The Mountain of
Evil in the Pemon language, the massive and impressive
stone fortress of Auyan-tepui is the biggest of Venezuela's
"Islands in Time", as the National Geographic
Society named these unique and gigantic tabletop mesas
protected in the Canaima National Park. Its 270 square
miles could easily fit the caribbean island of St. Lucia.
For the Pemon mythology, this is the house of the evil
spirits Mawariton, who dwell in the top ruled by Traman-chita,
their superior deity.
Totally
unknown by the civilized world until some one hundred
years ago, life atop the tepuys evolved undisturbed for
more than 1,500 millions of years creating unique ecosystems
teeming with highly diversified and endemic animal and
vegetal species. The flora is represented by some 3,000
species and this is the only region of the country to
have two families of endemic plants. Bromeliads and orchids,
but also small palms, heliconias, mosses and ferns, vines,
mushrooms and lichens all grow in this botanical paradise
and share the space with a decent number of amphibians,
reptiles and birds.
Countless
cascades adorn the Auyantepui after rains, but facing
east inside the so-called "Devil's Canyon",
Auyan tepui offers its most precious gift - Angel
Falls, the highest waterfall in the world and Venezuela's
top attraction. At its southeastern slopes, Kavak
hides one of the narrowest gorges on earth and is an alternative
starting point to Canaima
for beautiful and scenic river trips to Angel Falls. For
the ultimate experience, our Auyantepui
Trek will allow you to enjoy at its best this extraordinary
and ancient landscape in an adventure of a lifetime.
Contact
us to include Auyan Tepui
in the Lost
World in a customized itinerary of travel to Venezuela.
