Unforgettable trekking tour with the native Pemon to the world’s largest table mountain – Mt. Auyan Tepui. The Angel Fall – the world’s largest waterfall, the wild Kavac Canyon and, of course, the fascinating table mountains await us! Trekking in the “lost world” as described by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, an imposing landscape with incredible natural scenery of the world-famous unique table mountains in Eastern Venezuela, following the traces of the Pemon people and Jimmy Angel!
The tour’s highlight is a 7-days trek to the largest and most mysterious of the famous table mountains – Mt. Auyan Tepui. Supported by the Pemon, we will explore the legendary table mountain. Until recently, large parts of Mt. Auyan Tepui remain completely unexplored. As a result of the isolation from the up to 1,500 m lower savannah landscape, a unique habitat of flora and fauna developed, with 85% of endemic species existing only there. In the language of the Pemón Tepui means "House of the Gods", and indeed, the world of the Mt. Auyan Tepui Plateau appears to be an unreal kingdom located between earth and sky. But also other stations of our tour promise some unforgettable impressions and unique experiences: the giant Kavac Canyon, a breath-taking flight in a bush plane over the world’s largest waterfall - the Salto Angel, digging for diamonds in an abandoned Indio mine, exploring the mission station Kamarata, hiking in the deepest jungle, climbing Mt. Temun Tepui to find diamonds there, the unique Guacharo cave and much more….
The travel dates of this seat-in-tour can be found under "Important Notes".
· Demanding 7-days Mt. Auyan Tepui Trekking with the native Pemon to the 2,600 m high, 700 sqm table mountain plateau – a unique scenery!
· Flight in a bush plane over the world’s highest waterfall – the Salto Angel
· Jungle hike through the deepest of rainforests to Mt. Temun Tepui for diamond digging in an abandoned diamond mine
· Exploration of the Kavac Canyons and bathing under giant waterfalls
· Bathing in the basin of Salto Angel, a waterfall thundering down about 1,000 m
· Dugout expedition with the native Pemon from the mission station of Kamarata to Salto Angel and on to Canaima
· Stay in jungle settlements without any road connection: Kamarata, Uruyen, Kavac and Canaima
· Colonial town of Ciudad Bolivar
· Exploration of the biggest stalactite cave in South America - the Guacharo cave
· Caribbean feeling on the beach of Rio Caribe
Wonderful view of the Auyan Tepui
The world's tallest waterfall with 979m: Angel Falls
Climbing to the top of the Auyan Tepui
Sapo Fall
Expeditions by canoe
Trekking to the top of one of the biggest table top mountains: the Auyan Tepui
The porters deserve some rest during the Auyan Tepui Trek
Beautiful views of table top mountains
Auyan Tepui
Day 1 – Arrival in Caracas and flight to Ciudad Bolivar
Arrival by plane at the bustling capital of Venezuela, in the afternoon. We continue right away toward the eastern part of the country on a quick flight, to the old colonial town of Ciudad Bolivar, where our English-speaking guide will welcome us. During dinner, we discuss the tour in detail before going to bed in a simple, but very typical small hotel. (-/-/-)
Day 2 – Flight over the "Angel Fall", Temun Tepui Trek
Early in the morning, we head for the town’s small airport. Our flight in a bush plane lasts some 90 minutes, crossing the Gran Sabana, raging torrents and colorful Indian villages until finally the first table mountains appear on the horizon. Tension mounts! Our pilot checks the weather, hoping we will be lucky. Then the plane comes out from behind the clouds and all of a sudden it is there, below us: Salto Angel, the largest waterfall on earth! We take a quick shot with our cameras and dive again into the clouds.
