The Tatacoa and Tatacoita Deserts are two of the most amazing landscapes that I have seen in Colombia. They are both unique in their maze-like layouts, with trails winding around sandy, rocky pillars. The strong sun brings out the beautiful red clay and makes the rocks shine. In contrast, the deserts vary in size and popularity. While el Desierto Tatacoa is one of Colombia's biggest tourist attractions, el Desierto Tatacoita (or little Tatacoa) is smaller and not as well known. To truly understand the two deserts, let's juxtapose them, or place them next to each other, to really see the similarities and differences!
After la Guajira, the Tatacoa Desert is the second largest arid zone in Colombia. It's so big that it occupies 330 square kilometers, or about 130 square miles, of land! This semiarid region is located close to Neiva, a city that's just a two-hour drive south from Bogotá, but much hotter. Neiva is usually 80 - 90 degrees throughout the year! The Tatacoa Desert has two distinctive colors: ocher, an earthy color that ranges from light yellow, to brown or red, and gray.
The Tatacoa, which means Valley of Sorrows, was named in 1538 by the Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesad.
