AMAZING VIDEO ABOUT DEATH ROAD BOLIVIA - FREAK OUT BIKING

Trekking and climbing near La Paz – Bolivia

Four so called “Inca Trails” link the Altiplano with the Yungas, taking you from the high Andes to the sub-tropics, with dramatic changes in weather, temperature and vegetation. Each has excellent sections of stonework and they vary in difficulty from relatively straightforward to quite hard-going. In the rainy season going can be particularly tough.

Takesi Trail

Start at Ventilla, walk up the valley for about three hours passing the village of Choquekhota until the track crosses the river and to the right of the road, there is a falling-down brick wall with a map painted on it. The Takesi and Alto Takesi trails start here, following the path to the right of the wall. The road continues to Mina San Francisco. In the first hour’s climb from the wall is excellent stone paving which is Inca or pre-Inca, depending on who you believe, either side of the pass at 4630m. There are camping possibilities at Estancia Takesi and in the village of Kakapi you can sleep at the simple Kakapi Tourist Lodge, 10 beds with good mattresses, solar shower and toilet. It is run by the local community and sponsored by Fundación Chojlla, between which and Yanacachi is a gate where it is necessary to register and often pay a small fee. Yanakachi has a number of good places to stay, several good hikes and an orphanage you can help at. The Fundación Pueblo office on the plaza has information. Buy a minibus ticket on arrival in Yanacachi or walk 45 minutes down to the La Paz-Chulumani road for transport. 

The trek can be done in one long day, especially if you organize a jeep to the start of the trail, but is more relaxing in two or three. If you take it slowly, though, you’ll have to carry camping kit. Hire mules in Choquekhota for $us 8 per day plus up to $us 8 for the muleteer. A 2-3 day alternative is from Mina San Francisco to el Castillo and the village of Chaco on the La Paz-Chulumani road. This trek is called La Reconquistada and has the distinction of including a 200m disused mining tunnel.

Choro Trail (La cumber to Coroico)

Inmediately before the road drops down from La Cumbre to start the descent to Las Yungas, there is a good dirt road leading up to the apacheta (narrow pass) where the trail starts properly. Cloud and bad weather are normal at La Cumbre (4660m): you have to sign in at the Guardaparque post on the way to the pass. The trail passes Samaña Pampa, Chucura, Challapampa, the Choro bridge and the Río Jacun-Manini (fill up with water at both river crossings). At Sandillani it is possible to stay at the lodge or camp in the carefully tended garden of Japanese man, Tamji Hanamura, who keeps a book with the names of every passing traveler. He likes to see postcards and pictures from other countries. There is good paving down to Villa Esmeralda, after which is Chairo (lodging and camping), then to Yolosa. It takes three days to trek from La Cumbre to Chairo, from where you can take a truck to Puente Yolosita, the turn-off for Coroico on the new road. From Puente Yolosita truck run uphill to Coroico when they fill 15 minutes. The Choro trail has a reputation for unfriendliness and occasional robbery, take care.

Yunga Cruz (Chuñavi to Chulumani)

The best, but hardest of the four “Inca Trails, it has seen Little use in recent years and may be basdly overgrown; enquire in advance. From Chuñavi (3710m) follow the path left (east) and coutour gently up. Camping possible after two hours. Continue along the path staying on left hand side of the ridge to reach Cerro Khala Ciudad (literally, stone city mountain). Good paving brings you round the hill to join a path coming from Quircoma (on your right); continue, heading north, to Cerro Cuchillatuca and then Cerro Yunga Cruz, where there is water and camping is possible. After this point water and camping are difficult and normally impossible until you get down to Sikilini. The last water and camping possibilities are all within the next hour, take advantage of them. Each person should have at least two litres of water in bottles. Colectivos run from Sikilini to Chulumani. Starting in Chuñavi the trek takes days. An alternative route is from Chuñavi to Irupana.

Huayna Potosí

Huayna Potosí (6088 m) is normally climbed in two days, with one night in a basic shelter at 5300 m or camped on a glacier at 5600 m. Acclimatization and experience on ice are essential , and the mountain is dangerous out of season. There are four shelters: a community-run shelter 10 minutes up from the pass, one by the lake, very cold; Refugio Huayna Potosí at 4780 m, with toilets and shower, run by the tour operator of the same name, and a basic shelter at 5300 owned by the same operator. Average cost is $us100 per person for two day tour for the normal route is at Zongo. A three-day trek in the area is also offered.

