Cordillera Real

Glaciers in the Cordillera Real began to lose mass at the end of the small ice age in the 17th century, but this process has accelerated with global warming, scientists say.

I’ve skied remote places, like the Cordillera Real in Bolivia, where a farmer at the base of a 16,000-foot peak I had just climbed and skied told me his village was relocating because the glacier no longer provided enough water.

Ride Mi Teleférico’s red line up to the high plateau for spectacular views over the city skyscrapers, Cordillera Real and the ramshackle terracotta-coloured buildings that cover the upper slopes.

And towering above it all is the jagged, glacier-topped Cordillera Real.

We continued along an unpaved road, climbing up into the Cordillera Real.