Santander Itinerary – GeoTours Americas & UIS
| Day | Time | Activity | Location | Notes | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Morning (9:00) | Visit to UIS campus | Bucaramanga | Welcome to the tour and visit to UIS campus | Professors from the Geology School at the UIS, would give introductory talks about the geology of Colombia and the places that we will visit. |
| 12:00 PM | Lunch | Bucaramanga | Lunch at Aramburo restaurant at UIS campus | ||
| Afternoon (2:00 p. m.) | Visit to Giron town | Girón | Girón is distinguished by its colonial architecture and history, cobblestone streets, and whitewashed houses with red-tiled roofs. The first city founded around the Rio de Oro, it received its name from the alluvial gold mining activity that began around the 17th century. | It has places of interest such as: the Minor Basilica of San Juan Bautista, Peralta Park (Lovers' Park), Snow Park, Chapel of the Lord of Miracles, House Museum La Mansión del Frayle, Bridges of Alicanto, among others. | |
| Day 2 | 8:00 AM | Start of the day | Bucaramanga | ||
| 9:00 a.m. | Stop at"structural geology" | Via Bucaramanga - Cepitá | Geomorphology of the Bucaramanga Fault in the Chicamocha River Canyon. Transition to Cepitá with observations of outcrops of dikes (igneous rocks) and metamorphic rocks with ductile deformation, as well as badland landscapes and ancient to recent alluvial fan deposits. | ||
| 11:00 AM | Visit to the outcrops of the Santander Crystalline Massif | Via Cepitá - San Andrés | Visit to outcrops of igneous and metamorphic rocks in the municipality's rural areas, mainly along the road to Pescadito and San Andrés. | This beautiful municipality is located in the heart of the Chicamocha River Canyon. It is characterized by its tropical dry forest ecosystem, its pot-bellied ceiba trees, and the magnificent views offered by this beautiful Santander region. | |
| 1:00 PM | Lunch | Cepitá | Time to rest and recharge. The town's cuisine includes an iconic Santander dish, Cabro. We suggest lunch in the town and sample its cuisine. | ||
| 3:00 PM | Hike to the "Loma Colorada" viewpoint | Cepitá | From Cepitá, take a 30-minute hike to observe metamorphic and igneous rocks separated by a geological fault. View of the Chicamocha River with its landscapes of erosion and Quaternary deposits. | ||
| Afternoon | Swiming pool | Cepitá | Time to cool off and relax at the municipal pool, one block from the central park. | ||
| Day 3 | 8:00 AM | Start of the day | Cepitá - Barichara | ||
| 9:00 AM | Visit to metamorphic rocks outcrop in the "La Mesa de San Pedro" area | Via Bucaramanga -Aratoca | Exploration of metamorphic rocks, that in this area are very distinctive, given their low metamorphic grade. | ||
| 11:00 a.m. | Visit to view point of Chicamocha River (next to the Mirador del Chicamocha restaurant) | Via Bucaramanga -Aratoca | Chicamocha River viewpoint from another angle and views of the riverbank. | ||
| 12:00 PM | Lunch | En ruta | Along the route, we will take a break and have lunch at a traditional santander restaurant EI Chiflas | ||
| Afternoon 2:00 pm. | Visit to Gallineral Park | San Gil | Tour through a historic municipal park along the banks of the Fonce River. | ||
| Night time | Arrive to Barichara for evening and overnight | Barichara | |||
| Day 4 | 8:00 AM | Visit to the Suarez River view point | Barichara | Viewpoint of the Suarez River basin, one of the most important rivers in the department. From this viewpoint, you can see other towns such as Simacota, Galan, and La Fuente. | |
| 8:30 AM | Visit to "Simon Bolivar" monument | Barichara | Monument to Simón Bolívar and view of the cobblestone streets of Barichara. View of the beginning of the "Camino Real" | The Camino Real Colombia is an age-old stone-paved road that was originally built by The Guane, peoples indigenous to the area of Santander. Winding through six remote towns & villages, across relatively untouched landscape this enchanting path starts in Cabrera & winds up in Los Santos. | |
| 9:00 AM | Hike on the "Camino real Barichara-Guane" | Barichara-Guane | Start of the Camino Real. Take the cars until you reach an area where the vehicle road cuts off the Camino Real toward Guane. | This road is part of the network of trails used during the colonial era as trade routes. These routes broke the commercial secrecy of the department. It is entirely paved, and this particular section is considered a national monument. The road is mostly flat and has a horizontal length of approximately 3.5 km. | |
| 12:00 PM | Lunch | Guane | |||
| 2:00 p.m. | Visit to the "Isaias Ardila Diaz" paleontological museum | Guane | Introduction to local paleontology | ||
| Afternoon | Fossil hunting | Guane | Fossil identification and stratigraphic study | Visit a sedimentary outcrop to practice stratigraphy and general paleontology activities. | |
| Night time | Stay in San Gil | ||||
| Day 5 | 8:00 AM | Start of the day | Barichara-San Gil | ||
| 10:00 AM | Visit to La Mesa de los Santos area | Los Santos | Visit a coffee farm and viewpoints along the route | Coffee tour at farm and visit viewpoints in the area. | |
| 1:00 PM | Lunch | En ruta | Rest and recharge. If you're connecting to Los Santos, there are traditional restaurants like "La Alemana" or "Bonanza" on the way to Los Santos, up the Los Curos-Los Santos Toll Road. | ||
| 2:00 PM | Visit to los Santos village | Los Santos | Visit to Los Santos village | Located in this geographic area is one of the most active seismic nests in the world. | |
| Afternoon | Hike with a paleontologic/anthrpologic focus | Los Santos | The El Diamante area is known for its paleontological potential due to its richness and quality of fossils. It also features associated values such as pictograms of the native Guane culture. | A member of the local indigenous community wil joint for the hike for an explanation | |
| Day 6 | 8:00 AM | Return to Bucaramanga | End of tour |
