Beneath the Angel Falls – The Highest Waterfall in the World

                    

It’s been years since I first heard about the Angel Falls (Salto Angel in Spanish) – the highest waterfall in the world, surrounded by marvellous jungle in the southern part of Venezuela. I really wished to travel there but was always going to face one major obstacle – you can only reach the area where the falls are located by flying in a tiny aeroplane, and I don’t do aeroplanes (especially tiny ones). My desire to visit the Angel Falls dates back to 2007, when I travelled to Venezuela for the first time in order to visit a number of projects run by the Jesuit Refugee Service (the NGO I was working for at the time). The aim of my visit was to train local staff on advocacy techniques and international law.  

  

The rural landscape around the border area of El Nula

Trying to continue with life - Colombian refugees in Venezuela

The river dividing Colombia and Venezuela

There were (and sadly still are) several refugees from Colombia in Venezuela due to the long term conflict going on there. Apart from visiting colleagues in Caracas, I had also travelled to the border towns of El Nula and Guasdualito in the Apure State – which were considered to be rather dangerous due to their proximity with a conflict zone on the other side of the border. Indeed, irregular armed groups from Colombia often crossed the border, causing violence in Venezuela and causing refugees to flee once again - thus shattering their hopes for a peaceful life. The complexity and brutality of the Colombian internal conflict always surprised me and never stopped being a challenge even when, five years later, I worked directly on the issue for two years. El Nula had stuck me for its vast green open spaces and the rural way of life of those living there. It wasn’t easy for refugees to continue with their lives after being forcibly displaced from their homes in Colombia – but they somehow managed to cope and were generally accepted by the locals along the border area as they tried to rebuild their lives. 

A pump provides clean water for a refugee community

Seven years later, I found myself back in Venezuela. This time I’m taking a break of a few months from human rights work. I’ve never really taken such a long break since I started my career, always feeling guilty whenever I stopped fighting for this cause I strongly believe in. A few years ago, during the Libyan internal conflict, I hadn’t taken even one day of leave for about one year and a half (this was not a healthy decision but I had felt that there was no option at the time). Refugees trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea, desperately attempting to escape from the violence in Libya, needed assistance and I was working at the border of southern Europe to ensure that safety and shelter was provided to them – as it was being provided to thousands of other persons being evacuated from that conflict. I was sickened by the double standards I was witnessing at the time: all efforts were being made by the international community to evacuate citizens of countries that were in a position to take them back, whilst refugees who had been forced to escape from their countries and had cut their ties with their respective governments were left to face their own fates – and, at times, a brutal death.

Refugees living in the Hal Far Tent Village in Malta

Tragically, thousands of refugees drowned in the Mediterranean throughout those months of conflict and, by the end of it, I was quite an emotional and physical wreck. I learnt from that experience that it’s essential to stop from time to time and take a long breath. You can’t be fighting all the time. There are moments when you need to reload your energy to keep on fighting with the same strength as before. Another factor leading to my decision to undertake this long travel is the fact that, at the age of 36, I may not have too many more chances to just pack my bags and set off for an adventure of this magnitude and length. This love for adventure that I’ve always felt is not something I want to supress – it gives me a spark that allows me to dream, to keep on going, to discover new things. It has, no doubt, also played an essential part in my choice of career and the risks I have taken throughout the past few years in order to do my best for the persons I work for.  

Sofia (my girlfriend and travel-partner) and I left from the town of Santa Elena in the extreme south of Venezuela and spent the night on a bus headed towards Ciudad Bolivar. Along the way, we were stopped at several police roadblocks. Our boxing champion friend from Japan, Motoki Sasaki, was also on the same bus. At one point, in the middle of the night, the police asked him to get off the bus at one of these roadblocks. He never understood (surely due to language barriers) why he was singled out but, thankfully, he was let back on again sometime later. Sofia and I spent the next day limping around the charming historical town of Ciudad Bolivar (due to the muscle pains from the Roraima trek a couple of days before) and relaxing in the welcoming hostel we were staying at. 

