Cobija, Chile, Fishing hamlet and port in Tocopilla, Chile

Cobija is a fishing settlement on the Pacific coast roughly 59 kilometers south of Tocopilla with remaining structures from its port past. The community sits in an arid coastal landscape and is now managed by a small population focused on seaweed harvesting.

Cobija was a Chango fishing settlement and a Spanish colonial cabotage port from 1578. By decree of Simón Bolívar it became Bolivia's national port on 25 December 1825, renamed Puerto La Mar, and served as capital of the Litoral department until 1875. Chilean troops occupied it in February 1879 during the War of the Pacific; the 1904 treaty confirmed its loss.

Cobija is a fishing caleta whose name comes from the old port of Puerto La Mar, renamed by Bolívar's 1825 decree. The 1832 census recorded 536 residents from Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Argentina, France, England and elsewhere. Today the ruins of the former port stand beside the fishermen's hamlet, and seaweed harvesting continues.

The settlement is remote and best reached by private transport, as regular public connections are limited. Visitors should prepare for changing coastal conditions and follow local guidance.

Two major natural disasters—an earthquake in 1868 and a tsunami in 1877—led to the gradual decline of this once-vital port. These events shifted how people lived and worked in the settlement.