There are many beautiful and amazing places on our planet. One of the most unique phenomena can be called a waterfall. The ranking of the highest waterfalls in the world leads Angel, located in Venezuela, in the Canaima National Park, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
general description
Angel Falls has a total height of 979 meters, some experts say that 1054 meters. The continuous and free flow of water is 807 meters.
The waterfall is located on Mount Auyan-Tepui, which is one of the highest in Venezuela. There is constant dampness in the district, and fog over the water because of such a huge height of the water stream.
Discoverer and how the name appeared
In the Pemon language, Angel Falls is called Kerepakupai vena, which means “Waterfall of the Deepest Place”. In Spanish, the name Salto Ángel is present, and it got its name in honor of the pilot James Angel.
In 1933, a pilot flew over a waterfall. The purpose of the flight was to search for ore deposits, although, according to some reports, diamonds were searched. After all, local Aborigines very often spoke of a stone, of which there are many. In fact, there are a lot of quartz in this area, which became known a little later.
In 1937, James and his team returned to Angel Falls and tried to land the plane on Mount Tepuya, as a result of which the plane was damaged, and the researchers had to descend from the mountain with their own feet. The plane at the top of Auyan-Tepui remained for 33 years. Then it was removed from the mountain by helicopter, restored, and now it is a museum exhibit and installed near the airport of Ciudad Bolivar.
Climbing a mountain and trying to rename a waterfall
In 1949, the National Geographic Society of America equipped an entire expedition to the waterfall, following which the height was determined and a whole book was written.
In 1994, this natural site is included in the UNESCO list as part of the Canaima Park.
In 2005, four daredevils from around the world set off on a mountain to make the first ascent along the walls of a waterfall with the so-called free-climbing method.
In 2009, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez decides to return Angel Falls to its old local name. There were other options, but the president spoke harshly, motivating the renaming by the fact that the waterfall is the property of his country and cannot bear the name of an American pilot, especially since this unique place appeared much earlier than Angel’s birth.
Canaima National Park
The largest natural park in Venezuela - Canaima, founded in 1962. It is believed that this place was formed 2 million years ago, and for a long time no human foot has stepped on these lands. Today, millions of tourists come here to see the unique table mountains and the rarest species of flora and fauna.
It is on the territory of this park that you can see carnivorous plants, mountainsides entwined with vines, clearings with orchids and bromeliads. There are a lot of birds in the park, you can meet monkeys and jaguars, huge ants.
Aborigines and valley with quartz crystals
In the park you can find out how aborigines live - the settlement of the Pemon Indians in the north of the park. This is a unique opportunity to see how these people live, without changing their way of life over the centuries, to learn local legends and traditions of the people.
In Canaima Park there is even a valley that is completely studded with quartz crystals. According to tourists, this is one of the most unique sights. In no case should stones be taken with you; a patrol has been assigned to the valley, which carefully inspects visitors. A considerable fine is provided for smuggling quartz crystals - more than 1 thousand US dollars.
Mount Auyan-Tepui
This is the largest tepui in the world. The total area of the mountain is 700 square kilometers and the height is 2450 meters. The mountain is inferior in height to Roraima and a number of others located in the Canaima Park. By the way, in the language of local Indians, the name Roraime sounds like "navel of the earth."
Tepui, or dining rooms, are truncated flat-topped mountains. Usually formed from sedimentary rocks, and the slopes are almost vertical. Most tepui is located on the Guiana Plateau in South America. Such mountains are characteristic of the landscape of the planets Mars, Eris and Io. Translated from the Pemon language (Gran Saban Indians), the word tepui means "house of the gods."
It is believed that millions of years ago, in the place where now is the highest waterfall in the world, Angel, all tepui were combined into one huge mountain. It was then that West Africa and South America were a single continent. In the period when the continents split, huge gullies of sandstone appeared. Over the millennia, wind and sand, erosion processes have done their job, and mountains have appeared in the form in which they exist now.
Many tepui have karst funnels with a diameter of up to 300 meters. Most likely, they formed as a result of the collapse of the tunnels of underground rivers and caves washed out by water. One of the most famous and largest funnels in the whole park on Mount Abismo Guy Collet, its depth reaches 672 meters.
Auyan-Tepui also has funnels, but they are small in size, inside of which there is clear water.
Interesting facts about the waterfall and the park
In which country is Angel Falls? Venezuela, southeast of the country, Gran Sabana district. Near Canaima National Park with a total area of 3 million hectares. It is the sixth largest similar park in the world.
Its mountains, including Auyang Tepua, have a pinkish tint, like sand on the beaches in the area. It is in the territory of the national park that fruitful plants grow and a frog lives, unable to jump. You can see this unique animal and plants only in Venezuela.
It is believed that Arthur Conan Doyle in his book "The Lost World" described a scientific expedition to Mount Roraima.
The country's authorities have not taken any measures to at least somehow develop the region and attract even more tourists. The park itself and the mountains are still inaccessible, and nature remains untouched, there are practically no roads, only small runways that only small-sized aircraft can accept. On the other hand, maybe such a decision is right, another one of the small islands of living and untouched nature remains on the planet.
It is best to come to the park from May to November, the rest of the time the dry season is set and everything does not look so attractive. Although from December to April there are much more chances to see a waterfall that is not shrouded in clouds and fog.
In the film "On the crest of a wave" (2015), the heroes of the tape jump from Angel Falls, after climbing the mountain. And in the cartoon "Up", the waterfall is the prototype of Paradise Falls.
Tourism
To get a photo of the Angel Falls, you can’t just come to Venezuela and walk or drive to this place. You can get to it only by plane or by boat, canoe. Generally, package tours to Canaima National Park are sold. You can fly from Caracas, Ciudad Bolivar, Porlamar, Puerto Ordaz and Santa Elena.
Venezuelan travel companies offer many interesting excursion programs, including visiting the place where Angel Falls is located. The waterfall can be viewed from a boat, canoe or plane. Inside the grotto you can get two paths called Sapo and Acha. If you look at the waterfall from a boat, you can still see Orchid Island.
The easiest way to assess the height of Angel Falls is from the airplane window. Almost all of the country's flights pass near this unique place, but if this is not an excursion program, then it is often not possible to consider this unique place because the waterfall is constantly in fog, especially in the rainy season.
If you can get to it by canoe, then the journey will take about 5 hours. Then you will have to go for about 1 hour, although the road will seem short, since the trails run through the most beautiful places in the park. If you are lucky and the flow of water is moderate, you can even swim in a niche at the foot of the waterfall itself.
On average, an excursion by plane takes about 24 hours. Flights are carried out only by private companies, but if possible it is recommended to assemble a group of travelers, then the tour will be cheaper. The average price per passenger is 100 US dollars.
Coordinates of Angel Falls: latitude - 5 ° 58'12.4 "N, longitude - 62 ° 32'10.4" W.
If possible, this place should definitely be visited; this is a unique and untouched corner of nature, where there are many obstacles and unique plants and animals. But daredevils are waiting for a reward - the highest waterfall in the world.