A return to the mountains of Colombia, with a volcanic twist

Eight years ago I travelled to Colombia to visit the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy region, an area that my Lonely Planet guidebook had enthused about:

This gorgeous slice of heaven on Earth has some of Colombia’s most dramatic landscapes, from snow-capped mountains and raging waterfalls to icy glaciers and crystal-clear blue lakes. Lonely Planet Guide to Colombia

Gushing as this may be, it proved to be accurate enough. The Cocuy Circuit was only a five-day trek, but it was one of the most enjoyable...