Trekking and climbing from Sorata

Sorata is the starting point for climbing Illampu and Ancohuma. All routes out of the town are difficult. Owing to the number of paths in the area and the very steep ascent. Experience and full equipment are necessary. You can hire trekking guides and mules. The 3-4 day trek to Lagunas Chillata and Glaciar is the most common and gets busy during high season. Laguna Chillata can also be reached by road or on a long day-hike with light gear, but mind the difficult navigation and take warm clothing. Laguna Chillata has been heavily impacted by tourism (remove all trash, do not throw it in the pits around the lake) and groups frequently camp there. The Illampu Circuit, a 6-7 day high-altitude trek (three passes over 4000 m, one over 5000 m) around Illampu, is excellent. It can get very cold and it is hard walk, though very beautiful with nice campsites on the way. Some food can be bought in Cocoyo on the third day. Youmust be acclimatized before to setting out. Another option is the Trans-Cordillera Trek, 10-12 days from Sorata to Huayna Potosí, or longer all the way to Illimani at the opposite (south) end of the Cordillera Real. Some communities charge visitors fees along the way and there have in the past been armed holdups near Laguna San Francisco but no incidents reported in recent years.

Cordillera Apolobamba

The Area Protegida Apolobamba forms part of the Cordillera Apolobamba, the north extensión of the Cordillera Real. The range itself has many 5000 m-plus peaks, while the conservation area of some 483,744 ha protects herd of vicuña, huge flocks of flamingos and many condors. The area adjoins the Parque Nacional Madidi. This is great trekking country and the 4-6 day Charazani to Pelechuco (or vice versa) mountain trek is one of the best in the country.  It passes traditional villages and the peaks of the southern Cordillera Apolobamba.

Charazani is the biggest village in the region (3200 m), with hot springs. Its three-day fiesta is around 16 july. There are some cheap alojamientos, restaurants and shops. Pelechuco (3600 m) is a smaller village. Also with cheap alojamientos, restaurants and shops. The road to Pelechuco goes through the Area Protegida, passing the community of Ulla Ulla, 5 Km outside of which are the reserve’s HQ at La Cabaña. Visitors are welcome to see the orphaned vicuñas. There are economical community hostels at the villages of Lagunillas and Agua Blanca. Basic food is available in the communities. For more information, contact SERNAP in La Paz.

Web page: www.travelstorebolivia.com

The Natural World of Bolivia

When people think of Bolivia they generally conjure up images of somewhere high (La Paz), dry (Altiplano) and salty (Uyuni salt plains). While this may be true for large areas of country, there’s much more to the Bolivian landscape than just mountains. The range of altitude – from 130m in the jungles of the Amazon Basin to 6542m on the peaks of the rugged Andes – has resulted in a huge variety of ecological and geological niches supporting a bewildering variety of nature. Enviromentally it is one of the most diverse countries on the continent.

The country has 1415 bird species and 5000 described plant species, some of the highest numbers in the world. It is also among the neotropical countries with the highest numbers in the world. It is also among the neotropical countries with the highest level of endemism (species which exist only in Bolivia), with 21 birds, 28 reptiles, 72 amphibians and 25 mammals found nowhere else on earth.

But while it may seem obvious that Bolivia’s natural resources are one its greatest assets, not everybody values assets that don´t have a direct monetary value. From the lush tropical forests of Amboró National Park to the wetlands of the Pantanal, the scrub that obscures the Chaco gas fields and the Polylepis woodlands of the Andes, the Bolivian environment is under constant threat from destruction for economic explotation.

The Land

Two Andean mountain chains define the west of the country, with many peaks above 6000m. The Cordillera Occidental, in the west, stands between Bolivia and the Pacific coast. The Eastern Cordillera Real runs southest, then turns south across central Bolivia, joining the other chain to form the southern Cordillera Central.

The haunting Altiplano (altitude 3500m to 4000m) is boxed in by these two great cordilleras. It’s an immense, nearly treeless plain punctuated by mountains and solitary volcanic peaks. At the Altiplano’s northern end, straddling the Peruvian border, Lake Titicaca is one of the world’s highest navigable lakes. In the far southwestern corner, the land is drier and less populated. The salty remnants of two vast ancient lakes, the salar the Uyuni and the Salar de Coipasa, are there as well.

East of the Cordillera Central are the central Highlands, a region of mate. North of the Cordillera Real, the rainy yungas form a transition zone between arid highlands and humid lowlands. More than half of Bolivia’s total area in the Amazon Basin, with sweaty tropical rainforest in the western section, and flat cerrados (savannas) and extensions of the Pantanal wetland in the east. In the country’s southeastern corner is the nearly impenetrable scrubland of the Gran Chaco, an arid, thorny forest that experiences the highest temperatures in the country.

