Good to know
Warning
This post was written at a time when it was still possible to stay in Utria and enjoy the park in a privileged way..
Today, it’s only possible to go there for day trips, and it’s no longer possible to sleep inside the park, which changes everything .
It is therefore no longer possible to do most of the activities we were lucky enough to experience on site. This post is therefore an “archive” of a magical moment that we experienced, but which it won’t be possible to experience for yourself.
Disclaimer: we apologize in advance for any grammatical or syntactic errors, as our native language is not English (we're a Colombian-French couple), so we hope you'll forgive us and still enjoy the information we share with you! Please note that all the information on our blog is based on our own experience, and is checked and updated regularly.
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Utria
THE BEAUTIFUL SLEEPING WOMAN
In the indigenous language, Utria means “beautiful sleeping woman”. Words have meaning, and no words could better express this body of soothing water, lying on the edge of the ocean, concentrating all the wild magic of nature in its belly.
Utria.
You have to live it to believe it. You have to hear it, feel it, touch it, taste it to hope you can talk about it. A unique place like no other on the planet. Like no other.
Utria.
Repeating and repeating its name, pinching and pinching again, rubbing your eyes, shaking your head, checking and rechecking. Like Atlantis, like a lost city, like a garden of Babylon… Did we really experience what we experienced? Did we really see what we saw? Was it only a dream? A mirage? An illusion?
Utria.
The beautiful sleeping woman welcomes into her bosom, wrapping her warm arms around all living beings, animals, plants, us and all the others, all the others and us, all of us. The beautiful woman doesn’t really sleep, she watches over the world with her benevolent gaze, offering a refuge, an ark, a warrior’s rest.
Utria.
Utria.
Utria.
If her name is repeated three times, can we be sure of her existence? Will you believe us? Will you believe this story? But above all, how to tell the story? How to describe without vulgarizing? How do we honor the chance that the beautiful sleeping woman gave us on that September day, engraved forever in each of our little cells?
Ensenada de Utria, home of the world
UTRIA NATIONAL PARK
The Utria estuary is a sanctuary for the many animals that come here daily or seasonally to enjoy its calm waters, to feed, reproduce and give birth. From the planet’s largest marine mammals to the smallest living species, the world is invited to find here the ideal conditions to live in peace and harmony.
Utria is the world’s home, a place where people feel safe and secure, where they can rest before setting off on their next adventure. Here, people are at nature’s service, observing, protecting, studying and allowing the luckiest travellers to do the same.
Utria is a nature reserve covering several thousand square kilometers, located midway between the villages of El Valle and Nuqui on Colombia’s Pacific coast, in the department of Choco.
The Utria National Park features the waters of the Pacific Ocean, a dense and furiously vibrant primary forest, an immense mangrove swamp with a wide variety of mangroves, and islets straight out of a fairytale around which hundreds of birds circle in the sky.
There are also three Embera reserves, the native indigenous people of the region nestling far along the rivers that criss-cross the mountain, which rises to an altitude of over 1400 m and is often lost in a mysterious mist.
One of the greatest biodiversities on the planet exists here, with thousands of plant species and hundreds of species of mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, crustaceans and coral reefs… Its relative isolation has given rise to endemic species, only observable in this ecosystem.
Jaguar, Puma, Howler monkey, Oncilla, Spider monkey, Douroucouli, Fierce harpy, Military macaw, Toucans, Caimans, Iguanas, Poison frogs, Deer, Fox, Sloths, Anteaters, Tapirs, Boa constrictor… and a thousand and one other species!
Every year, three species of endangered sea turtle come to lay their eggs on the deserted beaches during migration… Orcas, sperm whales and humpback whales come to parade lovingly and give birth to their young… Utria, the home of the world!
What to do in Utria National Park
ECOTOURISM ACTIVITIES
Since the closure of accommodation in Utria NPN, many activities are no longer accessible.
Mangrove trail
Open to all, even day-trippers, this trail is run by the official guides of Colombia’s national parks.
The trail literally takes you into the mangrove via a system of footbridges over the water. The tour, led by the guide, teaches us a great deal about this unique ecosystem and the flora and fauna that occupy it.
We’re alone with the guide and the conversation rambles on about the life of a park warden and the passion that drives them. In this effervescence of life, we see nothing, he sees everything. He shows us the birds there, the fish there, the flowers here, and then suddenly a flight of Toucans!
(Utria National Park is a great place for birdwatching in Colombia)
We really wanted to see them, and there they were! As a family with their huge bright yellow beaks, they fly from tree to tree, playing hide-and-seek, then BOOM!
Like a shotgun blast. The noise is impressive and echoes throughout Ensenada. We look at each other, bewildered, then the guide urges us on: it’s the whales! They’re in the estuary! That’s the sound of them jumping!
Quickly, we run to try and catch a glimpse of them, but by the time we reach the shore, they’re already long gone… but that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Playa blanca
The next day we head for Playa Blanca, one of the local attractions. There are day tours that take tourists only to the mangrove trail and Playa Blanca.
