your home land was like the bow atop the gift-wrapped country of Columbia! Love it!
June 13, 2023 at 12:46
Hi Gail,
What a wonderful and well-expressed sentiment. It made my heart sing and sounded super true and relatable. Yes, we ended our Colombian adventures on a high note. I’m glad this post resonated with you. Friendship and new encounters are the pulse of our lifestyle and our travels, as you know – and as both of us are proof of. Missing you and Jon!!!
June 16, 2023 at 20:18
Thats an impressive oil change place! So many big rigs. So how much does Thirsty Bella weigh? The houses in Rl Puerto seem to have yards and porches. Since I’ve never been to Switzerland i can say if theyvlook Swiss but they certainly don’t look Latin Anerican.
The basilica is anazing! What great pictures. Glad you didn’t miss it.
June 18, 2023 at 22:14
Hi Duwan,
Greg asked that question about Thirsty Bella’s weight as well, haha. Without full tanks of water and diesel, the scale read 5,130kg, which equals around 11,300 pounds. That’s heavy! I’ll leave it at that. 🙂
El Puerto was an interesting place, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to visit it, since it’s mostly geared towards tourism. It does provide some cute and colorful photos, though. And, yes, the basilica was a special structure and architectural feat.
June 17, 2023 at 06:46
What a wonderful way to end the Colombian adventure. It’s hard to believe you’ve been there 6 months, and it must be hard deciding which part was your favourite.
Great that you met up with some Belgium friends too. I’n guessing all you guys track each other so you know who is in the area?
June 18, 2023 at 22:24
Hi Hugh,
You’re right about the difficulty of picking favorites in the countries we visit. Some attractions and sites are so very different from each other that they each are special in their own way. Regarding Colombia, I think what stood our most to us were the cute and colorful pueblos (towns) as that was certainly something we didn’t expect. And, the cheap food out! 🙂
Actually, we don’t stay in touch with many travel friends about their whereabouts to be honest. In the case of the Belgians, we commented on the same post in a South American overlanding Facebook group once and then messaged each other to see how our progress regarding that particular landslide and semi-closed road was going. That’s how we figured out that we were close to each other and managed to meet for the first time!
I think there are currently two sets of people that we hope to meet on the continent at some point and that I’m keeping track of, besides four old friends that will return from North America. So, we keep in touch with those two couples as well and will do extra effort to cross paths again.
June 29, 2023 at 14:51
So happy you made it to Pasto and especially the Santuario. You got some great photos and memories to look back on. And thank you so much to the link to our blog once again. Hows it feel being in Ecuador without Mark? Stay safe and hugs to you and Maya!
June 29, 2023 at 21:14
Hi Susan,
We really enjoyed our visit to the Santuario. We’ve had it on our “list” (POI points in Colombia) since entering the country. Ever since Mark saw the first photo of the church. It lived up to its “expectations.” 🙂
Maya and I just spent 2.5 weeks on the driveway of friends near Ibarra and mostly focused on work. Mark returned two days ago and now we have a few car projects to complete, before hitting the road again.