Hemmy with Gonzalo Milan, our guide for Torotoro

If you're on a tight budget, you'll need to have time to spare. The locals' transport is a bus from Cochabamba that only travels a few times each week and takes 10 hours or more to reach Torotoro. It's likely to be standing room only, and sometimes the bus breaks down. Once there, you can probably find a local guide for a few dollars per day. Local lodging is cheap as well. But if, like us, you're trying to pack as much as possible into a typically short American vacation, take a tour.

The best-known agency in Cochabamba is Fremen, which charges $270 for a 3-day tour. The price is for two people, including "express" transport by 4x4 (about 4.5 hours), lodging, food, and 3 days with a guide. We were on a tighter budget, so on another traveler's recommendation we contacted Gonzalo Milan, who runs a smaller agency called Dino Tours. For the same deal, Gonzalo charges $150 for two, although this price was disputed once on the road.

True budget travelers will find even $150 for 3 days difficult to swallow, especially as this is hardly a luxury tour—the lodging and food are very basic and there's a whole lotta hiking. However, for those determined to visit the park, the time saved in transport alone will make it worthwhile. In addition, Gonzalo uses the nicer hostal built with government money (still very basic!) and employs two helpful and entertaining assistants, which also factors into the cost. For travelers with a more flexible budget, Gonzalo's tour is a good option.

E-mail Gonzalo Milan or call 04-422-0207.

BRING:

Typical hiking terrain

• Be sure to wear good boots, as the tour involves three days of hiking.

• Warm clothes are important at night, but it's quite pleasant during the day for hiking.

• For caving, I wouldn't recommend wearing jeans—you will definitely get wet and VERY dirty.

• There is an option to swim in the natural pools of the canyons so bring bathing gear if it's not too cold—in September it was only about upper-70s during the day and the water was chilly so we sunbathed instead.

• Mosquito repellent is not necessary at this altitude.

• Bring plenty of sunblock!

Getting Around

Within the tiny town, everything is in walking distance. As for getting to Torotoro and around to the park's various sights, Gonzalo drove us as far as the car could go. I don't think most of the other tourists we saw had a driving option, but for serious hikers it's not necessary. The furthest site we visited was Umajulanta cave, 9 kilometers out of town. Gonzalo drove us to the "parking lot," about 1 kilometer from the cave—not necessarily a simple stroll if you're not acclimatized yet. Other tourists either walk the 2 hours to the cave or simply skip it.

Our trusty vehicle

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