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Founded by: Indigenous Coconucos in 1742. The territory was inhabited by indigenous Coconucos. It was founded by Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera in 1840 and established as a municipality in 1915. It belongs to the notarial circle, the sectional registry office and the judicial circuit of Popayán; corresponds to the electoral district of Cauca. On January 1, 1995, it had 483 urban and 1,485 rural properties registered.



It is known as Puracé - Coconuco

Its head Coconuco is located at 02º 20´ 53´´ north latitude and 76º 30´ 03´´ west longitude.

Height above sea level: 2,850 m.

Most of the territory is mountainous and its relief corresponds to the Central mountain range; Among the orographic accidents, the Sierra Nevada de Los Coconucos, located on the border with the department of Huila, the volcanoes of Pan de Azúcar, Puracé and Sotará stand out; the Paleará peak, the Blanco páramo and the Agua Blanca, Canelo, Cargachiquillo, Curare, Los Coconucos, Peñas Blancas and Puzná hills. It is bathed by the Anambía, Blanco, Cauca, Grande, San Andrés, Vinagre and Yerbabuena rivers, in addition to numerous minor streams. Their lands are distributed in the cold thermal floor and the páramo bioclimatic floor. According to preliminary data from the 1993 census, the population of the municipal seat was 5,749 inhabitants and the rural sector had 6,425 inhabitants.

Physical description:

Temperature: 2 ° C to 15 ° C on average.

Height: between 2,500 and 5,000 meters above sea level.

Ecosystems: Humid Jungle of the Cold Thermal Floor, Páramo, Super Páramo and Nival.

Fauna: Among the species that stands out the most in the area, we find the Condor, the Yellow-eared, the Hummingbird, the Rabbit Deer, the Red Deer, the Tapir, the Spectacled Bear, the Armadillo, the Yellow-eared Parrot, the Mountain Parakeet, the Howler Monkey, the Squirrel, the Red Pea and the Black Pava.

Vegetation: The stunted forests of small size, climbers, orchids, grasslands, chusques, frailejonales, mosses, shrubs, lichens, among others.

Climate: It is located between a cold thermal floor and that of perpetual snow.

Hydrography: There are more than 50 lagoons and what is to be highlighted, four of the largest rivers in the country, Magdalena, Caquetá, Cauca and Patía originate there and determine another of the famous names in history: Fluvial Star or Hydrographic Star of Colombia



Limits of the municipality:

Its head Coconuco is located at 02º 20´ 53´´ north latitude and 76º 30´ 03´´ west longitude. Height above sea level: 2,850 m.

Average temperature: 16 ° C. Average annual rainfall: 1,811 mm. It is 30 km from Popayán. The municipal area is 783 km long and is bordered to the north by Popayán, Totoró and the area in dispute with Huila, to the east and south by the department of Huila and to the west with Sotará and Popayán. The police inspections of Guillermo Valencia or Palerará, La Playa, Moscopán (Santa Leticia) and Puracé are part of the municipality.

The police inspections of Guillermo Valencia or Palerará, La Playa, Moscopán (Santa Leticia) and Puracé are part of the municipality.

In the municipality there are 2 indigenous reservations: Coconuco and Puracé belonging to the Páez family.

The most important economic activities are agriculture, livestock, mining and trade. The main crops are corn (145 ha) and beans (120 ha). Sulfur mines are exploited.

It has 2 industrial and 2 commercial establishments registered. The most prominent commercial activities in the municipality are related to products of agricultural origin.

It joins by road with La Argentina and Isnos (Huila) and Popayán.

The municipality has 2 health centers, a health post and 25 care centers of different modalities of the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare.



It has aqueduct services, electric power, telegraphy, national mail and a branch of the Agrarian Fund.

For cultural and recreational dissemination it has a library and some sports venues.

Population: 18,830 Inhabitants. Approx. Average altitude: 2,360 m.s.n.m.

This small municipality in the department of Cauca can be considered as the gateway to the beautiful Puracé National Natural Park.

Its average temperature is 16ºC, it is located at 2,850 meters above sea level.

Its main economic activities are agriculture, mining and livestock





Among its main tourist attractions is the Puracé National Park, the Pilimbalá hot springs, the monolithic statuary of Moscopán and the ecotourism walk to observe the source of the Cauca River, Quinta de Piedra and Coconucos. The territory was inhabited by indigenous Coconucos. You can also visit: Puracé Volcano. Mountain of fire, snow and water, the imposing volcano is embedded with the Andulvio lagoon, of this couple (volcano and lagoon) the Puraceños are children, because the nymph of the waters is fertile life with the lava flows and the strong paramos that rises from the Puracé volcano; The immense Volcano, symbol of strength, power and loyalty, thanks to it our territory, our people are visited and well known.