Angel Fall or Kerepakupai Merú
In the year 1923, Jimmie Angel was persuaded by an alleged mining engineer in Panama to fly him for 5000 Dollars to a certain mountain in the Venezuelan rainforest. He indeed managed to land his plane on the rugged mountain plateau. Within a few days, from one of the rivers the two men dug out a large amount of gold. Only with a nosedive start over the steep mountain edge, they were able to take off again. From then on a gold seeker, flying along the Río Churún Canyon, on November 16, 1933, Jimmie Angel, discovered a giant waterfall. When two years later together with his wife and a scientist, he dared to land on the high plateau, his machine crashed. Today, his plane can be seen in front of the airport of Ciudad Bolívar (Venezuela). Only after eleven days, the group managed to descend into the jungle over a steep step which today is called the Second Wall. Alberto Vázquez-Figueroa’s novel “Icarus” tells the story of Jimmie Angel, the search for gold and diamonds and the discovery of the waterfall. The U.S. American photo reporter Ruth McCall Robertson (1905–1998) was the first person to reach the foot of the waterfall and measure it, on Mai 12, 1949, as a result of an overland expedition initiated by her.
Landing on the small sandy runway of the mission station of Kamarata is one of the most exciting moments of today! We then continue on foot through the wide savannah to the River Akanan, which we cross paddling in a small dugout. Then our way leads us past Indio fields, across primary rainforest until we arrive at the small Temun Tepui. There we finally may stretch our legs and enjoy the sunset with a view on the surrounding table mountains.
We will spend the night in our cozy Churuata (typical Indio round hut) in hammocks with mosquito nets. (B/-/D)
Day 3 – Temun Tepui - Diamond Digging
Diamond fever! After a short walk we reach our mine – a small river in the middle of the jungle, where each of us may try their luck! In the afternoon, we walk on to an imposing waterfall that comes down the Tepui in several steps. Want a shower of refreshing water? Or rather only enjoy the fantastic view? After a delicious dinner the Indios prepared for us, we will spend the night again in the Churuata camp. (B/L/D)
Day 4 – Mission Station Kamarata
Early in the morning, we start our descent to the River Akanan, from where we ride in a dugout on the black water river to the small mission station of Kamarata, the starting point of Jimmy Angel’s expedition! Canaima, with its approximately 800 inhabitants is the largest settlement of the Pemon. 42,000 Pemon currently live in Venezuela and Guyana, the majority of which live in their traditional manner along the rivers and in the savannah. Here we overnight at the heart of the village, in very simple accommodations. (B/L/D)
Day 5 – Kavac Canyon
Today we walk along Mt. Auyan Tepui across the savannah to the Indian settlement of Kavac, with the roofs of houses and huts covered with palm tree branches and by far the most beautiful canyon of the national park. We start our exploration into the impressive canyon.
Inconspicuous and untouched it lies in front of us: Kavac Canyon with its gorgeous waterfalls. Those who like may swim in the canyon to approach the 40 m high waterfall. Exhausted but happy, in the evening we return to our hammocks hanging in the simple round huts. (B/L/D)
Day 6 – Mt. Auyan Tepui Trek - Guarayaca
For a long time, Mt. Auyan Tepui was considered too extreme a mountain to climb in Venezuela. Only in 1958, the hermit Alexander Laime discovered our current path. He even claimed to have discovered gold, diamonds and small dinosaurs there. We follow his and Jimmie Angel’s traces through the wide savannah, surrounded by the table mountains. Many of the so-called Tepuis have never been touched by a human being. After some kilometers of prairie-like grassland and some minor rivers, we finally reach the point from where our ascent of Mt. Auyan Tepui begins! It’s the highlight of the entire trip! Pull out your hands from your pockets and go for it, uphill over rocky terrain! Every now and then we look down into the valley, and after a finish through a scrubby plain, we reach Camp Guarayaca, exhausted. Let’s take advantage of the last sunbeams to pitch our tents and go for a refreshing bath in the river. (B/L/D).
Day 7 – Mt. Auyan Tepui Trek - El Peñon
At daybreak we get up again, still feeling yesterday’s efforts in our bones. We fight our way through the dense jungle and high bush lining the Tepui. In the late afternoon we feel immensely relieved: We arrive at “El Peñon”, a giant rock under which we pitch our tents.
