Sierra Nevada del Cocuy
| Sierra Nevada del Cocuy | ||
|---|---|---|
| Highest peak | Ritacuba Blanco ( 5330 m ) | |
| location | Colombia | |
| part of | To the | |
|
||
| Coordinates | 6 ° 26 ′ N , 72 ° 17 ′ W | |
The Sierra Nevada del Cocuy is one of the most important mountain ranges in Colombia and is the highest point of the Andean Cordillera Oriental . It consists of two parallel mountain ranges that extend in a north-south direction over a distance of 30 km. The western side of the Sierra rises from the Andean mountains, its eastern side rises from the hot lowlands from 700 meters across all climatic zones to 5330 m .
The Sierra Nevada del Cocuy has the largest contiguous glacier area in Colombia. All glaciers are subject to great shrinkage due to climate change . In 2016 the glaciated area was 15.5 km², compared to almost 150 km² in 1850.
Location and access
The Sierra is located in the northeast of the country, in the departments of Boyacá and Arauca , in the municipalities of El Cocuy , Güicán and Chita , 280 km as the crow flies northeast of the capital Bogotá . The sierra is protected as a national park (Parque Nacional Sierra Nevada del Cocuy).
A permit for hiking is issued by the national park administration in Bogotá or in one of the field offices in El Cocuy or Güicán. El Cocuy and Güicán can be reached on country roads from the capital in about 10 hours. Since the reopening in 2017 there are only three hiking trails, camping in the park is no longer allowed and a mountain guide is also mandatory.
Peaks and lakes
The sierra has a multitude of mountain peaks and mountain lakes of extraordinary beauty. A good dozen of the peaks are five-thousanders . The most important are:
In the northern part of the Sierra:
- Ritacuba Blanco ( 5330 m ) and Ritacuba Negro ( 5290 m )
- Ritacuba Norte ( 5100 m ) and Pico Guican ( 4950 m )
- Pico Aguja and Pico Sin Nombre ( 5000 m )
Mountain lakes: Laguna Grande de los Verdes, Laguna Avellanal.
In the central and eastern part of the Sierra:
- San Pablines Sur ( 5180 m ) and San Pablines Norte ( 5200 m )
- Picacho (altitude | 5110 m) and Puntiagudo ( 5090 m )
- El Castillo ( 5140 m )
Mountain lakes: Lagunas La Pintada and La Plazuela
In the southern part of the Sierra:
- Pan de Azúcar ( 5250 m )
- Cóncavo ( 5200 m ) and Concavito ( 5100 m )
- Púlpito del Diablo ( 4949 m )
- Cerros de la Plaza ( 4920 m )
- Campanillas Blanco y Negro ( 4900 m )
- Toti ( 4800 m )
- Portales ( 4800 m )
Mountain lakes: Laguna Grande de la Sierra, Laguna Grande de la Plaza.
This relief of the Sierra is in the park of the municipality of Cocuy .
View from the Cerros de la Plaza glacier to the Pan de Azúcar. Below the Laguna Grande de la Plaza.
Ritacuba Blanco, seen from the southeast from the Valle de Cojines (Valley of the Pillows).
Web links
- Parques Naturales De Colombia - Parque Natural Sierra Nevada del Cocuy
- El Cocuy, Boyacá
- Mountaineering in the Andes
Individual evidence
- ↑ Antoine Rabatel, Jorge Luis Ceballos, Natan Micheletti, Ekkehard Jordan, Michael Braitmeier, Javier González, Nico Mölg, Martin Ménégoz, Christian Huggel and Michael Zemp: Toward an imminent extinction of Colombian glaciers? In: Geografiska Annaler: Series A, Physical Geography . 2017, doi : 10.1080 / 04353676.2017.1383015 .
- ↑ Jorge Luis Ceballos et al. a .: Fast shrinkage of tropical glaciers in Colombia . In: Annals of Glaciology . tape 43 , 2006, doi : 10.3189 / 172756406781812429 .
- ↑ all height information according to IGAC ( Memento of the original from August 25, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. and Parques Nacionales ( Memento of the original of March 13, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
