Staying Home Sucks, home
Paisaje Finca Palma Hermosa
Quimbaya, the nearest town, 10 km away. Photo: Majadaro, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Balsaje Rio La Vieja

Kayak spot · Colombia

Flat water: a lake, canal or slow river

Is it worth the trip?

100Good out of 100 for your dates

Home sucks

3 days tie for best

Each day of your trip, out of 100

Mon 2 · 99 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
24°C
Rain
6.3 mm

Tue 3 · 99 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
24°C
Rain
6.7 mm

Wed 4 · 99 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
7kn
Air
25°C
Rain
3.4 mm

Thu 5 · 99 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
23°C
Rain
4.2 mm

Fri 6 · 100 out of 100

Wind
1 kn
Gusts
9kn
Air
23°C
Rain
7.5 mm

Sat 7 · 100 out of 100

Wind
3 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
25°C
Rain
0.6 mm

Sun 8 · 100 out of 100

Wind
2 kn
Gusts
8kn
Air
28°C
Rain
1.2 mm

Tap a day for wind, gusts, air and rain. Full forecast

Forecast: next 10 days

Full forecast
  1. Sun 1100, good
  2. Mon 299, good
  3. Tue 399, good
  4. Wed 499, good
  5. Thu 599, good
  6. Fri 6100, good
  7. Sat 7100, good
  8. Sun 8100, good
  9. Mon 9100, good
  10. Tue 10100, good

The spot in one fact

  • Flat waterthe water

Full forecast

every day, every number

The score doesn't know the river level, weirs or your skill.

Wind and weather forecast and score for each day at Balsaje Rio La Vieja
DayScoreWindGustsAirRain
Sun 1Nov100, good1 kn6kn26°C4.9 mm
Mon 2Nov99, good3 kn8kn24°C6.3 mm
Tue 3Nov99, good3 kn9kn24°C6.7 mm
Wed 4Nov99, good2 kn7kn25°C3.4 mm
Thu 5Nov99, good2 kn8kn23°C4.2 mm
Fri 6Nov100, good1 kn9kn23°C7.5 mm
Sat 7Nov100, good3 kn8kn25°C0.6 mm
Sun 8Nov100, good2 kn8kn28°C1.2 mm
Mon 9Nov100, good3 kn8kn27°C0.6 mm
Tue 10Nov100, good5 kn11kn25°C0.3 mm

Wind and gusts are in knots, rain in mm. River levels: no free forecast gives them, so check a gauge before you go. More

Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.

Map

the spot and its town

Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.

The map needs JavaScript. Every place on it is listed on this page, and each place's page links to Google Maps.

One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

About

the place in full, sources, credits

About Balsaje Rio La Vieja

A launch on the Río La Vieja. No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle. No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map. The town to stay in is Quimbaya.

  • River Río La Vieja
  • Grade No grade is stated.
  • Who it suits No grade stated: ask locally before you paddle.
  • Access No source states the access rules: check locally.
  • Schools, hire No paddling school, club or hire within 50 km on the map.

Spots and rivers: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Whitewater sections © Rivermap (rivermap.org), Riverzone and Jonathan Riddell, ODbL.

The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).

Rough cost (estimate): about US$770–US$1,450 each

about US$770–US$1,450 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, hire car, stay, food, kayak hire.

Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

How we worked it out 
Rough cost per person for this trip
WhatHow we worked it outEach
Flightsreturn ORD to BOG, estimated from distance and season, 1 airline on the route, with a hold bagabout US$335–US$697
Hire car6 days, sharedabout US$60–US$107
Stay6 nights, a mid-range double, sharedabout US$147–US$241
Food7 days eating outabout US$141–US$255
Kayak hire5 days, or about US$114 to fly your ownabout US$87–US$154
Totalabout US$770–US$1,450

Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.

Where to stay: Quimbaya

Closest

Quimbaya

17 min by car · 78 places to stay

about US$54/nightcountry average

See 78 places to stay in Quimbaya · Booking.com

About Quimbaya its beds, food and every spot near it

About US$54 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 30 October 2026.

Getting there: about 13h 25m

About 13h 25m door to door from Chicago

Fly ORD → BOG, direct, then 3h 35m by road

An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.

On the water

Paddling schools, clubs and hire nearby

No paddling school, club or hire mapped within 50 km.

Schools, clubs and hire: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits