When my boyfriend and I were traveling around Colombia together we typically wouldn’t plan too far in advance on where we were going. We met people along the way and adjusted our travel plans based on what they recommended. That’s how we ended up in Punta Gallinas - the most northern part of South America. We heard from multiple people that it was beautiful and worth going to. We couldn’t find much information online but decided to wing it and make our way up there.
We took a bus headed for Venezuela and got off just before the boarder crossing at a stop called Cuatro Vias. We caught a collectivo - a shared taxi (which basically means any Colombian with a car) and made our way to Cabo de la Vela.
In this part of Colombia, the desert blurs into the ocean and after a two hour bumpy ride on a dirt road we finally made it to the coast. The wind was strong and the water was the most brilliant shade of turquoise I had ever seen.
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| The turquoise water in Cabo de la Vela |
We settled into our hostel, grabbed a few Polars (Venezuelan beer) and relaxed on the beach. As it got later in the afternoon some local guys came out to take advantage of the strong wind and kite surf. Besides a few crazy tourists, they were the only people brave enough to enter the jellyfish infested water.
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Beached jellyfish |
We spent the evening watching them rip through the water and soar dozens of feet into the sky. Besides the kite surfing, one of the best parts of Cabo de la Vela is the abundance of fresh seafood - especially lobster. That night we enjoyed two butter soaked lobster tails each for under $15 a plate.
On our third morning in Cabo de la Vela, we woke up before dawn to begin our tour to Punta Gallinas. We were joined by a Canadian couple and a Colombian from Bogota. We drove for hours through the desert on the bumpiest dirt road I’ve ever been on to a bay where two teenage Wayuu girls met us. They took us across the bay to the hospedaje where we were staying the night.
After a quick breakfast we continued our tour to the most northern tip of the continent.
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| The most northern point |
The best part of the tour was visiting the sand dunes. It was basically a massive slide into the ocean. We spent several hours running down the dunes, playing in the water and walking along the beach.
We stopped at a few more scenic spots on our way back to the hospedaje, then cleaned up and watched the sunset. We spent the evening laughing, drinking Cherreche (basically the Wayuu version of moonshine) and getting to know the Wayuu people who ran the hospedaje where we were staying.
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| The crew |
The next morning we woke up in our hammocks, heads spinning a little from the night before. We said a sad goodbye to our new friends and made our way back to civilization.
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