 National Parks & Reserves

Bolivia has protected 18% of its total land by declaring 22 national protected areas and additional regional reserves under what is known as the Sistema Nacional de areas Protegidas (SNAP). The system is one of the most extensive on the continent, but even though it covers much of Bolivia’s most amazing landscapes, the reality is that most reserves are only nominally protected.

Web Page: www.travelstorebolivia.com

Facebook page: Travel-STORE-Bolivia

Twitter page:@TravelStoreBol

"VILLA ALBINA" A BEAUTIFUL MANSION IN PAIRUMANI - COCHABAMBA

In 1915, Simón I. Patiño ordered the development of the first planes to their cottage, Villa Albina, on land that had just acquired in Pairumani, at the foot of the Cordillera del Tunari. Driven by the desire to create a true agricultural and cattle ranch, was gradually acquiring land adjacent to constitute a large area around the property whose central part is the Model Farm Pairumani as it is known today.

From 1917 began construction of stables, corrals, piggeries and stables for different animals purchased in Argentina, USA and Europe. Over time, these facilities a dairy, an ice factory, an industrial mill and building joined in a titanic work to more than 4,000 m high dam San Francisco on Tunari River, whose waters of Lake allowed artificial irrigation of crops and the generation of hydroelectric energy needed to operate the farm, thanks to a power plant at the foot of the mountain range.
With all these facilities, in 1928 the farm reached its cruising speed, becoming the pioneer of industrial dairy in Bolivia.
The year 2007 begins to validate all experiences and agro biological methods through scientific research, develops a diploma in veterinary homeopathy ethno and together with renowned universities nationwide. Moreover marketing this year suffered a very positive change positioned the product locally forcefully and demonstrate that high product quality is accessible to all people entering the same in the subsidy-feeding.
In the mid 90s, Pairumani put at the forefront of Organic production with its conversion to a biological model Pioneer Agro-level South America. This model which bases its work philosophy on respect for the soil, plant and animal, crown their efforts in 2003 with the production of dairy agro biological, chemical-free synthesis can the discerning consumer to find in the regional market products milk, drinkable yogurt, unsweetened yogurt, yogurt with fresh fruit and cheese semi matured.
El barón del estaño dreamed of living in this place, which is now a melting pot of research and place of family outing
A path flanked by towering red glasses ceibos mark the entrance road to Villa Albina, a complex that has become a bastion of ecological respect and a place of peace and harmony with nature.
This is an area of ​​service to society and a tourist walk 260 hectares of arable land and 100 of forest areas, the Foundation held in joint ownership with former colonists.
The central building of Villa Albina, named after the wife of Simón I. Patiño, keeps intact the elegance with which it was designed around 1920 by architect José Aurigas (with some modifications Max Franz) and then built by the French constructor F. Nardín.
The rooms are arranged around a central courtyard square, where a complete source assembly characterized by lightness and tranquility.
On the ground floor were located at reception halls, billiard room, dining room, ballroom, toilets and desktop Patiño. All crafted furniture with style "art nouveau". Heavy curtains, wallpaper Viennese, alabaster lamps and period paintings complete the set.
Rounding gardens with marble sculptures and dozens of species of trees. There is also built in marble mausoleum where the remains of Patiño spouses and children René, Antenor and Graciela.
Part of Villa Albina environments have been converted into laboratories Phytoecogenetic Research Center, where specialists work with advanced technologies to preserve the genetic diversity of various natural products and to create improved seeds, resistant to disease, drought, more nutritious and higher production

The tourism sector is a sector that is beginning to take hold, possessing Vinto important recreational centers mainly in the north, where the hacienda Villa Albina Pairumani, famous for its gardens of Asian influence, exotic ornamental trees, thus becoming one of the most important and attractive sights of the region. The ecological park offers Pairumani eucalyptus forests suitable for walking and camping in this park are the services of a typical restaurant, a natural waterfall and sports fields for recreation. In this place worked a hydroelectric station belonged to male Tin.
Villa Albina, elegant stately mansion in Pairumani, at the foot of the Cordillera del Tunari, located 13 Km from Cochabamba. It was ordered built between 1925 and 1932 by Simón I. Patiño for his wife Albina Rodriguez Patino. It is accessed by a beautiful road flanked jacarandas and ceibos. 
The estate is surrounded by beautiful gardens, embellished with marble statues, replicas of famous sculptures of antiquity. In its perimeter is the family mausoleum, which lie Don Simon, his wife and some of his children.

