In the middle of March, our trio decided to head south and then east from Jerico, high into the mountains, to visit natural hot springs… The road was long, windy, and not without obstacles, but our biggest disappointment was arriving at our camping spot in the rain, with no visibility.
(Hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)
But we woke up with this: blue skies and a view of our surroundings.
Imagine our surprise when we spotted this snow-covered volcano on our early morning walk with Maya.
We had to do a double-take!
At 7am and at an elevation of over 13,000 ft (4,000m), it was cold!
The flora was interesting as well.
I was enamored by all the flowers that bloomed at this altitude.
We couldn’t get enough of this view – Can you see Thirsty Bella?
The other side of the valley. Clouds started to roll in again.
After our morning walk and breakfast, we drove to El Sifon hot springs. It wasn’t even 9am yet and the volcano was already covered by clouds, with fog starting to roll in. But the first few miles were still photogenic, with lots of waterfalls along the road.
Where is the trail?
We managed to find a dirt road at some point and descended about 1,000ft towards the river and the natural hot springs.
We had the area to ourselves!
We found our spot: under the two waterfalls was a small pool.
This was a very scenic area, despite the steam.
After our soak – the contrast between the water and air temperature was huge!
One last shot of El Sifon hot springs!
Then, the walk back up was inevitable. It took forever, since the air was thin and we needed to stop often to catch our breath, especially me.
Back at the parking lot, life went on as always.
On our second morning, I encouraged Mark to take a photo of me and my book, Plunge, in front of the volcano…
That’s when we noticed a slight change in the appearance of Nevado del Ruiz…
Most of the snow had melted and it was spewing steam!
The photos underneath were taken around the same time, early in the morning, two days in a row. Do you notice the difference in the volcano’s appearance?
Mark took this fabulous shot.
Mark, Maya, and I came here in our truck camper Thirsty Bella to check out the hot springs and we received these spectacular views as a bonus! It was one of the quietest places we camped in Colombia. We did have to leave after two nights, though, because it was difficult to sleep and breathe at 13,000ft (4,000m) altitude and the condensation inside the camper was so bad that water kept dripping down from the ceiling!
(A week later, people from the surrounding villages had to be evacuated because of the heightened risk of a volcanic eruption and access to this area became restricted. Until now, nothing dangerous has happened. Read a CNN article here.)
360-degree view on our morning walks with Maya
Curious about a previous ten-year chapter in our nomadic lives, which includes eight years aboard a 35-foot sailboat in the tropics with dogs, check out my compelling, inspiring, and refreshingly honest travel memoir:
May 13, 2023 at 11:01
Such wonderful memories to have when you reach an age where such travel is no longer possible!
May 15, 2023 at 10:29
True that! I have a feeling that by the time this age arrives for me, I’ll be exhausted from all the travels, adventures, and nomadic lifestyle that I’ll crave a bit of peace, comfort, and luxury. 🙂
May 13, 2023 at 13:34
If this post isn’t an advertisement for hiking and nomading, I don’t know what would be. In another life, I’d be in.
May 15, 2023 at 10:31
Haha, Jacqui! I’m glad you enjoyed the photos.
I have so much to catch up on that I’ll have to make my upcoming blogs a bit shorter and faster. Now that we are in Ecuador, Colombia already feels like a lifetime ago. And by the looks of it from other overlanders, scenery like this will become common place further south.
May 13, 2023 at 15:31
What a treat! To see a small (and safe for you) eruption.
Yes, absolutely stunning area.
May 15, 2023 at 10:32
This place was super scenic for us, Alex, and also a bit special because it was the first time on this trip that we witnessed a snowy-peaked, quite active volcano. I’m thinking there will be many more.
May 13, 2023 at 15:59
I’d benefit from a hot springs right now to sooth my aching muscles. I enjoyed the photos and the video, Liesbet!
May 15, 2023 at 10:34
Hi Marian,
Fancy a quick trip to Ecuador? There are many hot springs here and they seem easily accessible so far. Apparently, where there are volcanoes, there are hot pools – commercial and natural. We’d still like to find one in nature with nobody around… I don’t mind the chatting in Spanish, but sometimes, one would like to be left in peace, especially when soaking in hot tubs. 🙂
May 13, 2023 at 17:20
Wow, how cool and a bit terrifying to be in an area with an active volcano. Those hot springs look inviting. I think the steam adds a bit of drama to the scene. Very nice.