Today’s shower: a waterfall gorging down the table mountain hundreds of meters in the form of a cascade. Are there brave ones among us who dare to take a shower here? (B/L/D)
Day 8 – Mt. Auyan Tepui Trek - El Libertador – El Oso
Crawling on all fours, we advance through intricate root networks and swampy terrain, but we are in for more: Secured with a rope and assisted by the Indios, we cross a 10-12 m high rock until reaching the apparently almost invincible steep face of the table mountain. We hike along it until we reach the high plateau. Mission accomplished, we have conquered Mt. Auyan Tepui! It is a sublime moment and our joy is great! Now we head for “El Libertador”, the highest point of Mt. Auyan Tepui (2,280 m)! The view is overwhelming, so we may well have a rest until we continue to the rock “El Oso”, where we spend the night at. (B/L/D)
Day 9 – Mt. Auyan Tepui Trek - Summit Plateau
In this bizarre landscape, we hike down over giant rock ledges to a sidearm of the Churun River. A refreshing bath in it serves us just fine. Then we extensively explore the summit plateau. Later on, we return to the rock "El Oso". (B/L/D)
Day 10 – Mt. Auyan Tepui Trek – El Libertador
We continue with some more intensive exploration hikes, then we return to camp “El Libertador”. Sunk in our thoughts, our eyes follow the shooting stars before passing this last night on the summit plateau in the open air. (B/L/D)
Day 11 – Mt. Auyan Tepui Trek - El Peñon
Descent! We abandon the summit platform hiking down to El Peñon. When we arrive at the rock, we are quite surprised: the Pemon, who accompany us on our tour, have long gotten there and have a hot cup of tea waiting for us. (B/L/D)
Day 12 – Mt. Auyan Tepui Trek - Kavac
After breakfast we hike back to Guarayaca, our first overnight camp. We cross Río Ocoñe and finally arrive at the Pemon village of Kavac. In the afternoon we start for the tremendous gorge. Inconspicuous and untouched it lies before us: the Kavac Canyon with its magnificent waterfalls. Who likes to, may swim in the Canyon until reaching the waterfall, which is 40 m high. In the evening we lay down in our hammocks and have plenty of time to think about our adventures once again. (B/L/D)
Day 13 – Pickup ride + Dugout Tour - Areal
Now we are glad to feel four wheels below us once again. In the Pemon’s pickup truck we get to the banks of Rio Akanan. We embark on a dugout and together with our friends, the Pemon, continue through many minor rapids to Camp Arenal. Tonight we sleep in hammocks in a simple camp, next to tremendous rapids. (B/L/D)
Day 14 – Dugout Tour – Isla Ratoncita
Through more rapids we ride downstream to the Angel Fall base camp, which is situated on the small island Isla Ratoncita. On the way, in the middle of nowhere a DC-3 plane surprisingly appears in front of us. We make a short stop-over and learn about the incredible history of how the plane got to this place. Tonight we stay on a small island, within sight of the spectacular Angel Fall! (B/L/D)
Day 15 – Angel Fall – Mirador Laime – Canaima
After breakfast we ascend towards a lookout point during an one-hour hike. This lookout was discovered by a hermit in the 1930s and offers an impressive view of the highest waterfall in the world, the Angel Fall / Salto Angel. After returning to our camp, we go for a dugout ride on the Río Churun and Río Carrao until we reach Canaima, where already comfortable beds and a private bath with shower await us! (B/L/-)
Day 16 – Canaima – Salto Sapo – Ciudad Bolivar
In the morning, we make our last dugout trip to the marvellous Sapo Fall. Here we have the opportunity to walk below the enormous water masses of the waterfall. At noon, the bush plane takes us back to Ciudad Bolivar. We are back to the bustling streets of South American vitality. Ciudad Bolivar, a town caught between Caribbean serenity and frantic commercial life. Overnight in the hotel of our trip’s first night in Ciudad Bolivar. (B/-/-)
Day 17 – Rancho San Andres – Rio Morichal Largo (Orinoco Delta)
