National Geographic | THE COMPASS

National Geographic

THE COMPASS

PHOTOGRAPH BY ANTONIO GALANTE, VWPICS, REDUX

Emerald mountains, quaint colonial towns, irresistible coffee, and the nostalgic strains of vallenato music—Colombia’s riches have been inaccessible to travelers for decades, but the country is emerging from its tumultuous past following a landmark 2016 peace treaty. Join us this week as we're on the trail of a notorious sloth cartel kingpin, see how a "baby boom" among Colombian rebels was a sign of hope but now represents uncertainty, and sip your way through the country's coffee towns.

Let's explore Colombia.

ANIMALS

A young man offers a baby three-toed sloth for sale to passersby on a highway in Altos de Polonia, in northwestern Colombia.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JUAN ARREDONDO

A notorious sloth cartel kingpin vanished. We tried to find him.

In northwestern Colombia, poached baby sloths are sold to tourists as pets. For decades, one man appeared to dominate the trade.

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Inside a homemade incubator room in the village of Cotocá Arriba, Córdoba, a critically endangered Magdalena river turtle takes its first look at the world as it emerges from its shell.

PHOTOGRAPH BY GENA STEFFENS

Critically endangered turtles under siege during Lent

In Colombia, intensive poaching in the weeks leading up to Easter threatens the long-term survival of two turtle species.

Barely bigger than an inch, a wild endangered golden poison frog packs enough poison to kill 10 adult men. In captivity, it loses its toxicity.

PHOTOGRAPH BY GENA STEFFENS

How one man is working to save one of the world's most poisonous animals

The illegal trade in poison frogs for pets has pushed some to the brink of extinction.

HISTORY & CULTURE

At the Anorí demobilization camp in Colombia, Luz Arelis Duque, 32, looks after her eight-year-old daughter María Isabel and her three-year-old neighbor Camila.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JUAN ARREDONDO

‘Baby boom’ among Colombian rebels was a sign of hope. Now the families face uncertainty.

Former FARC guerrillas fear their new families will be caught up in old cycles of violence if the peace agreement crumbles.

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The Arhuaco, an indigenous group in northern Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta massif, consider their home to be a sacred place that they must protect for the good of all humanity.

PHOTOGRAPH BY STEPHEN FERRY,
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

Indigenous protectors of these sacred peaks have kept others out—till now

The Arhuaco invite National Geographic to the upper reaches of their Colombian homeland to reveal threats we all face—and remind us of our roots in nature.

Former FARC fighter Esperanza Medina holds her seven-month-old daughter, Desiree Paz, at the transitional and normalization zone in Pondores, La Guajira, Colombia.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JUAN ARREDONDO

Former FARC rebel discovers hope and peace in motherhood

After 26 years of fighting for Colombia's resistance movement, Esperanza traded in her uniform for life as a mother.

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Ati Quigua performs a ritual to protect a river in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains in northern Colombia’s Cesar Department.

PHOTOGRAPH BY FLORENCE GOUPIL

They’re defending their land—and paying with their lives

Since a 2016 peace deal, nearly 1,300 Colombians living in former guerrilla territories have been killed resisting mining, logging, and drugs.

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Golden twins embody the delicacy and skill of Tairona craftsmanship.

WERNER FORMAN / GTRES

Tales of ancient treasures lured looters to Colombia's 'Lost City'

When looters targeted Teyuna, ancient capital of the Tairona people, archaeologists scrambled to save this repository of Colombia’s past.

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TRAVEL

DREAM NOW, GO LATER

Tayrona National Park is home to tropical beaches where even jaguars roam.

PHOTOGRAPH BY MIKE THEISS

This country is a haven for biodiversity

Home to 10 percent of the world's flora and fauna species, this nation is blossoming into the world's next ecotourism hotspot.

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Pueblito Paisa is situated on a hill in the center of Medellín, Colombia.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JAVIER LARREA,
AGE FOTOSTOCK / GETTY IMAGES

Discover the best of Medellín

Plan your South American getaway with these top 10 tips.

A Kogi farmer in El Trompito, an indigenous community on the outskirts of Tayrona National Park, harvests mature coffee.

PHOTOGRAPH BY FRANCESCO LASTRUCCI

Sip your way through Colombia’s coffee towns

A new coffee destination bears fruit in the country’s north.

WHERE WILL WE JOURNEY TO NEXT?

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