This road cycling tour in Medellín follows a stretch of the Autopista Medellín–Bogotá that most travellers only see from a bus window. It starts just outside Marinilla, at 2,089 metres, and finishes 30 kilometres later in Cocorná, at 1,301 metres. In between there’s a real descent and a bit of real climbing too, about 6 kilometres of it, which is why we ride road bikes on this tour instead of the mountain bikes we use elsewhere. The climbs are short enough to enjoy on smooth pavement rather than dread.
The road carries traffic. It’s wide and a little rough in places, which tends to keep vehicles from moving fast, and there’s a shoulder the whole way where we ride. Your guide leads and the support vehicle follows behind the group. If you’d rather avoid climbing and traffic, consider our descent down the abandoned Boquerón road.
Around an hour in, there’s a stop with a view over the Cocorná valley, where paragliders drift overhead most mornings. From there the road drops toward the river.
Charco Negro is the destination: a stretch of the Cocorná river with several pools at different depths, framed by large stones. Some are shallow enough to wade into and relax. The deepest sits below stones three to six metres tall, and confident swimmers use them to jump. The trail down from the parking area is steep and a little tricky, so it’s worth allowing time for it.
Lunch is fiambre — seasoned rice, meats and fried plantain wrapped in banana leaf — bought fresh on the way out of the city from a restaurant known for it. We eat it by the river after the swim. From there, you can ride part of the climb back toward the vehicle, or just get in and relax.