Web Page: www.travelstorebolivia.com
Facebook page: Travel-STORE-Bolivia
Follow us on Twitter: @TravelStoreBol

PARQUE NACIONAL TORO TORO

Some 130 Km south of Cochabamba, Parque Nacional Toro Toro, protects a remote ans sparsely inhabited stretch of the arid, scrubby landscape that is characteristic of the Eastern foothills and valleys of the Andes. Covering just 164 square kilometers around the village of the same name, Toro Toro is Bolivia’s smallest national park, but what it lacks in size it makes up for with is powerful scenery and varied attractions. The park encompasses a high, hanging valley and deep eroded canyons, ringed by low mountains whose twisted geological formations are strewn with fossils, dinosaur footprints and labyrinthine limestone cave complexes. In addition, the park’s woodland supports considerable wildlife –including flocks of parakeets and the rare and beautiful red-fronted macaw, found only in this particular region of Bolivia – while ancient rock paintings and pre-Inca ruins reveal a long-standing human presence. The main attractions are the limestone caves of Umajallanta, the beautiful, waterfall-filled Toro Toro Canyon, and hiking expeditions to the pre-Inca ruined fortress of Llama Chaqui. Two days are generally enough to see the main attractions though it’s worth taking longer if you want to explore the area more fully.

Brief history

Though reached from Cochabamba, Parque Nacional Toro Toro actually lies within Northern Potosí department. Before the Spanish conquest this was the core territory of the Charcas Confederation, a powerful collection of different ethnic groups subject to Inca rule. Following the conquest, the different Quechua- and Aymara – speaking groups that made up the confederation retained their distinct identities, each as separate ayllus (extended kinship groups, similar to clans or tribes). The ayllus of Northern Potosí mostly live in the higher-altitude lands to the west of the region, where they grow potatos and raise livestock, but they maintain islands of territory in the dry valleys such as Toro Toro, where they cultivate maize, wheat and other lower altitude crops. This system ensures each group has access to the produce of different altitudes, and represents a distinctly Andean form of organization that has long fascinated anthropologists.

Throughout the colonial era and long after independence, Northern Potosí was the focus of frequent indigenous uprisings. As recently as 1958, during the upheaval following the 1952 revolution, Toro Toro village – which was formed in the late colonial period by mestizo migrants from Cochabamba – was ransacked by armed ayllu member, who seized the lands of the haciendas that had been established on their traditional valley territories.

Toro Toro

The administrative centre of the park and the only base from which to explore it is the sleepy village of Toro Toro. Home to just a few hundred people, it stands beside the river of the same name at the top of a broad hanging valley at an altitude of about 2600m and is the place to find food, accommodation, guides and information. Toro Toro’s main annual celebration is the Fiesta de Tata Santiago, held on July 25 each year, when the ayllus descend on the village to drink, dance and stage ritual Tinku flights.

The dinosaur tracks of Cerro Huayllas

The park’s clearest dinosaur tracks are on the lower slopes of Cerro Huayllas, the mountain just east of the village across the Río Toro Toro (generally only a stream in the May –Sept dry season). To reach them , walk back along the road to Cochabamba and cross at the ford, turn right and walk upstream about 100m, then climb about 20m up the rocky slope to your left. The tracks were made by a quadruped herbivore that roamed the region in the Cretaceous era more than sixty million years ago – they comprise a trail of deep circular prints about 50 cm in diameter imprinted in a sloping plane of grey rock and set about 1m apart. A little further upstream there’s another trail of smaller (and much less distinct) prints left by a three-toed carnivore.

Along the Río Toro Toro

Follow the Río Toro Toro downstream from the Cerro Huayllas dinosaur tracks for about twenty minutes and you’ll reach a stretch where the rushing rainy-season waters have carved great stone basins out of the soft bedrock – locals refer to this stretch as Batea Cocha (beating Pool), as they look a bit like basins for pounding laundry. About 7m up the rock face on the left bank, protected by a low adobe wall, is a collection of ancient rock paintings (pinturas rupestres). Mostly abstracts designs painted in red ochre, with several zigzags-including one that looks like a serpent and another that could be the sun or a star-the paintings are all less than 1m long and have been partly defaced, but they provide a focus for what is anyway a pleasant stroll down the river. A little further downstream there’s a pretty waterfall that forms a good swimming hole; beyond that, the river plunges down into the deep Toro Toro Canyon and you can walk no further, though you can access the canyon from further downstream.

Toro Toro Canyon

Just north of Toro Toro village the Río Toro Toro plunges through the deep Toro Toro Canyon, probably the park’s most beautiful section. Enclosed on either side by sheer, 200m-high cliffs covered with stunted trees and spiky bromeliads, the river creates a series of waterfalls as it tumbles over a jumble of massive boulders, forming pools that are ideal for swimming. The route down to the rock –strewn canyon floor is easy to find without a guide (though you shouldn’t go alone in case you hurt yourself and can’t get back).

