The Lost City Trek, which departs from Santa Marta in northern Colombia, has long been one of South America’s best kept secrets; the Lost City is older than Machu Picchu and is depicted on Colombia’s banknotes but the site itself was actually only discovered a few decades ago by accident. Previously this area was inaccessible to visitors due to safety concerns, however with the improving security situation in the region the secret is slowly getting out and the trek is gaining in popularity each year. Backpackers always ask me ‘is is worth it?’ when I mention the Lost City Trek and I don’t really like answering because my experience is very subjective. We completed the Lost City Trek without training, appropriate footwear (oops) and during the rainy season. However, I can say that I found the experience culturally enriching, challenging and felt a great sense of achievement afterwards. You decide.
This trek is not for the faint-hearted or to be done on a whim (like we did!). It involves trekking uphill in the heat of the jungle for around 8 hours each day. The trails are not what you would consider typical hiking trails, they are narrow, winding and rocky at times, and can be dangerous when wet/slippery. You will sweat in places you didn’t know you could sweat, I found that my arms and upper lip got sweaty, ew!
It is only possible to do the trek as part of a guided tour which typically includes a guide from the local indigenous community, a translator, a cook, 3 meals per day and accommodation at the indigenous-operated base camps. As far as I’m aware all tours depart from Santa Marta, so there is no need to make your own way to the trailhead.
There’s no need to shop around between tour companies for a better price for the Lost City Trek, there’s a set price that all tour agencies will charge. All tour agencies have the same itinerary, accommodation, route and food so it doesn’t really matter which company you go with. We chose the company Expotur and received a free t-shirt and tote bag for completing the trek. I recommend not booking the tour online via Tripadvisor or similar as the price listed online was much higher than at the office in Santa Marta. If you do want to book in advance to secure your place I’m sure that you could make contact directly with various tour companies beforehand to make sure you’re getting the correct baseline price that we did. We completed the trek outside of peak season, treks were departing every day and so we had no problem just turning up at the office and getting a place on a trek the next day.
Expect basic facilities, the accommodation is at basic rest camps run by the indigenous communities and is jungle-style with no walls and only a roof for protection. The sleeping arrangement is rows of bunk-beds or hammocks and the whole thing is open to the jungle with just a mosquito net surrounding the bed. We were warned to check our shoes for insects before we put them on in the night. Don’t expect luxury toilets or showers and bring toilet roll and hand sanitizer. The food provided is basic but tasty enough although most members of our group were ill at some point during the trip, possibly from the food/water or most likely just the extreme physical exertion.
I recommend reconsidering if you’re thinking about embarking on the Lost City Trek during the rainy season (as we did). We managed to finish the trek and yes, it was great, but very challenging with the mud and I think it bordered on being a bit dangerous without the right footwear.
Fish supper. The food is basic, don’t expect delicious meals
Survival tips
The trail is challenging with a lot of uphill and rocky terrain. We did the trek on a whim and weren’t fully prepared so I wanted to pass along the following notes which I made during and immediately after completing the trek. I know some of this may seem self-explanatory, but some people from our group forgot these things and suffered as a result!
Some advice if you’re about to go on the trek:
-Bring around £100 worth of Colombian peso in cash with you as a backup. The tour companies recommend much less than this however if you get sick along the route there is nobody to collect you in a vehicle, the only way back to civilisation is by paying the local indigenous people to take you back on a mule. This cost around $30 per leg of the journey, there are three legs so it would be around $90 or more for the whole way back from the Lost City. We had a Colombian man in our group, he got sick and didn’t have cash so wasn’t able to pay for the mule so had to walk the whole way back whilst having food poisoning. Safe to say that it wasn’t pleasant for him. Another member of our group projectile vomited right next to me at the breakfast table, he had money with him and was able to get the mule back. You can also arrange for a mule to carry your bags if you are too exhausted to carry them, again for a quite hefty fee.
-Bring toilet roll and hand sanitizer
-You need bug spray that’s over 50% deet (the sandflies and mozzies are pretty heavy at points).
-Bring long trousers for the ascent up to the Lost City – this part of the trek in particular is swarming with flies and mosquitos that will bite you to shreds whenever you stop to take a rest.
-Make sure you bring flip flops as there are lots of rivers that you can bathe in to cool down.
-Definitely bring a torch.
-If you’re going in the rainy season bring hiking boots with good tread – I completed the trek in Sketchers and whilst they were comfortable, I almost lost them a couple of times in the mud. The trek was very muddy at parts so prepare for that.
-Some people from our group got sick from either the food or water so bring medicine or a filter water bottle if you can.
-There’s no need to bring snacks as the tour companies provide fruit and snacks.
-Make sure you only pack what is absolutely essential as you don’t want to be carrying a heavy bag for days.
-Finally, bring ear plugs, because there will be a snorer in the group and you bet they’ll be sleeping right next to you.
Last day of the trek. Safe to say we were exhausted by this point!