Does everyone know in which country the highest in the world Angel Falls is located? Venezuela is justly proud of this amazing attraction, although it is hidden deep in the tropical jungles of South America. Photos of the water slope are impressive, despite the fact that it is inferior to the Iguazu or Niagara complex in terms of entertainment. However, many tourists want to see the highest flow of water flowing from the mountain range.

Geographic characteristics of Angel Falls

The height of the waterfall is impressive, as it is almost a kilometer, to be more precise - 979 meters. Considering its small width, only 107 meters, the stream itself does not seem so massive, because most of the water at the moment of free fall scatters around the surroundings, forming a dense fog.

Considering the height from which this giant throws water, it is not surprising that not much reaches the Kerep River. However, the spectacle deserves attention, because the outlandish images from the air clouds above the jungle create a special atmosphere.

The base for the waterfall is the Churun ​​River, the bed of which runs along Mount Auyantepui. The flat ridges are called tepuis by the locals. They mainly consist of sandy rocks, therefore, on the one hand, under the influence of winds and waters, they become sheer. It is because of this feature of nature that Angel Falls appeared, the height of the free fall of water in meters is 807.

The history of the highest waterfall

For the first time Ernesto Sanchez La Cruz came across the waterfall at the beginning of the 20th century, but the name of the natural miracle was given in honor of the American James Angel, who crashed near the cascading stream. In 1933, an adventurer spotted Mount Auyantepui, deciding that there must be diamond deposits here. In 1937, he, along with three companions, including his wife, returned here, but they could not find what they wanted, since the sparkling plateau is replete with quartz.

At the moment of landing on the ridge, the aircraft's landing gear burst, which made it impossible to return on it. As a result, the travelers had to walk all the way through the dangerous jungle. They spent 11 days on this, but upon his return, the pilot told everyone about the huge Angel Falls, so they began to consider him the discoverer.

For those curious about where Angel's plane is, it should be said that it remained at the crash site for 33 years. Later, he was transferred by helicopter to the aviation museum in the city of Maracay, where the famous "Flamingo" was restored. At the moment, you can see a photo of this monument or see it with your own eyes in front of the airport in Ciudad Bolivar.

In 2009, the President of Venezuela announced his desire to rename the waterfall Kerepacupai-meru, arguing that the property on the territory of the country should not bear the name of an American pilot. This initiative was not supported by the public, so the idea had to be abandoned.

The first ascent without belay on the steep rock of the waterfall was made during the expedition in the spring of 2005. It included two Venezuelans, four Englishmen and one Russian climbers who decided to conquer Auyantepui.

Help for tourists

The coordinates of the highest Angel Falls are as follows: 25 ° 41 ′ 38.85 ″ S, 54 ° 26 ′ 15.92 ″ W, however, when using the navigator, they will not help much, since there is no road or foot paths laid here. For those who nevertheless thought about how to get to the natural miracle, there are only two ways: by the sky or by the river.

Departures are usually from Ciudad Bolivar and Caracas. After the flight, the further path will pass through the water in any case, so it will not be possible to do without a guide. When ordering an excursion, tourists are fully equipped with the necessary equipment, food and clothing necessary for a comfortable and safe visit to Angel Falls.

Angel Falls is Venezuela's most famous natural treasure and one of the most impressive places in the world. It is 2.5 times taller than the famous Empire State Building in New York, and 15 times the famous Niagara. The discoverer of the waterfall is considered to be the American pilot Jimmy Angel, who dreamed of finding the Golden River all his life. The American adventurer never found gold, but instead discovered one of the planet's most famous natural attractions. Although the local Pemon Indians knew about the existence of the waterfall for thousands of years, the water cascade was named after Angel (but in the Spanish manner Angel), because it was he who opened it to the modern world.

The history of the discovery of Angel Falls

On November 19, 1933, an American pilot witnessed for the first time the majesty of the world's tallest waterfall, falling from a height of 979 meters in the jungle of Venezuela. Jimmy Angel described his impressions as follows: "Seeing the waterfall, I almost lost control of the plane. Water cascade straight from the sky!"