May 15, 2023 at 10:39
Hi Suzanne,
It sure was a surprise for us to see that steam on the second morning. I was joking to Mark: “Maybe Ruiz will erupt soon…” Little did we know that a week or so later, this volcano was all over the news and seen as a big threat, because last time it erupted (in1985), more than 20,000 people died. Luckily, Ruiz has behaved so far. https://edition.cnn.com/2023/04/15/americas/nevado-del-ruiz-colombia-volcano-intl-latam
May 13, 2023 at 17:39
Beautiful scenery, Liesbet. How wonderful that you had the place to yourselves. Ecuador has volcanoes and hot springs so you may be able to repeat these experiences in a different country.
May 15, 2023 at 10:41
Hi Natalie,
Your comment came very timely, as we just visited two hot springs in Ecuador this past week and are currently “surrounded” by volcanoes. Unfortunately, it’s been too cloudy to see the (snowy) peaks. Hopefully at some point.
May 14, 2023 at 00:34
Wow, how fascinating to see the volcano wake up… and how lucky that you were able to visit it and leave while it was still safe. That truly is spectacular scenery! I can’t imagine how thin the air must have been for your hike, though – have you ever had a problem with altitude sickness?
May 15, 2023 at 10:47
Hi Diane,
I’m a bit worried about future destinations here in Ecuador, in Peru, and in Bolivia… We “only” stayed at 13,000 feet in Colombia (and had a hard time sleeping and breathing), while future destinations are much higher. A friend gave me some altitude pills and encouraged me to take coco candy.
To answer your question, yes I’ve had problems with altitude sickness in Colorado. While we camped at 10,000ft, my head exploded and I was super nauseous with vomiting as a result. So much that Mark started worrying after a while. We researched altitude sickness and – as many people know – you are supposed to take it slowly as you climb (on foot or by vehicle). The issue in Colorado was that we hiked at a certain elevation and slept at a higher elevation, while you’re supposed to sleep lower than where you spent the day.
This time, we take it easier and slower. Luckily, I didn’t get sick in Colombia – not even a migraine – because we took it easy. Hiking uphill is a task, though, and takes forever. It’s a place where you lose patience with your own body! 🙂
May 15, 2023 at 16:34
I never knew you were supposed to sleep lower than where you spent the day – it makes sense now that you’ve said it, though. I definitely understand what you mean about losing patience with one’s body! Been there; done that. 😉
May 15, 2023 at 17:46
Sorry to read about that body vs. patience ordeal. I hope your back is doing better – slowly but surely! xox
May 14, 2023 at 07:23
So glad you got to hike a paramo – those flowering plants (frailejones) are amazing and not found anywhere else – and also Volcán Ruiz and the hot springs! Did you know Bogota gets most of its drinking water from paramos? That photo of Maya is a keeper!
May 15, 2023 at 10:51
Hi Susan,
I remember we didn’t get to do that paramo walk you and John did out of Mongui, so I’m glad we experienced that habitat after all. I’d heard about frailejones, but didn’t know what they looked like, so thanks for your input here. Initially, the little trees/plants reminded us a bit of Joshua trees, but they are very different. We’ve seen them one other time when crossing a mountain pass in Southern Colombia. Didn’t know about the drinking water in Bogota. Amazing…
May 14, 2023 at 22:37
Hi, Liesbet – What an absolutely incredible experience. I am glad that you are all safe and sound. Thank you for sharing these stunning photos with us.
May 15, 2023 at 10:56
I’m glad you enjoyed the photo shoot, Donna. We have left Colombia and are now in Ecuador, hoping to remain safe and sound. 🙂
May 15, 2023 at 17:55
Yep, it’s not every day one gets to sleep next to a volcano – and a very active one at that! I’m sure it was awesome to see the change in its appearance between the two days, but also probably a bit of a relief to get farther away from it. Volcanoes are definitely not things I want to mess with!!
May 16, 2023 at 17:43
Hi Laura!
