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Moon Valley

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SeenThat
SeenThat
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Editor Pick

Valley of the Moon

  • September 10, 2009
  • Rated 4 of 5 by LenR from Townsville, Australia
Valley of the Moon

From La Paz’s southernmost suburbs, a road follows the course of the Rio Choqueyapu southeast towards Mallasa. Before long it enters a stretch of eerie, cactus-strewn badlands known as the Valle de la Luna.

Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley) is located about 10 kilometers from the city center. This eroded hillside maze of canyons and pinnacles is strikingly different to most of La Paz and a great place to visit. It is undoubtedly the most interesting trip close to La Paz city and need only take a couple of hours of your time. Don’t miss it.

The Valle de la Luna is not a valley, but a badlands of gullies, rock formations and weird shapes along the canyon of the Choqueyapu River. Scarred by deep canyons and strange formations of clay and rock carved by seasonal rains into pinnacles in part resembling church organ pipes, the valley is a popular excursion from the city. Naturally it has become a tourist attraction and now parts are fenced off and you pay an admission fee to enter. This, however, has the advantage that money is spent on tracks and signboards so you can move around easily without getting lost.

Once you enter there are two recommended circuits. The first only takes about 15 minutes and gives you an overview of the place. The longer one takes about 45 minutes and takes you past features such as the Silence Canyon, the Lady’s Hat, the Devil’s Viewpoint, Turtle Hill and the Window of the South. This shows you that there is considerable diversity within this area. A recent addition to the place is a modern sculpture by ceramic artist Mario Sarabia. There is a souvenir shop, a handicraft shop and cafe.

To get to the Valley of the Moon you can take any public bus from the El Prado with the signs Mallasilla or Mallasa on the placard in the front window. These include the big yellow micro bus number 11 and minibuses 273,231, 351 and 379. You can also call a taxi on 2745151. Certainly some of the features can be seen from the road but I recommend that you pay the admission price if you want to fully understand this quite fascinating area. There are some great photographic opportunities here.

From journal La Paz Sightseeing

Editor Pick

Chacaltaya Mountain and Moon Valley

  • February 7, 2008
  • Rated 5 of 5 by SeenThat from Tel Aviv, Israel
Chacaltaya Mountain and Moon Valley

The Chacaltaya Mountain and the Moon Valley are both nearby downtown La Paz and are offered as a single combined day tour by all the travel agents in town. The visits’ order is set according on the season and weather. A combined tour costs around 50BOB (slightly above $6.5) per person; usually there are daily departures from Sagarnaga Street near the San Francisco Church.

Chacaltaya

The similarities between Kathmandu and La Paz are often striking; however, when I was in Nepal, reaching Kalla Pattar - just above the Everest Base Camp at around 5600 meters - took me almost three weeks, most of them walking, while La Paz offers a half a day tour up to the Chacaltaya at 5395 meters, with most of the way made by car.

Ski and Global Warming

The Chacaltaya was until a few years ago the highest developed ski area in the world, but the global warming has left only a few patches of an unfed glacier without any snow. Nowadays, the most of the year brown mountain is dwarfed among tallest, snowed peaks.

Climbing

The tourists’ minivan reaches an Alpine hut at 5300 meters and from there, the visitors walk to the summit the remaining ninety-five meters. The event looks insignificant, but most visitors arrive without a proper acclimatization and should thus take care.

The Alpine Hut

The hut was the ski service centre in the past but nowadays it just charges the entry fee (10BOB, $1.25) and offers hot drinks at a quasi-improvised cafeteria. From the hut a nearby summit with a cable tow is clearly seen; this is the false summit at 5375m. Behind it and out of sight is the real summit at 5395m; for reaching the real one, the false summit must be reached and from there the left side of the fork in the path must be taken take.

Timing

If visiting during the rainy summer, the best is timing the visit after a rain, so that the mountain would be white with snow.

Altitude

It is better to attempt the task after acclimatizing a bit to La Paz altitude, but due to the short distance climbed, it is doable without that as well. The statistics favor the last option: one of the members in our car felt bad and vomited, but all the others felt great. While climbing avoid running; there is no way the scarce oxygen would allow such a feat.

Surroundings

The beautiful Huayna Potosi, 6088m, is close enough for touching; the visit is a good opportunity for inspecting the eastern path leading to its top. Treks of three days leading to its summit are easily available from La Paz. The Illimani and the Mururata mountains can be seen in a clear day, the last one revealing its duo of peaks, which are only hinted from the city. Beyond the Huayna the impressive Condoriri and Illampu mountains can be seen in humble side views.

Security

Approaching the Chacaltaya by foot or rented car is tempting due to its closeness to El Alto. However, gangs occupy the nearby areas and the experience is not recommended; apparently part of the experience relatively steep fee goes as protection money.

Cafeteria

The cafeteria at the Alpine Hut is rather basic, neither the hot chocolate nor the coffee there are worth mentioning. Despite that, a hot drink before and after the climbing is almost imperative; thus, my best recommendation is to bring a thermos – a cup of coffee at the summit itself is quite cool.

Moon Valley

Every self-respecting country has a Moon Valley. China has it in Guilin; Thailand has it in northern Isaan, not far from Lom Sak and Bolivia has it in La Paz, ten kilometers from the city centre down the canyon of the Choqueyapu River.

Alternative Transport

To get there, catch Bus 11 from El Prado, downtown’s main avenue built over the Choqueyapu River, and ask to be shown the entrance to the "Valle de la Luna."

Mallasa

The Moon Valley is located in the Mallasa borough of La Paz. That’s the city lowest part, well below the staggering 4019m above the sea level where it touches El Alto, but still 3100m. Being in the southernmost part of the city, it hosts some of the wealthiest neighborhoods in town as well as the highest golf club in the world.

The Park

The park charges a 15BOB (roughly $2) fee and is divided in two areas: an open to all one and a fenced one enclosing the best views.

Several paths lead the visitor among wonderful limestone creations; sometimes the path – including its classy stairways - had been carved just in them. On one spot – an almost vertical column which seems impossible to climb – stands a local man dressed up in traditional Aymara clothes while playing the flute. Showing the flying capacity of a condor, he re-appears next to the end of the path asking for donations.

From journal La Paz: Illimani's Amphitheatre

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