Larry Memmott's Blog

This is a great little trip, especially if you hike it.  And since there is also a road, you might be able to get someone to drive and that way you only need to hike in one direction. Laguna Serkhe Kkota (Q’uta is Aymara for lake, and gets masacred in place names throughout this part […]

This is probably my favorite place close to La Paz.  It’s the most inaccessible set of lakes up the Khallapa River Valley, is the most challenging hike, and the payback is also the highest.  Laguna Jachcha Khasiri is quite large and a spectacular blue color.  The small lake another mile beyond is unnamed on the […]

The Sajama National Park was the first protected area created in Bolivia (in 1939), and it’s easy to see why.  The park is a spectacular swath of altiplano, centered on the Nevado Sajama, the highest mountain in the country.  It includes pampas and bofedales, lagunas and glaciers, hot springs and geysers, llamas, alpacas, vicuñas, flamingos, […]

Many of my favorite memories of my first time in Bolivia, 25 years ago, involve days spent hiking, fishing, and floating around on the lakes (lagunas) in the Andes above La Paz.  When I returned to Bolivia, two of the questions in the back of my mind were, “Will they still be there?” and “Will […]

We enjoyed a glorious day on the Altiplano on Sunday.  Our plan was to drive a loop south of La Paz, visiting several colonial-era churches, a mining town, and some Inca and Pre-Inca ruins as well as Comanche and the famed Queen of the Andes.  In fact, we had such a good time in Comanche […]

That’s the English translation of the theme of the new Bolivian tourism campaign (Bolivia te espera). Take a look at the ads. They may be a bit repetitive, but they give you a good idea of some of the beauties of Bolivia. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goR8GRPlLbE&feature=youtu.be[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2rRn7ZurvI&feature=youtu.be[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXI5SPaM_s8&feature=youtu.be[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu-1L8fkvv8&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]

The valley of the moon is one of the closest and easiest trips out of La Paz. In fact, these days it is hardly even out of La Paz, as the south zone of the city (Zona Sur) continues to creep down the valley. The formation is of heavily compressed dirt and clay, which has […]

Bolivia is beautiful, no doubt about it.  This is just the view from the bedroom window of our temporary house.