It was very cool – and strange – to see the moods of the volcano change. I even made a joke about it to Mark, “predicting” it would explode soon. Luckily, that hasn’t happened this year, despite the worries and warnings. We hope to watch a handful of volcanoes in Ecuador as well but will try to stay away from the overly active ones. 🙂
May 15, 2023 at 18:49
The photos of the volcano are spectacular. How lucky to have been there when you were!
May 16, 2023 at 17:44
Hi Debra,
Yes, we were lucky. First, that we managed to witness this beauty twice before the clouds rolled in and then to see it in very different forms. Hopefully, we can repeat this experience in Ecuador.
May 15, 2023 at 20:39
Wow, fabulous photos. So glad you guys got out before the crazy evacuation time. I would imagine the hot spring was beautifully warm, coming back out into the cold – similar to using a hot tub outdoors in winter here. 🙂 xx
May 16, 2023 at 17:46
Hi Debby,
Yes, the hot springs felt like a hot tub on a cold night in western countries. Except, there you can quickly run inside the house and warm up again under a hot shower, haha. The contrast between the water and the air at 13,000ft (even being this close to the equator) was drastic!
May 16, 2023 at 19:50
Amazing it could be chilly so close to the equator. But you were pretty high up. I know I could feel the air thicker when I went to Sedona, Az 🙂
May 17, 2023 at 11:10
Hi Debby,
I don’t think I’ve ever felt the air thicken. Only thinning (if that’s a word). I’ll have to pay attention to that in the future. I never realized, however, that sleeping becomes troublesome at high altitudes. Something else to keep in mind, together with condensation dripping from the ceiling into our faces, and the chance that the heaters don’t work or the car has problems driving!
May 17, 2023 at 08:21
As you took that road in, I felt apprehensive about all the rain, slippery roads, downed trees, etc. But that view when you woke up was incredible! Having an outing there – down tp the hot springs, which would be so fun – plus seeing the “safe” eruption the next day were huge bonuses. Glad you saw the volcano get a little active before it got potentially dangerous – yikes.
May 17, 2023 at 11:17
Lexie, those rainy, blocked, and half-gone roads were a daily occurrence in Colombia. I used to joke that it was not a matter of “when” but of “if” we’d get to our destination in that country. One of the highlights of Ecuador so far are the amazing roads. 🙂
I guess we did get lucky to check out those hot springs and see the volcano, as access was restricted not much later due to the eruption predictions.
May 18, 2023 at 18:39
So beautiful. What an amazing change with the volcano. The earth is alive!
Of course, you know that photo of Maya is amazing. She looks like she is having a good time!
May 18, 2023 at 21:45
The photos of the volcano and that one of Maya are some of my favorite shots of this year. I think we will see more spectacular scenery further south, but this was our first snow-capped volcano. It made for an awesome background. I wish I could have gotten a close-up of Thirsty Bella with Ruiz behind, but each time we drove out, the volcano had disappeared into the clouds again.
May 19, 2023 at 06:00
Stunning, with the added bonus of a volcano, Liesbet. Those pictures of it are amazing. And it sounds like you got there just in time given that it started to erupt and people were evacuated a few days later.
And I’m so jealous you had those hot springs all to yourselves. The feeling of coming out of them into the colds air must have been invigorating.
Love the shots of Bella almost hidden in the photos.
May 19, 2023 at 17:09
Hi Hugh,
We both enjoy hot springs (we don’t let Maya in them, though), but coming out of them in the cold mountain air is not so enjoyable! 🙂 At the moment, we are again surrounded by volcanos in Ecuador, but the weather up here (10,000ft) is often cloudy, so the snowy peaks have been elusive. This country has a lot of commercial hot springs. We’ve visited two pools so far.
June 23, 2023 at 15:04
Stunning photos of Nevado del Ruiz…its still spewing and very restricted access. You had good timing.
June 23, 2023 at 16:04
Hi Susan,
When I was looking up the spelling of the volcano for the photo caption (it has now been a while since we visited), I saw a lot of articles pop up in the Colombian press, so I assumed it was still active. Not until I actually posted this blog did I see the irony between my title (losing steam) and the steamy volcano, haha.