San Antonio waterfall:

Near the town of Puracé the dark Vinagre River falls, after having traveled from the slopes of the Puracé Volcano, through rocky and canyons areas forming a beautiful waterfall, it is called that, because according to the indigenous legend it says that San Antonio appears there in During Easter, it is also believed that by visiting the coat, singles can make a wish to find the partner of their dreams and the wish will be granted.

The condor of the Andes: Known as: "master and lord of the heights or messenger of the sun", symbol of freedom and purity.

In the indigenous reservation of Puracé, for more than twelve (12) years the repopulation of the species has been advancing, likewise in our reservation you can make sightings along the majestic canyon of the San Francisco River, commonly known as the refuge of the condor of the Andes.

Andulvio Lagoon (San Rafael): It means the place where the nymph of the waters lives, it is a mother, it is also a house, but she is a woman, she lives attentive, vigilant of her children, the Puraceños as mother protects, nourishes and keeps us alive, In gratitude we offer the ritual of refreshing the rods, because she is wisdom and guides us with her spirit to act with rectitude and balance.

Laguna del Buey: Located in the south east of the Municipality of Puracé, ancestral territory of the Town of Coconuco Yanacona, formed after the actions, it is immense, in summer time it is observed in blue sky, surrounded by places and abundant vegetation such as bromeliads, mayos, guasgui, mortillos and enredaderas; It is called del Buey because our elders say they have seen an ox in the lagoon, she is the woman of the Pan de Azular volcano, the marquise lives there, a fighter, beautiful woman, mother of the indigenous Coconucos Yanaconas, who today live in the Valley of Paletara, where the majestic and virtuous Cauca River begins to make its way, which runs its first kilometers between a peaceful landscape of Chilcos, Frailejones, chestnut trees and mortiños and cerotes.

Laguna Verde: Located to the north in the indigenous reservation of Paletara. An enchanting place due to the presence and influence of green algae, the greenish yellow of mosses and lichens with the hue of bluish water and accompanied by streams of sulfur water, they constitute a polychrome landscape of poison, it seems that the place was placed by the gods indigenous and filled with vitality and purity meanings, my words do not express the magical and incomparable beauty that the eyes of the visitor of the aptly named green lagoon appreciate, which I would call multicolored lagoon, where life is expressed in all its manifestations.

Termales de casa quinta: Loosening of thermal water, located in the indigenous reserve of Paletara, a place where the poet GUILLERMO VALENCIA, his family and friends enjoyed the soft, warm, medicinal and refreshing waters of the quinta, with 22 degrees centigrade, this This place is an ideal setting for recreation, rest, but above all to meet the spirit of life that allows us to appreciate the benefits that our mother nature offers us.

Lagunillas: Made up of three beautiful lagoons, located to the north of the Andulvio lagoon, hidden between the Pajonal and the frailejones, which constitute charming places for relaxation and for those who long for a world full of color and hope, but above all with a lot of life.

There we can see the torrent duck species in extension life.

El Vinagre natural sulfur mine: It is located near the foothills of the Puracé Volcano, 50 kilometers from the east of Popayán, it is exploited, directed and administered by indigenous people from the Puracé reservation through the company EMICAUCA SA, it employs more than 130 workers direct, produces between 1,200 and 1,400 tons of sulfur monthly, it is marketed in bulk mill and agricultural type. The mine and company are projected to increase production towards industrial reconversion, to generate more employment and social welfare, as true acts of peace. Natural sulfur is suitable for human and animal consumption, it is used in sugar mills in the production of sugar (refining it) for other uses such as fertilizers in medicine and mineralized salts.

The Candelaria waterfall: Located in the village of Santa Leticia, Bella Vista path, it is a place that served as a refuge for the AGUSTINA Y PIJAO family, to the Spanish persecution, the jacket is formed by the precipitation of the Candelaria river, giving origin at a fantastic exit of more than 100 meters high. In this place our Pijaos and Augustinian brothers worshiped the Sun God and Moon God, the virtual gratitude is developed, offering coca drinks and other practical plants that allowed them to safeguard their lives and their lands from Spanish abuse.

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