It’s one of the region’s only clear-sand beaches, with turquoise water and numerous coral reef formations for snorkelling and eye candy.
But what happened that day was nothing compared to the beauty of the seabed at Playa Blanca. The magical setting prompted me to get out the drone to immortalize this meeting of colors between the forest and the azure sea.
In the distance, a small boat in the middle of the water stops, a sign that something is happening… and the show begins. It’s a mother whale with her calf, as happy as a child learning to jump and wag its tail!
As privileged spectators, we take our places in the front row, on the rocks at the tip of the island, and the ballet lasts for almost an hour without interruption. The mother whale and her calf remain just a few dozen meters away. An hour of pure wild magic.
The rain falls like a curtain, the emotions fall on us like too heavy for our shoulders, like a feeling of having dreamed, of having to rub our eyes, pinch ourselves, look at ourselves, smile at ourselves, and wonder if it was all real, what we’ve experienced has to be digested, our eyes in the haze, it’s time to head back to El Valle..
See you soon, Ensenada de Utria… See you soon!
Get in touch with a local agency
Visit Utria National Park
Responsible tourism
Our partner is a native guide from the village of El Valle.and takes pride in working with the local community to showcase the wonders of its region.
How to get to Utria
PNN Utria can be reached from Nuqui, El Valle or Bahia Solano by lancha (boat). The simple wat is to book a day tour. Ask your accommodation for details, and they’ll be happy to organize your outing.
Hello Samuel,
After contacting Andaldo, they told us that at the moment, we could no longer spend the night in the park and offered us only accommodation for a minimum of 3 nights in Guachalito with a package of associated activities (it’s a shame they replied so late, as we had already booked our accommodation, including one in El Morro, following your advice)
Do you know if the park is still open for a day trip?
And do you know if there is a hotel near the park entrance?
Many thanks again for this blog, which we’ll be using as a basis for our tour of Colombia in September.
Hello Anne, yes indeed it is currently no longer possible to sleep inside the park, we will update the article immediately, the Mano Cambiada association is currently renegotiating the terms of the concession with the natural parks. That said, the park’s classic activities – the mangrove woodland trail and Playa blanca – remain open to day visits. There are no hotels near the park, but from El Valle it’s an easy day trip by lancha.
Hello Samuel and Angélica,
Thanks to all your advice and information, our itinerary is taking shape and we’ll be staying 6 days on the Pacific coast: 2 nights in El Vallee (hotel el moro) 1 day and night in Utria Park and 2 nights in Guachalito (the beach further south).we’re thinking of doing what you did for the activities in Utria Park (mangroves and playa cocalito , luminous plankton in the evening.have time to kayak and snorkel, and that’s inside the Park?
But, I don’t quite understand, playa blanca, the jujubira terms, we do them with a guide, but not necessarily with the park?
If you sleep in the park and leave the next day, do you have to pay for another entrance?
Thank you for clarifying these points for me, and for the whales, aren’t we obliged to go through the park?
thank you very much for all your reports, which I’m using as a basis for our September trip.
Hi Anne, thanks for your comment! It’s great that you can stay for a while on the Pacific coast, you’ll love it. In fact, all the activities we mentioned in our article can be done with the teams on site in Utria Park, including Playa Blanca. As for Jurubira, it’s a bit different, so you’ll have to check with the Andando teams to see if they can offer you this additional excursion to coincide with the rest of your stay in Nuqui. You only have to pay the park entrance fee once, but if you stay overnight, it’s normally included in the price. Then for the whales, if all goes well you’ll see them during your stay in Utria from the coast (which is what happened for us in Playa Blanca for example), but also during your journeys by lancha from point A to point B and if not, yes, all the hotels in El Valle or Guachalito will offer you excursions. Any time you’re on the water is a great opportunity to see whales, as they can appear anywhere at any time 😉 We’ve seen them every day, up close and personal.
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Noted 🙂
Hello,
How many days are needed to enjoy Utria Park?
Thank you for your answer 🙂
Hi Laura, we stayed there for one night, arriving early in the morning and leaving the next day in the afternoon, and as you can see from the article, we’ve already enjoyed ourselves 😉 Afterwards, if you have the budget, staying here will allow you to be accompanied on other outings, such as to the thermal baths, or to meet the Embera natives…
Hello,
Do you know when is the best time to observe turtles?
Thank you
Hélène
Hello, are you looking for the best time to see turtles laying eggs on the Pacific coast? If so, on the Pacific coast, the egg-laying season runs from July to November. Hatching takes place about 2 months later, i.e. between September and January.
Hello
Beautiful article and more beautiful pictures
A whole experience worth having and repeating again
Love for life and for Colombia in every sentence
A hug
ANOTHER
Thank you very much Octavio, you yourself know the beauty of this place … to return if !