To get down into the canyon, follow the road out of town towards Cochabamba for about 200m. Where the road turns sharply to the right, follow the track heading off to the left, and walk for about twenty minutes until you see some well-made stone steps dropping steeply down the side of the canyon to your left. The most picturesque stretch of the canyon is a few hundred meters downstream from where the steps reach the bottom, where a ten-meter-high waterfall known as El Vergel emerges from the side of the canyon on the right in several streams wich cover the rock face in slimy –green water weeds.

Caverna de Umajallanta

The most extensive and easiest to visit of the park’s many limestone cave system is the Caverna de Umajallanta, where nearly 5Km of underground passages have been explored. The Cave makes a great day trip from Toro Toro and is one of the park’s most popular attractions; on no account attempt to visit without a guide as it is easy to get lost once inside. Its entrance is about 8Km northwest of Toro Toro, a walk of ninety minutes to two hours across the rolling landscape with good views of the dramatic geology of the mountain ridges that surround the Toro Toro valley-about halfway you’ll pass a trail of dinosaur footprints. The cave complex was formed by the waters of the Rio Umajallanta, wich disappears below the surface here and re-emerges as a waterfall high above the Toro Toro Canyon, 6Km away to the east. It consists of a series of interconnected limestone caverns of varying sizes, one of which contains a lake fed by the river that is home to some blind white fish.

 web page: www.travelstorebolivia.com

Facebook page: Travel-STORE-Bolivia

BOLIVIAS'S WILDLIFE

The Amazon

The greatest biodiversity in Bolivia – and indeed pretty much anywhere on earth – is found on the well-watered eastern slopes of the Andes, where the mountains plunge down into the Amazon basin trough a succession of different ecological zones, from the high cloud forest or ceja de selva – whose gnarled trees are festooned with hundreds of different kinds of orchid – to the lowland tropical rainforest. With mighty trees soaring to create a canopy over 30 m above the ground, the rich and luxuriant vegetation of the Amazon rainforest is in fact extremely fragile. The soils beneath forest are generally very poor, and the forest ecosystem flourishes only through a complex system of nutrient cycling involving plants, insects and fungi, so if the forest is cleared, the quality of the land disappears rapidly.

The rainforest ecosystem supports an incredible variety of plant and animal life: over six thousand species of plant have been recorded in one small tract of forest, and the Amazon’s unidentified species of insect alone are thought to outnumber all earth’s known animal species. Seeing wildlife in the Amazon is not easy, nevertheless on any rainforest trip you’re likely to see innumerable birds including brightly colored toucans, parrots, tanagers, kingfishers, trogons and macaws of various kinds. Several of Bolivia’s more than thirty monkey species are also easy to spot including long-limbed spider monkeys, howler monkeys, chattering squirrel monkeys and diminutive tamarinds and titis. Larger mammals include the capybara, the world’s largest rodent, the tapir, a lumbering beast the size of a cow with an elephant-like nose, herds of peccary, a kind of wild boar, as well as giant armadillos and sloths. All of these are potential prey for a range of wild cats, the largest which is the jaguar. The rivers of the Bolivian Amazon teem with fish, from giant catfish to the piranha. You’ll also see turtles and cayman crocodiles of various kinds, as well as giant anacondas and pink freshwater dolphins.

Many of the larger animals are easier to see as you head east through the Bolivian Amazon, where the dense rainforest gives way to the more open vegetation of the Llanos de Moxos, where seasonally flooded grasslands are interspersed with islands of forest and patches of swamp. Here, you’re more likely to spot creatures such as giant anteaters and rheas (large flightless birds similar to ostriches), or even maned wolves.

The Eastern Lowlands

To the south of the Bolivian Amazon the forest ecology gradually changes as it adapts to lower and more seasonally varied rainfall. The Chiquitania region east of Santa Cruz has some of the world’s largest remaining tracts of tropical dry forest, which is home to many of the same animal species, plus a great variety of bird life. Heading further south, this forest gets drier still as it merges into the Gran Chaco. This vast arid wilderness also supports abundant wildlife, including jaguar, puma, and deer, at least ten different kinds of armadillo, and even an endemic species of wild boar, the Chacoan peccary.

The contrast between the Chaco and the far east of Bolivia could not be greater. Here, the plains and rainforest of Amazonia gradually give way to the immense watery wilderness of the Pantanal, the world’s largest wetland ecosystem, which stretches far across the border with Brazil and is home to many Amazonian species. Though it does not match the overall biodiversity of the rainforest, the Pantanal is unique in terms of the sheer abundance of wildlife. Concentrations of fauna here are thought to be the highest in all the Americas, comparable to the densest wild animal populations in Africa – one estimate puts the number of caymans in the region at ten million. It’s also one of the best places to see jaguars and the highly endangered giant river otter. Bird life too is extraordinarily abundant, including innumerable water birds such as roseate spoonbills, herons, egrets and the massive jaburu stork, the symbol of the Pantanal, and at least fifteen species of parrot, including the highly endangered hyacinth macaw.