This morning we start our journey to the Orinoco Delta in the north-east of Venezuela. After a 2.5 hours ride in a minibus, we reach Rancho San Andres, our accommodation for this night. From there we go for a boat trip on Rio Morichal Largo, which leads to the Orinoco Delta. During our free time in the afternoon, we have the opportunity to watch animals in the surroundings of the Rancho. (-/L/-)
Day 18 – Guacharo Cave – Rio Caribe
After breakfast we continue our journey northwards, heading for the coast. On the way we make a stop to see a highlight of this region: the Guacharo Cave, probably the biggest stalactite cave in South America. It is inhabited by a large number (approximately 15.000) of Guacharos, nocturnal oilbirds, whose thick grease film was used by the natives to produce pure oil. Passing huge dripstones and accompanied by the screaming of the oil birds, we get to the hall of silence. Suddenly the noise ceases and the crystallized stalactites twinkle in a thousand colors. After this unique experience we drive to Rio Caribe and finally reach the dreamlike coast of Venezuela! Tonight we stay at a small Posada in the village. (B/-/-)
Days 19 & 20 – Rio Caribe – Caribbean coast
The following two days we can enjoy our free time, relaxing in the hammocks or deck-chairs and letting our mind wander, or going on an optional trip in a fishing boat to one of the dream beaches. We can also visit the cocoa farm Bukare and watch the manufacturing process of chocolate from very close. On the peninsular Paria, along with Ecuador, there is probably the best cocoa of South America. Furthermore, a visit of the buffalo farm and the thermal springs are recommendable (optional, not included). Let's get enchanted by the Caribbean flair! The perfect end after all the efforts during the last days. (B/-/-)
Day 21 – Caracas
Even the greatest holidays come to an end and today it is time to say goodbye to an exciting and unique holiday in a diverse country. We drive to the airport of Carupano or Cumana where we board the plane which brings us to Caracas. From there we fly back home and bring with us many memories of an unforgettable journey. (B/-/-)
Services Included
· English speaking guide from Ciudad Bolivar to Carupano (days 1 to 21)
· English-speaking assistance at airport in Caracas
· Pemon as natural guides, mountain guides, porters (for expedition cooker and food during trekking) and cook during trekking and dugout expeditions
· All flights, rides, transfers, excursions and walks as stated in tour description
· Accommodation in 2x ** hotels in Ciudad Bolivar with bathroom / WC, 1x simple posada in Canaima, 6x in tents (tents will be provided!) during Auyan trekking tour, 7x in hammocks during jungle & dugout tour and Temun trek as well as in the Pemon villages of Kamarata & Kavac, 1x in Rancho close to the Orinoco Delta, 3x in Posada in Rio Caribe
· Meals as stated in tour description (12x full board: from day 3 to 14; 1x breakfast and dinner: day 2; 1x breakfast and lunch: day 15; 1x lunch: day 17; 5x breakfast: day 16, 18, 19, 20, 21)
· 10kg of free luggage on bush plane flights
Not Included
· Tips, personal expenses
· Meals not listed and drinks in towns
· Entrance fees, domestic and international airport and exit taxes, national park fees
· Porters for personal luggage (max. 12kg) during Temun & Auyan trekking (10 days) – approx. 300 US$ (please register at least 14 days prior to the start of our tour)
· Sleeping pad and sleeping bag
· Supplement single room (net 50 US$)
Requirements
Team spirit, abdication of comfort, surefootedness, respect for foreign cultures. Ascent to table mountain is demanding and subject to weather conditions (walking time 6-8 h per day / hot humid climate).
Number of participants: 1 - 12 Pax
Travel Dates:
09.01.2015 - 29.01.2015
25.04.2015 - 15.05.2015
01.08.2015 - 21.08.2015
31.10.2015 - 20.11.2015
The booking status can be retrieved from the 01.01.2015 at any time under www.buchungsstand.de
Please note
• Participants must have a valid international health insurance.
• We reserve the right to change the tour program due to force majeure, weather or organizational reasons.
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Ecuador - Peru - Venezuela - 2014