On October 9, 1937, Angel carefully glimpsed his light plane, El Rio Caroni, to land on the summit of Mount Auyantepui (a waterfall falls from its summit) in the isolated Gran Sabana region of Venezuela. According to Jimmy, his plan was to stay at the top of the mountain for a few days in search of gold. But the author's plans were thwarted by an unsuccessful landing. The plane bit its nose down during landing and damaged the fuel line. The accident did not harm Jimmy, his wife Maria, and two colleagues Gustavo Heni and Miguel Delgado, but now they are at the top of the Auyantepui messenger mountain, cut off from the outside world.

The only way out was walking downhill, through the territory unmarked on the map, in conditions of a limited amount of food. Eleven days later, exhausted but alive, the group reached the city of Kamarat. When word of this event spread throughout the world, Jimmy Angel's name was inextricably linked with the waterfall, which he first saw back in 1933.

Twelve years later, American photojournalist Ruth Robertson made her first successful expedition to the foot of Angel, measured it and officially proclaimed it the world's tallest waterfall. Her article, "Jungle Journey to the World's Tallest Waterfall," published in November 1949 in National Geographic magazine, is a fascinating account of the trip.

In 1955, the Latvian explorer Alexander Laime became the first Westerner who managed to climb to the source of the river that feeds the Angel Falls. Today, the Laime trail is used by tourists during the ascent to the top of Mount Auyantepui.

Jimmy Angel's plane remained at the summit of Auyantepui for 33 years. In 1964, the Venezuelan government declared the plane a national monument. In 1970, it was dismantled and transported by helicopters of the Venezuelan Air Force to the Aviation Museum in Maracay for restoration. Later, the plane was installed on a green lawn in front of the passenger terminal of Ciudad Bolivar airport, where it remains to this day.
Angel never dreamed that his plane would become a national monument. Years earlier, Patricia Grant had asked Jimmy if he would like his plane to be taken off the summit of Auyantepui. Then he replied: "No, by staying there, he will serve as a memory of me."

Interesting information about Angel Falls

Angel Falls is located in the tropical jungle of the southeastern region of Venezuela called Gran Sabana. A large area of ​​this region (more than 3 million hectares) is included in the Canaima National Park, the largest national park in Venezuela and the sixth largest in the world. Gran Sabana in Spanish means large plain (or savana), but the most famous feature of this area is the dozens of exotic mountains with sheer cliffs and flat tops, towering in the middle of the plain. Named in the language of the local Indian tribe, the Tepui, these pink sandstone mesas are a product of erosion for millions of years, and have a unique flora and fauna not found anywhere else in the world - frogs that do not jump or red carnivorous plants.

The most famous landmark of Gran Sabana is Roraima, the tallest tepuis with a height of about 2800 meters. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's fans believe that his science fiction novel, The Lost World, about dinosaur hunters in the jungle of South America, was based on the first scientific expedition to Roraima. Angel Falls falls from the summit of Auyantepui (translated from the language of the Indians of the Pemon tribe “Devil's Mountain”), one of the largest tepuis in Venezuela.

Canaima serves as the starting point for the journey to Angel Falls. Located on the edge of the lagoon (pictured), surrounded by pink-sand beaches, beautiful waterfalls and unspoiled jungle, the word “paradise” best reflects the beauty of the surrounding nature of this area. While it is possible to visit other waterfalls and lagoons from here, as well as climb the flat tops of the Mesa Mountains, the main reason why tourists fly to Canaima for a few days is the opportunity to see Angel Falls.

The tallest waterfall in the world is also one of the most difficult to access. Venezuela has done absolutely nothing to somehow develop this region. Its remoteness and inaccessibility have preserved the untouched nature of the local area and made Angel Falls one of the most inaccessible tourist attractions in Venezuela. Until now, there is no way to travel by car, as there are almost no roads in most of the Canaima National Park. Small airstrips for light aircraft connect this remote region with the outside world.

Most tourists visiting Angel Falls do it from the airplane window. Almost all flights to Canaima, both commercial and charter, run near this falls. But, given the fact that Angel falls from the wall of a steep canyon, often shrouded in clouds (especially during the rainy season), it is not always possible to see it. Moreover, even on a clear day, when the plane makes a couple of flights on each side, you can often get a glimpse of it.