Animals

Bolivia is one of the best places on the continent to observe wildlife, and even seasoned wildlife watchers will be impressed by the diversity on show.

The distribution of wildlife is dictated by the country’s geography and varies considerably from region. The Altiplano is home to vicuñas, flamingos and condors; the Chaco to secretive jaguars pumas and peccaries ; the Pantanal provides refuge for giant otters, marsh deer and waterbirds; and the Amazon Basin contains the richest density of species on earth, featuring an incredible variety of reptiles, parrots, monkeys, hummingbirds, butterflies, fish and bugs (by the zillion!).

Of course, the animals that steal the show are the regional giants: the majestic jaguar, the continent’s top predator; the elephant-nosed tapir (anta) and the giant anteater. The ostrich-like rhea or ñandú, the continent’s biggest bird, is here too and it can be surprisingly common in some areas. You may even be lucky enough to spot breathtaking Andean condor – revered by the Inca – soaring on mountain thermals. River travelers are almost certain to see capybaras (like giant aquatic guineapigs) and caimans (alligators). It’s not usual to see anacondas in the rivers of the department of Beni, and a spot of piranha fishing is virtually an obligation for anybody spending time in the Amazon.

Overland travelers frequently see armadillos, foxes, jochis (agoutis) and the gray-faced, llama- like guanaco. Similar, but more delicately proportioned, is the fuzzy vicuña, once mercilessly hunted for its woolly coat but now recovering well. You won’t have to work quite as hard to spot their domesticated relatives, the llama and the alpaca.

Plants

Because of its enormous range of altitudes, Bolivia enjoys a wealth and diversity of flora rivaled only by its Andean neighbors. No fewer than 895 plants are considered endemic to the country, including 16 species of passion fruit vines and at least three genera of orchids.

In the overgrazed highlands, the only remaining vegetable species are those with some defense against grazing livestock or those that are not suitable for firewood. Much of what does grow in the highlands grows slowly and is endangered, including the globally threatened genus of polylepis shrubs which form dense, low forests at altitude of up to 5300m, making them the highest growing arborescent plants in the world.

The most upper slopes of the Yungas are characterized by dwarf forest.  Further down the slopes stretches the cloud forest, where the trees grow larger and the vegetation thicker. Northern Bolivia’s lowlands consist of islands of true rainforest dotted with vast wetlands and endangered cerrados, while the Amazon Basin contains the richest botanical diversity on earth.

Web page: www.travelstorebolivia.com
Facebook page: Travel-STORE-Bolivia

BOLIVIA’S WILDLIFE AND ECOLOGY

From the high peaks of the Andes to the tropical rainforests of the Amazon, the Pantanal wetlands and the arid scrub of the Gran Chaco, Bolivia’s extraordinary range of geography and climates supports an astonishing array of plant and animal life. This is one of the most biodiverse countries on earth, home to more than 17000 known plants species , around 1400 different birds, including many species found nowhere else, and around three hundred species of mammals. Moreover, large areas are still relatively undisturbed by human activity, and around twenty percent of the total land area is now covered by national parks and other protected areas.

The Andes

The Bolivian Andes are home to a huge range of ecological zones, from cactus-strewn semi-desert to swampy moorland and lush cloudforest. Much of the region has been settled for over two thousand years, and the original woodland has largely been replaced by eucalyptus imported from Australia. But patches of native Andean forest remain, including queñua (polylepis) woods that survive at over 5000m – the highest forest in the world. The most visible animals in the Andes are domesticated, in particular the herds of llama and Alpaca wich graze the arid grasslands of the Altiplano, but in more remote regions their wild relative, the diminutive vicuña, can also be seen.

Large predators are rare, but the puma is still present at most altitudes. Its preferred prey includes Andean deer and Viscacha, a rabbit-like animal. The more humid eastern slopes of the Andes are also home to the elusive spectacled bear, the only bear in South America. Though difficult to view close up, the revered Andean Condor – with a 3m wingspam, the largest bird that can fly – can often be seen soaring at high altitude lakes and marshes attract a great variety of swimming and wading birds, including ibis, grebes, geese, herons and – particularly in the far south of the Altiplano.

