Torotoro National Park

Torotoro is a small park in a tilted landscape of exposed Cretaceous rock, and the tilting is what makes it remarkable: bedding planes that were once mudflats now stand at an angle across the hillsides, and along them run thousands of dinosaur footprints, sauropod and theropod trackways preserved where the animals walked. Some are metres across. The Torotoro canyon drops sharply from the village, with a long stairway down to the Vergel waterfall and pools. Umajalanta is the country's deepest known cave, entered on a caving trip involving crawls and a rope descent, with blind cave fish in its pools. Everything in the park requires a local guide, which is a rule and also the local economy.

What you actually see

• Dinosaur trackways - thousands of footprints across tilted rock slabs.
• Torotoro canyon and El Vergel - a long stairway to waterfalls and swimming pools.
• Umajalanta cave - the deepest known cave in Bolivia, with blind cave fish.
• Ciudad de Itas - eroded rock formations and shelters with cave paintings.

When to go

April to October, the dry season; the road becomes very difficult in the rains and the canyon can flood. Weekends bring Bolivian visitors from Cochabamba.

Honest expectations

The road from Cochabamba is rough and long, and buses take five hours or more; motion sickness is common. Guides are compulsory and hired at the park office, which means fixed group departures rather than going when you like. The canyon stairway is a serious climb back up at altitude. Caving involves genuine crawling and is not for the claustrophobic.

Nearby

Cochabamba is the gateway city; the Chapare valley lies northeast.