If you want to truly enjoy the splendor of the world's tallest waterfall, then a boat trip is a must. Almost all hotels and travel agencies in Canaima offer 1, 2 or 3 day tours. All of them follow the same route, the difference is only in the amount of time, which completely depends on the wishes of the visitors.

Angel Falls is located about 5 hours canoeing upstream of Canaima City, then trek through the jungle to its base (about an hour). The path to the waterfall from Canaima is an equally interesting part of the trip and provides an opportunity to get acquainted with the unique species of Venezuelan flora and fauna, enjoy the beautiful landscapes of the surrounding nature (pictured). If the water flow is fairly moderate, you can swim in the small pool at the base of the waterfall.

The falls are most abundant during the rainy season from May to November, but during this time of year, clouds often cover the summit of Auyantepui. In the dry season from December to April, it looks less attractive.

Conclusion

In May 1956, Angel's light plane crashed in Panama. He got off with a big abrasion on his forehead, it would seem that everything is in order. A few days later, he suffered a stroke and, without regaining consciousness, died in December of that year at the age of 57. The last wish of the pilot was a request to scatter his ashes over the Angel Falls discovered by him.

In 1960, Maria (wife) and his 2 sons, Jimmy and Roland, took Angel to Venezuela. On his last flight over the falls, he was accompanied by his close friends Gustavo Heni and Patricia Grant. Henie later told his sister Carmen that “when the plane entered the canyon, nothing was visible due to high clouds, then suddenly something happened. It became so clear, so beautiful, we could see everything. It looks like a mountain took something incomparable - it was Jimmy. "

In 2009, President Hugo Chávez proposed that the most famous national landmark should now bear the name of the indigenous people of Venezuela, rather than the American gringo. On December 20, 2009, the President of Venezuela signed a decree to rename Angel Falls to Kerepakupai Meru. But in other countries he is still called by his old name.

Angel Falls: luxurious and majestic

Angel Falls, also called the Angela Salto, is known as the tallest waterfall in the world. It differs significantly from its other famous "brothers" - Niagara, Victoria and Iguazu. Angel is much more modest in terms of the volume of water passed through. But the height of its free fall - 978 meters - allows you to characterize Angel as the largest waterfall in the world.

Angel Falls - photo

Angel Falls - photo

Discovery history

Angel Falls got its name in honor of the American pilot James Angel, who saw in 1935 from an airplane a stream of water rushing down from a height of more than a thousand meters. James was not going to open anything, he was looking for gold, but due to an accident he made an emergency landing in the jungles of the Guiana Highlands. The discovery of the waterfall became a kind of compensation for the plane, which had to be left to rot in a tropical swamp, and for the journey through the jungle to civilization. Those eleven miles were not the most enjoyable of his life.

Angel Falls - photo

Angel Falls - photo

But, as often happens, Angel was far from the first person to see this miracle of nature, and not even the first European. The Indians knew about him long before Columbus took his caravels across the Atlantic Ocean. They gave the name "tepui" to the mountains characteristic of the Guiana Highlands. They all have vertical slopes and flat tops, like Table Mountain near Cape Town. Tepuis are continually exposed to water erosion due to tropical rainfall typical of the local climate. The name of the mountain from which the stream falls has also remained Indian. "Auyantepui" in translation from one of the local dialects means "Devil's Mountain".

The stories of the aborigines brought the Spanish conquistador Ernesto Sánchez La Cruz to these parts. But its opening was safely forgotten until 1935.

Angel Falls - photo

Angel Falls - photo

Location and road to Angel

Angel Falls is located in Venezuela, in the Canaima Park. If Niagara and Victoria are easily accessible for tourists, there are convenient roads to them, hotels are built nearby, then it is much more difficult to see the "Angel Salto". Roads in the tropical jungle simply do not exist - movement is possible only by water or by air. To see the largest waterfall with your own eyes, you need to get by plane from the capital of Venezuela Caracas. There are also regular flights from the city of Ciudad Bolivar to Canaima, and then you have to take a boat trip. The cost of the tour usually includes the necessary equipment, equipment and food costs.

Angel Falls - photo

Those wishing to see this wonder of the world have to come to terms with the need to get wet from the fog. Water, falling from a great height, is scattered into the smallest particles and it is in this form that it enters the Kerep River.

