An Ode to Los Llanos

The first journey from mountain chill to the warmth of the Llanos

Some journeys begin quietly, long before we realise how much they will matter. My connection to Restrepo started in the early days of my relationship with my wife — a time when everything felt new, hopeful, and full of gentle possibility. One afternoon, she invited me on a trip to a small town in Meta and mentioned, almost casually, that the climate there would feel similar to India. That simple detail lit something inside me, a small warmth in a country that was still becoming home.

I had no way of knowing then that her invitation would lead me toward a landscape that would stay with me for years. I didn’t know that this first descent from the cold of the Andes into the warm, open plains would become a thread woven through my life — or that I would one day be affectionately called el amigo del llano, the Friend of the Plains.

This chapter is my ode to that beginning — to the first journey that opened the door to so many more.

One of my most favourite views of the plains

Restrepo, Meta — A Town at the Foothills

Restrepo is a small town in the department of Meta, about an hour from Villavicencio. It sits in the piedemonte, the transitional belt where the Andes mountains gently surrender to the vast eastern plains of the Orinoquía. The town lies along RN 65, the highway that connects Villavicencio with Yopal — two of the region’s most important urban centres.

RN 65 is the lifeline of the piedemonte, a route you have already met in earlier chapters.

A night time view of Restrepo

The First Visit I Will Never Forget

My first visit to Restrepo still lingers in my mind.

It began like any other trip — or so I thought. Living in the north of Bogotá, I was used to navigating the city through TransMilenio and SITP buses. But this time, we had to reach the main Transport Terminal of Bogotá.

We boarded a TransMilenio to Avenida Rojas, then continued another twenty minutes to the terminal. My girlfriend (then) and wife (now) had invited me to Restrepo to witness a cabalgata, a horse parade where riders and horses perform through a town or between towns. The best horses and their owners win prizes, but the real magic lies in the spectacle itself.

TransMilenio buses on the right and the station. Notice that they have their dedicated lanes

Transportation to Villavicencio

Buying the Tickets

At the terminal, companies like Bolivariano and Flota La Macarena run frequent buses between Bogotá and Villavicencio. In 2026, ticket prices range from COP 48,000 to COP 100,000 depending on the service category. Buying a ticket is straightforward: you line up at the counter, check the departure times, and choose your bus. Tickets purchased directly at the terminal are never oversold — your seat is guaranteed.

What happens after the bus leaves, however, is another story. Once on the road, it is not uncommon for the crew to pick up extra passengers along the way, turning a guaranteed seat into a slightly more crowded journey.

Transport Terminal in Bogotá

Bolivariano bus racing to Villao 

“Why Not Directly to Restrepo?”

After buying our tickets, I asked her why we could not go straight to Restrepo.
She explained that no direct buses existed, and that we would need to find transportation from Villavicencio. But she promised that the ride to Restrepo would be vale la pena — worth every penny.

It took about an hour from the terminal just to exit Bogotá.

From my home to the city limits in the southeast, it is roughly 40 kilometres — a reminder of how vast the capital truly is.

RN 40 — Of Tunnels, Landslides, and Much More

A Highway That Connects Oceans and Plains

The highway from Bogotá to Villavicencio is part of RN 40, a route stretching from the Pacific port of Buenaventura all the way to Puerto Carreño on the Venezuelan border. It is one of Colombia’s great transversal arteries, cutting across mountains, valleys, and eventually the vast eastern plains.

The first of the many tunnels while exiting Bogotá - Argelino Duran Quintero

From the Andes to the Plains

Leaving Bogotá means descending from 2,640 mamsl on the cold Cundiboyacense plateau to 467 mamsl in Villavicencio, the gateway to the plains.

This descent is not just a change in altitude — it is a gradual shedding of layers, a farewell to the Andean cold as the road winds down the foothills and into the warm, wide plains of Colombia.

Typical landscape downhill - Notice the double yellow lines that prohibit overtaking

A Scenic and Complicated Road

RN 40 is beautiful, but unpredictable. The infamous KM 58 in Guayabetal is known for landslides that can halt traffic for hours or days.

Along the way, the scenery never settles. One moment, a tunnel swallows the bus in a sudden rush of darkness; the next, a thin waterfall spills down a cliffside as if it has appeared just for you. A small town flickers past the window before you can catch its name. The road tightens into a sharp curve that pulls your attention forward, followed by a warning sign about unstable terrain. Then comes the spray — a cool mist drifting across the windshield, or brushing your face if the window is open — a brief reminder that the mountains are still close, even as the plains begin to call.

The vegetation transforms too, from high‑altitude shrubs to the lush, vibrant greens of the tropics.

The infamous KM 58 point - Known for landslides, just outside the town of Guayabetal

View of the town of Une, Cundinamarca

Landscape around the municipality of Chipaque, Cundinamarca

When the Landscape Changes, the People Do Too

As the altitude drops, the transformation is not only in the environment — it is in the people.
Ruanas fade away, one by one, like quiet reminders of the cold left behind. Heavy coats and wool scarves give way to lighter, brighter, more relaxed clothing. It is as if Bogotá’s wardrobe melts into the warm palette of the Llanos.

By the outskirts of Villavicencio, the shift is unmistakable. Colours replace layers. Shoulders appear. Fabrics flow. Dresses become playful, airy, and tuned to the heat that wraps itself around everything. It feels like stepping into another season, another mood, another Colombia.

Another tunnel in RN 40 | Certain sections of the highway have 2 lanes each way, this tunnel is one such section

A bridge over Río Negro between the towns of Quetame and Guayabetal

The newest section in RN 40, that is built to skip the KM 58 entirely | In the left you can notice the KM 58 point

Food, Tunnels, and the Final Stretch

The highway is dotted with restaurants, so hunger is never a threat — whether you are in a bus or a car.

After passing Chipaque, Cáqueza, Quetame, and Guayabetal — all part of the Eastern Province of Cundinamarca — you cross one last tunnel, Pipiral, and officially enter the department of Meta.

Streams, rivers, mountains, tunnels, towns — and then suddenly, the world opens.

The Río Negro at this point forms the border between Cundinamarca (left) and Meta (right)

The Plains Unfold

As we exited the Pipiral tunnel, the great plains stretched out before us. The air felt different — lighter, warmer, infused with the relaxed confidence that people from the Llanos carry naturally.

Arriving at the Villavicencio terminal, the doors opened not to Andean cold, but to a hotter, more rhythmic air. A sign greeted us loudly:

“Bienvenidos a Villavicencio, la puerta del llano.”
Welcome to Villavicencio, the gateway to the plains.

The final approach to Villavicencio - Note the plains in the front | The highway is 4 laned at this point

Memories of my first trip - This was in Villavicencio in the founders park

The Journey Continues

She laughed when I asked where the bus to Restrepo was.
“Buses? No, we’re taking a campero,” she said, already leading the way toward the heat outside the terminal.

I followed her, unaware of what that simple moment truly meant. I didn’t know that this short ride — dusty, warm, and tucked into the rhythm of Villavicencio — would become the first of hundreds of journeys to Restrepo. I did not know that the plains would one day feel familiar, or that the road ahead would weave itself so deeply into my life.

But that part of the story begins with the campero.

And that is where the next chapter takes us.