The Chingaza páramo system is a beautiful expanse of high-mountain wilderness that provides Bogotá with much of its water supply. Sadly, the national park that covers most of the area is closed to cyclists, and no amount of friendly pleading will persuade the guards to let you in through the main gate. There is, however, a stunning back road on the southern side of the park that cyclists can use to ride up to Chingaza Lake and beyond.

This route starts and ends at an eco-lodge in La Unión that’s run by a couple of cycling friends of mine (I highly recommend staying with them, but there are other options available). It’s a demanding loop with sustained double-digit gradients, river crossings, the odd landslide and a solid hike-a-bike, that will reward you with truly unique vistas, and meetings with curious, welcoming locals.

The route starts by crossing the River Blanco on an old suspension footbridge, followed by a short paved segment that takes you up to the town of Fómeque – the last resupply point of the day. Just outside town, the gravel begins with a 26km 6.3% average gradient climb along a well maintained road that slowly winds its way up from the warm lowlands, through Andean forests, and up into the páramo. When you reach the top, you’re rewarded with glimpses of the mythical Chingaza Lake that get ever more impressive as you make your way down to the shore.

From the lake, a short and punchy climb takes you up to the highest point of the route, and the start of an epic 18km fast-flowing descent down to San Juanito, at an average gradient of -7.6%! San Juanito is a small village with a couple of basic restaurants and hostels, a small general store, and some amazing local hiking trails.

Once you leave town, the route gets progressively more technical – the lower you get, the less the road is maintained, and there are some rough, rutted and rocky sections, and a couple of calf-high river crossings (rain dependent). The scenery is gorgeous, and the vegetation becomes ever more abundant as the temperature and humidity start to rise.

Although it’s just 26km and +1,000m from San Juanito to El Calvario, this is one of the most demanding sections of the route, especially if you ride from La Unión to El Calvario in a day. There are two semi-technical descents, and two slippery, leg-busting climbs (3.4 km at 9.3% and 4.3km at 10.2%) with ramps hitting 18%. Thankfully, although El Calvario is small, it has cold beer, a couple of decent restaurants and hostels, and a well-stocked general store. Just like San Juanito, there are some great hiking trails in the local area.

I won’t say much about the route from El Calvario to La Unión as I wrote about it in a previous post. There have been a couple of major landslides recently – both are passable by bike, and were being worked on when I rode through in June 2026. This version of the route also includes an intense 3km hike-a-bike that rewards you with a couple of extra-special views. If you’re not a fan of pushing your bike up 16+% muddy tracks, I’ve marked on the RWGPS map where you can continue down the main road and rejoin the route later.

Stats:

• Distance: 168 km.
• Elevation: +5,700 m.
• Surface: 90+% unpaved.
• Riding time: 14-20 hours.
• Climate: Warm at the start, cold and likely to be raining in the páramo, temperate for the rest of the route.

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