Any schoolchild knows in which country Angel Falls is located. This natural site has been declared a national treasure of Venezuela. Its height was measured in 1949, and in 1968, James Angel's plane was removed from the jungle by helicopter and solemnly placed in a museum. Those wishing to see this relic should go to the city of Maracay and visit the local aviation museum.

Angel (Spanish Salto Ángel, in Pemon language - Kerepakupai vena, which means "Waterfall of the deepest place") is the highest waterfall in the world, with a total height of 979 meters, the height of a continuous fall of 807 meters. Named after pilot James Angel, who flew over the falls in 1935.

Angel in translation into Russian means "angel". Although the names of the waterfalls are usually very figurative and poetic, this waterfall is named by an angel not in honor of the biblical angels and not because of its “proximity to the sky”. The giant of the 1st magnitude bears the name of its discoverer, the Venezuelan pilot Juan Angel, while the Indians called the waterfall Apemey or Maiden's Eyebrow. Angel Falls, more than a kilometer high, was discovered relatively recently - in 1935. This proves how much unknown is still concealed by our beautiful planet Earth.

How could such a phenomenal miracle of nature - a vertical stream of water a mile high - hide from humanity throughout history? The fact is that Angel is located in one of the most remote and inaccessible corners of the earth. The southeastern part of Venezuela - the Auyan-Tepui mountain range (Devil's Mountain) is composed of porous sandstones, has a height of up to 2600 m, and is abruptly cut off by a sheer rock wall. The approaches to the wall are blocked by a selva - a dense tropical forest.

What was Angel looking for there? In the 1930s, the "diamond rush" broke out in Venezuela. Hundreds of adventurers, businessmen, profit-seeking, and simply have-nots rushed into the impenetrable jungle. Angel bought a small sports plane and flew to the Auyan-Tepui massif. In those places, the tops of the mesas are often covered by clouds. Angel flew in clear weather and was the first to see a kilometer-long vertical line.

It turned out that the waterfall did not fall from the very edge of the highland ledge. The Churumi River "sawed through" the upper edge of the cliff and falls 80-100 m below its edge. Water consumption - 300 m2 / s.

Juan Angel (Angel) did not discover diamond deposits or build sanatoriums. Others did it. He suffered an accident and was saved literally by a miracle. He landed in the very place that Conan Doyle had chosen to unfold the events of his famous novel The Lost World. When he reached the nearest post office, Angel announced his discovery to the National Geographic Society of the United States, and his name is now on all maps of the world. On Latin American maps, the waterfall is often referred to as the Salto Angel, that is, "the jump of the angel." The last years of his life, the discoverer spent in Venezuela, in the state of Ciudad Bolivar, died in 1956. According to Angel's will, his ashes were scattered over the waterfall named after him.

As far as the term “miracle” in relation to the surviving pilot Angel is not an exaggeration, it can be judged by the fact that fourteen years later, in 1949, a group of five American and Venezuelan surveyors barely made their way through the selva to the waterfall, as the wild forest was completely intertwined with lianas and lush bush vegetation. I had to continuously cut the road with machetes and axes. The expedition spent… nineteen days to overcome the last 36 km! But the game was worth the candle. What the members of the expedition saw will not be forgotten by any of them until the end of their days.

The most striking description of the waterfall - perhaps the best in world literature - belongs to the chairman of the Soviet Peace Committee Yu. A. Zhukov, who surveyed Angel Falls from an airplane in April 1971. The pilot is flying his plane close-close to him. In front of us is incredibly high - a kilometer! - an elastic foamy-white water column, - a tight stream of a stream rushes down from the plateau into the abyss, at the bottom of which the river is reborn. Churumi, whose current was interrupted by this crazy water jump ... We have already heard and read that the height of the fall of the water here is so great that the stream, without reaching the bottom of the abyss, turns into water dust, which settles on the stones by rain. But one had to see this in order to imagine all the originality of the presented spectacle: somewhere below, at a distance of three hundred meters from the bottom of the abyss, a powerful, elastic, boiling stream suddenly seemed to melt and break off in the fog. And even lower, as if being born out of nothing, the river seethed ... How I would like to approach the waterfall not by plane, but on the ground - to stand near it, listen to its roar, inhale the smell of water falling from the skies! But this is unreal…“.