La Catedral - Downhill

Downhill this trail is really hard. Uphill, you better be an Olympian. You’ll go down steep hills (some aided by ropes), through thick foliage, slide down slippery pine straw, eventually hike in and along the stream as the trail kind of comes and goes as it pleases. Be ready to get wet, muddy, dirty, sweaty and in my case even a drop or two of blood. (Hint: Don’t grab the spiny trees for balance.)

However, it was AWESOME! One of the best things I’ve ever done. Truly it was an amazing trek through a genuine Colombian jungle.

I started at La Catedral, which was the house arrest “prison” of drug kingpin Pablo Escobar. The Colombian government wanted to show the world they were cracking down on the drug trade so they sentenced Escobar to house arrest in his mountainside home. They even put up guard towers to watch him (pictured), but surrounded by staff, lieutenants and guests Escobar comfortably continued his business while “under arrest.”

The other buildings of the complex have since been turned into a nursing home, and that’s where I started my almost entirely downhill hike. (And thank goodness it was downhill, because you’d have to be an Olympic athlete to do this hike uphill.)

The first part was through a mix of forest and jungle, leading up to a view of Salto de Angel waterfall. Some points on the trail were so steep they had attached knotted ropes to help you lower yourself down.

I followed the stream to reach the base of Chorro de Los Campanas, a smaller waterfall that you see in the first picture. I drew blood on the way down to the falls when I grabbed a tree on the steep incline, but didn’t see the 4-inch spines sticking out form the trunk. Ouch.

Once there, the trail kind of wanders along and (mostly) in the river so I spent the next 45 minutes barefoot, either creeping my way along the bank or picking my way through the rocks and rapids in the stream. (I only fell once).

I finally reached the bridge and followed the road back to the mountainside village of Arenales. I bought a delicious fresh squeezed orange juice and waited for the bus back to Medellin. It was exhausting and challenging but totally worth it!

Here’s where I first found this hike: https://theunconventionalroute.com/catedral-arenales-waterfall-hike/