Web page:www.travelstorebolivia.com

Find us on Facebook:Travel-STORE-Bolivia

TIWANAKU A CEREMONIAL CENTER

TIWANAKU

Little is actually known about the people who constructed the ceremonial center on the southern share of La Lake Titicaca more than a thousand years ago. Archeologists generally agree that the civilization that spawned Tiwanku rose around 600 BC. Construction on the ceremonial site was under way by about AD 700, but around 1200 the group had melted into obscurity, becoming another “lost” civilization. Evidence of this influence, particularly its religion, has been found throughout the vast area that later became the Inca Empire.

The treasures of Tiwanaku have literally been scattered to the four corners of the earth. Its gold was located by the Spanish, and early stone and pottery finds were sometimes destroyed by religious zealots who considered them pagan idols. Some of the work found its way to European Museums; farmers destroyed pieces of it as they turned the surrounding area into pasture and cropland; the Church kept some of the statues or sold them as curious; and the larger stonework went into Spanish construction projects, and even into the bed of the La Paz-Guaqui rail line that passes just south of the site.

Fortunately, a portion of the treasure has been preserved, and some of it remains in Bolivia. A Few of the larger anthropomorphic stone statues have been left on the site, and the onsite museum has a decent collection of pottery and other objects. Others are on display at the Museo Nacional de Arquología in La Paz.

History

Although no one is certain whether it was the capital of a nation, Tiwanaku undoubtedly served as a great ceremonial center. At its height the city had a population of 20,000 residents and encompassed approximately 2.6 sq km.

Some say the name roughly translates to “the dry coast” or stone in the center , and the 3870m (12,696 ft) city most likely sat on the edge of Lake Titicaca, serving as the ceremonial center for the regions south of the lake.

While only 30 percent of the original site has been excavated – and what remains is less than overwhelming – the Tiwanaku culture made great advances in architecture, math and astronomy well before the Inca ascendancy.

Archaeologists divide the development of the Tiwanaku into five distinct periods, numbered Tiwanaku into five distinct periods, and numbered Tiwanaku I thorough V, each of which has its own outstanding attributes.

The Tiwanaku I period falls between the advent of the Tiwanaku civilization and the middle of the 5^th century BC. Significant finds from this period include multicolored pottery and human or animal effigies in painted clay. Tiwanaku II, which ended around the beginning of the Christian era, is hallmarked by ceramic vessels with horizontal handles. Tiwanaku III dominated the next 300 years, and was characterized by tricolor pottery of geometric design, often decorated with images of stylized animals.

Tiwanaku IV, also known as the Classic Period, developed between AD 300 and 700. The large stone structures that dominate the site today were constructed during this period. The use of bronze and gold is considered evidence of contact with groups further east in the Cochabamba valley and further west on the Peruvian coast. Tiwanaku IV pottery is largely anthropomorphic. Pieces uncovered by archeologists include some in the shape of human heads and faces with bulging cheeks, indicating that the coca leaf was already in use at this time.

Tiwanaku V, also called the Expansive Period, is marked by a decline that lasted until Tiwanaku’s population completely disappeared around 1200. Were they the victims of war, famine, climate change or alien abductions? Nobody knows, though most archeologists point to climate change as the most likely cause of the civilization’s rapid decline. During this period pottery grew less elaborate, construction projects slowed and stopped, and no large-scale monuments were added after the early phases of this period.

When the Spaniards arrived in South America, local indigenous legends recounted that Tiwanaku had been the capital of the bearded, white god-king called Viracocha, and that from his city Viracocha had reined over the civilization.

Pieces from the three more recent Tiwanaku periods may be found scattered around Bolivia, but the majority are housed in archeological museums in La Paz and Cochabamba. The ruins themselves have been so badly looted, however, that much of the information they could have revealed about their builders is now lost forever.

At the request of Unesco, they ceased excavations of the site in 2005, and are concentrating now on preserving what they’ve already dug up. About 100,000 visitors come to the site every year.

Web page: @travelstorebolivia.com

Look for us on Facebook: Travel-STORE-Bolivia

Follow us on Twitter: @TravelStoreBol

Chacaltaya & Moon Valley

Chacaltaya
The 5395 m-high Cerro Chacaltaya peak atop a former glacier (it diminished over several decades and, tragically, had melted completely by 2009), is a popular day trip. Until the big melt , it was the world's highest developed ski area. It's a steep 90-minute ride from central La Paz, and the accessible summit is an easy 200m ascent from there.
You can get your thrills, spills (well, hopefully not) and great views on a 60Km-plus mountain-bike trip from chacaltaya to Zongo and beyond at descents of up to 4100m (vertical drop).
For visitors and hikers, Chacaltaya offers spectacular views of La Paz, Illimani, Mururata and 6088m Huayna Potosí. It's a high altitude, relatively easy (but steep) 100m or so climb from the lodge to the summit of Chacaltaya. Remember to carry warm clothing and water, and take plenty of rests - say a 30-second stop every 10 steps or so, and longer stops if needed - even if you don't feel tired. If you start to feel light-headed, sit down and rest until the feeling passes. If it doesn't, you may be suffering from mild altitude sickness; the only remedy is to descend.
From Chacaltaya it's possible to walk to Refugio Huayna Potosí, at the base of Huayna Potosí, in half a day. Before you set out, you must obtain maps from Instituto Geog´rafico Militar (p60) and instructions.

