The Cocora valley is a very popular tourist destination in Colombia. The majority of visitors make day visits from Salento, or come for the extensive camping and hiking opportunities in the valley and the national park. Other common activities are bird watching, mountain biking, horse riding, rafting, scenic flights, and swimming in the rivers. The local restaurants specialize in cooking locally farmed freshwater trout in several ways, mainly baked and served in a variety of sauces with patacones (plantain fritters).
Location
The Cocora valley is located on the upper reaches of the Quindío River, the main river of the namesake department, located at an altitude between 1800 and 2400 meters. The valley is approximately 24 km north-east of the departmental capital Armenia, and accessed via a junction from the Armenia-Pereira highway, running via Boquia to the town of Salento. Vehicles (either private cars or jeep taxis from Salento) can then travel 11 km further on up into the valley as far as "Cocora", a collection of campsites and restaurants - other parts of the valley can only be accessed either by hiking on the numerous trails or on horseback.
The Cocora valley is part of a larger national park, the Los Nevados National Natural Park (Spanish: Parque Nacional Natural de Los Nevados). The park covers an area of 58,000 hectares (580 km2) in total,[1] including the north-eastern part of Quindío.
Overview
The Cocora valley (Spanish: Valle del Cocora) is a valley in the department of Quindío in the country of Colombia. It is located in the Central Cordillera of the Andean mountains. "Cocora" was the name of a Quimbayan princess, daughter of the local chief Acaime, and means "star of water" (Spanish: estrella de agua).
The valley is part of the Los Nevados National Natural Park, incorporated into the existing national park by the Colombian government in 1985. It is the main location where the national tree of Colombia, the Quindío wax palm (Ceroxylon quindiuense) can be found, as well as a wide variety of other flora and fauna (some endangered), all of which are protected under the park's national status.
The last beat is by " Redclay "
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