TATACOA: Desert Challenge | Colombia Overland Adventure

Once again Colombia has pulled out its surprise wild card. This desert reminds us of parts of Southern California, maybe Arizona or even Baja. Yet it has differences. Namely the fact we had to drive 30,000 kms to South America to get here!

We’ve just avoided a huge rainstorm from yesterday. It washed away any signs of vehicle presence, and the sand has a hard but damp surface. It’s crucial that we stay on top of that compact layer, a recovery out here would not be easy. These Cacti may be able to withstand the harsh desert climate, but they won’t stand up to the Chinook on the end of a winch line.

This may be one of the most known and visited places on our Colombian tour, but that’s for good reason! We’ll try and take an off-road route to reach the Tatacoa, and from there drive the constellation loop. There’s an observatory out here, and apparently the star gazing is astronomical.. Get it.

We weave through the desert with eyes wide open. This is radically different than any terrain we’ve encountered in Colombia. It’s beautiful.

The looming cloud cover reminds us that flash floods can occur in an instant, and raise water levels by up to [2 meters in less than 20 minutes]. That amount of water can easily wash our truck away to become another desert artifact.

There’s nothing inherently challenging about this terrain. The risk is the alone factor, nothing to winch from, and a part from motorcycles we’ve seen no other vehicles. Burying our tire in the sand to use as an anchor is a last resort option, but certainly not ideal, nor guaranteed.

We’ve calculated all the risks, thought thoroughly about any consequences, and decided we’re here to have fun, test the limits of ourselves and our truck and write a memorable story.

Thankfully this one won’t be one of a vehicle recovery.

Wide open spaces like this come with a parallel sense of freedom. Trails like this are a joy to drive, and a well earned break from the insane elevation gain and loss on the mountain routes we’ve come accustomed to navigating.

A view like this, to us, is a perfect depiction of the microcosm vs macrocosm of the natural world and the universe. How a galaxy can look like a human iris, how this erosion can look like the capillaries in our fingers, and this riverbed like a blooming tree. If you’re awake and paying attention, things like this make you feel like you are a part of the world around you. That you’re IN there world, not ON it.

And just as our philosophical thoughts come full circle, we’re greeted with the surprise encounter from other travellers we’ve been following online.

After spending months wearing a layer of sweat on our skin as we tango’d with humidity, in a strange way it felt good to re-unite, and dance with the desert.

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