Sucre: In The Footsteps Of Dinosaurs
No doubt about it, the centre of the city of Sucre is beautiful. Picture a city brimming with grandiose white buildings, each looking as if they’ve had a recent paint job from top to bottom, where armies of street cleaners are busy sweeping the sidewalks, where a battalion of gardeners are tending to every ornate corner of each smart plaza. Sucre is a city with all the grandeur of a Spanish gem, all the majesty of Vienna, but on a much smaller scale than either. Add a calm, relaxed atmosphere and one of the lowest crime rates of all South American cities and you have a very pleasing and welcoming destination.
Despite being only Bolivia’s sixth largest city, it is in fact Sucre and not, as I’ve always believed, La Paz, which is the country’s capital. (Although most text books will tell you that La Paz is the “de facto” capital, whatever that means). No way does Sucre feel like a capital city, it’s far too genteel for that. Perhaps that’s why they’re so keen to make the point: signs reading “SUCRE – CAPITAL” are everywhere and even the waiters are eager to make sure that you know.
After three weeks at high altitude it feels pretty good to be breathing normally, good to be able to walk these lovely streets without having to pause every few minutes to calm the heart rate. Sucre is still at 2,750m above sea level, but that constitutes a significant drop from where we’ve been. Apart from strolling its sidewalks and plazas, and admiring Sucre’s many churches and grand buildings, there is just outside of town another remarkable site to add to the many we’ve already seen on this journey.
The Cal Orck’o has an intriguing prehistoric story to tell. So to get out of town to see it for ourselves we board the “dino bus” (I kid you not) in the main plaza and head out to see something quite astonishing. As we approach Cal Orck’o there is nothing to see except extensive quarry works, something that looks like (and is) a cement factory, and a huge sweeping wall of a cliff clearly created by quarrying on a major scale. This apparently nondescript sheer mountain hides an amazing secret.
Sometime around 1994 , quarrymen began to notice strange shapes in the earth as they wore away the surface, shapes which became even more bizarre as wind and rain eroded the topsoil. Alerted to the possibility of a major discovery, palaeontologists led by one Christian Meyer came to Sucre in 1998 to investigate further. What they uncovered is sensational.
Studies revealed that what was now a steep mountain had once been flatlands adjacent to a lake, later to be forced upwards by tectonic movement as the mountains of South America were formed. The strange shapes in the earth which had captured everyone’s attention were, as had been suspected, the footprints of dinosaurs, many forming unbelievably clear tracks through the mud.
So far, over 5,000 footprints have been uncovered, left by nine different dinosaur species and dating from something like 68 million years ago – though some of those 5,000 have since been destroyed when part of the site collapsed during heavy rain. Now, the race is on to preserve and protect: with the prints left in what is virtually a sheer cliff, the wind, the rain and plant growth all threaten their longevity, and with the best will in the world these incredible echoes of history probably won’t be here for ever. For now though the prints are a fantastic sight, as evidenced by Michaela’s photographs.
We’ve seen some wonderful and incredible natural phenomena on this great journey; the world’s biggest and best preserved set of dinosaur tracks is yet another. What an amazing journey this has been.
It’s a bit of a wrench to leave Sucre, and our accommodation here, both of which are really lovely, as we head now to what is effectively our last destination of this fabulous trip, the village of Samaipata. A short flight to Santa Cruz followed by a much longer drive, brings us to probably the only landscape we haven’t yet seen on this journey through Peru and Bolivia – rolling, lush green countryside.
It’s not unusual for us to finish our trips with chill time on the coast, but of course with Bolivia being a landlocked country it isn’t possible this time, so a small unassuming village with sumptuous views was our hope. First impressions are that Samaipata will deliver exactly that: it looks perfect.
“If you want to get to know everyone, just go for beer or wine at Boheme”, says our host Andres, “Kirsty will introduce you to everybody”.
Well. Our final few days could be just the chill time we’re looking for.
22 Comments
Monkey's Tale
Love them both! We saw dinasaur footprints near Cochabamba. Fascinating isn’t it?!
Phil & Michaela
Sure is. Yet again just amazing to stand there and think for a minute, exactly what it is that we’re looking at.
Eha Carr
I find it hard to believe my own ignorance until now! It’s impossible to put into words what you have taught me about both the past and present on this concluding journey – the facts about the footprints being totally new and fascinating 🙂 ! Thank you . . . my main frustration with myself is the fact that all this elegance and style and its concomitant history has been there for centuries, part of ‘our’ globe . . . one realizes how much one does not know . . .
Phil & Michaela
It’s just incredible to stand there and know that what you’re seeing was placed there 68 million years ago. Slightly hard to comprehend in a way. A very different experience from the previous stop and going down the silver mine (I think you may have missed that one..pretty sure you would have been shocked 😂😂)
Steven and Annie Berger
So sorry the trip is ending. Sucre is a great stop. You are sooo close to Easter Island😀. I’ve loved all your posts and can’t wait to read about future adventures.
Steve
Phil & Michaela
It’s been absolutely incredible and we definitely have unfinished business in South America. Thank you so much Steven, your comments and compliments are always very much appreciated.
WanderingCanadians
Sucre looks lovely. The dinosaur footprints are so fascinating. It’s hard to believe the mountain was once flat. Here’s hoping they’re able to preserve them. By the way, I’m not ready for your trip to end! We are seriously considering visiting South America next year now.
Phil & Michaela
We are leaving feeling that we definitely have unfinished business with South America. After Brazil last year and now this incredible journey, we are utterly sold and completed fascinated by all it has to offer.
Toonsarah
Sucre looks absolutely charming 🙂 I think I remember reading that it was the capital but somehow that piece of information hadn’t ‘stuck’ and if you’d asked me I’d have said La Paz! As for those dinosaur footprints, they are awesome (in the proper sense of the word) 😀
Phil & Michaela
Definitely…just the thought that you’re looking at something 68 million years old is pretty incredible
Helen Devries
Those footprints…..most have been an uncanny experience.
Phil & Michaela
Definitely a bit strange looking at footprints which are 68 million years old.
Lookoom
Having travelled in the opposite direction, I used Sucre to acclimatise to the altitude before Potosi and Uyuni. I also really liked the architectural whiteness and clarity of the sky. The two combined to create an exotic and relaxing atmosphere.
Phil & Michaela
It’s an extremely attractive city, isn’t it…
grandmisadventures
Those buildings are really stunning! And dinosaur footprints too- what a cool place! 🙂
Phil & Michaela
Yep, just a little out of the ordinary!
wetanddustyroads
You’re right Phil, those are beautiful buildings and riding in a dino bus to see dinosaur footprints … just when I think I’ve seen everything on your blog, there’s another surprise!
Phil & Michaela
Yep, that was a bit out of the ordinary, to say the least!
I. J. Khanewala
Oh my, to see something like those tracks of dinosaurs!
Phil & Michaela
It was amazing, yet another incredible place on an incredible journey!
Marie
Here I am – still catching up with you! We didn’t get to Potosi or Sucre and I’d have loved both I think. You certainly covered a lot of ground between the two countries….
Phil & Michaela
We did…and it was so varied. One of our best trips, for sure.