If it's open, snacks and hot drinks are available at Club Andino's lodge; if you want anything more substantial, bring it from town. Also bring warm (and windproof) clothing, sunglasses (100% UV proof) and sunscreen.
For overnight stays at Chacaltaya, you can crash in Club Andino's ski lodge, a '50s-style stone ski lodge. A warm sleeping bag, food and lots of water are essential for an over night stay.
Those who fly into La Paz from the lowlands will want to wait a few days before visiting Chacaltaya or other high-altitude places.

Moon Valley

About 10km down the canyon of the Rio Choqueyapu from the city center, Valle de la Luna is a slightly overhyped place, though it's a pleasant break from urban La Paz. It's the most accesible hiking spot near the city, with signed trails and regular patrols. It could be easily visited in a morning or combined with another outing such as a hike to Muela del Diablo to fill an entire day. It actually isn't a valley at all, but a bizarre, eroded hillside maze of canyons and pinnacles technically known as badlands. 

Several species of cactus grow here, including the hallucinogenic choma (San pedro catus). Unfotunatelly, urban growth has caught up to the area, making it less of a viewpoint than it otherwise might have been. On your way here, take a pit-stop at the Sendero del Aguila, a 1,7km trail just up from the Rios Selva hotel.

Our Company
Our company offers you a full day tour visiting both attractions, it consists of the following program:
Pick up from your hostel between 8:45 to 09:15 to go to Chacaltaya where we will walk for 2 hours approximately, you will see a beautiful landscape with the mountains of the Cordillera Real and you can take amazing photos. Then our private transport will take us to the Moon Valley to see a place completely different with astonishing stone formations that give the visitor the sensation of having discovered an unknown world, there we’ll have a short trekking to discover the place and take photos. After the visit, we’ll come back to La Paz.

Web Page: www.travelstorebolivia.com
Look for us on Facebook: Travel-STORE-Bolivia
Follow us on Twitter: @TravelStoreBol

PARQUE NACIONAL SAJAMA

Bolivia's first national park occupies 1000 sq km abutting the Chilean border. The park offers expansive high-plains views, geyser filds, hot springs, and climbing and hiking opportunities aplenty.

Parque Nacional Sajama was created on November 5, 1945 for the protection of the rare wildlife that inhabit this northern extension of the Atacama Desert. Unfortunately, depretation has already eliminated several species. With increase protection, however, vicuña populations are on the rise-trhey were nearly hunted to extinction for their highly prozed wool. you may also spot condors, flamingos, rheas and armadillos.
The world's highest forest covers the foothills flanking the awe-inspiring Volcán Sajama which, at 6542m, is Bolivia's highest peak. The forest consist of dwarf queñua trees, an endemic and ancient altiplano species. But while technically a forest, its a little underwhelming - the trees more like little bushes.

Sights & Activities
The best map of the park is the glossy 1:50,000 Nevado Sajama published by Walter Guzmán Córdova; it can be found in better La Paz Bookstore.
Volcán Sajama (Volcano)
The volcano is a popular mountain to climb, especially between May and September; there are also some hikes on itsd lower slopes. Altough it's a relatively straightforward climb, Sajama's altitude and icy conditions make the peak more challenging than it initially appears. Quite a few La Paz agencies offer organized climbs of Sajama. Only consider going without a guide if you have experience with high-altitude climbing, but prepare for extremely cold and icy conditions and carry lots of water close to your body (otherwise it will freeze). Do not try to climb the volcano in the rainy season; the electrical storms make this a dangerous time to ascend.
Hot Springs
For a relaxing warm soak, there are four lovely 35°C hot springs 8km northwest of Sajama village, an easy 45-minute walk; look for the bright orange house to the left of the road. 
Geyser Field
About 7km (1 1/2) hours on foot) due west of Sajama is an interesting spouting geyser field. You could potentially combine this a two-or three-day trekking circuit that takes you from the village of Sajama past the Lagunas khasira, Sora and Chiar Kota.
Laguna Huañakota
About 12km north of the village of Sajama, this lake is worth a day trip.

Web page: www.travelstorebolivia.com
Look for us on Facebook: Travel-STORE-Bolivia
Follow us on Twitter: @TravelStoreBol