The historical city centre in Ciudad Bolivar

I had finally made up my mind to visit the Angel Falls after all, despite the plane rides that it involved. I decided to face my fear of flying and finally see this famous waterfall after so many years of wishing to do so. Despite the overland nature of this South American travel, I felt that a little detour by plane to an otherwise unreachable location could sneak into the plan – especially at the very affordable prices in Venezuela due to the economic crisis afflicting the country. I had vowed not to fly at all during this travel, but knew that it would be now or never to see the falls. Sofia and I arranged with Francisco Alvarez, the same person who had organised the Roraima trek, to visit the Angel Falls for 18500 Bolivares (the equivalent of just over 200 USD) including one free night in a hostel in Ciudad Bolivar, a return-flight on a tiny plane to the national park of Canaima and two days (all expenses included) to visit the Angel Falls and the other amazing waterfalls in the same area. 

 

Colonial houses in the old city centre

We ended up spending two pleasant days in Ciudad Bolivar instead of one due to a malfunction of the tiny aeroplane that we were meant to fly on. Given my fear of flying, I freaked out when I heard about this malfunction but I was glad that the problems were detected before we got on the plane! Whilst waiting for another flight the following day, we got an extra free night at the hostel. We therefore managed to visit a number of fascinating (and free) museums in the town and ate delicious fish next to the Orinoco River.

Sunset over the Orinoco River

At one of the museums, I was delighted to discover the creativity of Venezuela’s top artist, Jesus Soto – who used lines and shapes to create a number of different effects. I was also fascinated to learn a bit more about Venezuela’s history in the many little historical museums around the old town centre. Moreover, eating was so cheap that Sofia and I treated ourselves well during these two days without needing to worry about budget constraints. We found the locals to be very friendly and generous, in spite of the fact that they initially look very stern and intimidating. Once we got to know people, we realised how good they actually were, beyond their scowling faces. I suppose the economic crisis was taking a toll on their smiles.

Fascinating shapes in the Jesus Soto Museum

A historical hazienda where Simon Bolivar lived for a while

The morning finally arrived when we went to the airport and into the tiniest plane imaginable: a four-seater with only Sofia, the pilot and myself on board. I sat right next to the pilot but didn’t know how I’d react to the flight given my long-time terror of being up in the air. I generally do end up keeping calm during any flight I’m on, but I had never been on such a small plane! To get myself into a good mood and stay detached from the reality of the flight, I started to play the theme tune of Indiana Jones in my head – since he always flew on this type of plane in the movies.

Not the best thing to see when you have a fear of flying

At take-off, something amazing happened. Not only did I not feel scared most of the time, but I was actually extremely thrilled to be up there – which put into serious doubt my conviction that I really hate flying. Ok – I did feel very uneasy when the tiny plane flew into a rain cloud and started shaking like jelly, but the theme tune of Indiana Jones kept on playing in my head all throughout and kept me going. The views from the plane of the savannah, lakes and eventually kilometres of thick jungle were the best entertainment possible during the one hour flight. It was also obvious why the area isn’t accessible overland – too many lakes and too much jungle to easily build a road passing through there. We eventually arrived to an area of tepuis (flat-top mountains) and waterfalls, which is when the plane started to descend. The descent in such a small plane seems very abrupt but the landing was exceptionally smooth.

View from the aeroplane

Imminent landing - waterfalls to the left and tiny runway to the right

Sofia and I were picked up from the tiny airport and put together with a group of young people. I suppose that this is one of the main problems with going to a place like Angel Falls – you’re placed with a bunch of random people and can only hope to get lucky with the company. Unfortunately, there’s no other way to see the Angel Falls from beneath unless you’re rich enough to pay for your own guide and boat. I’m not really used to doing the ‘group excursion’ thing with my rough and improvised style of travelling and I actually quite dread this kind of thing. Thankfully, the rest of the people turned out to be very charming and we got the chance to have long conversations with all over the following two days. I particularly enjoyed chatting to two young men from northern England – who had decided to give up a mundane life back home (both did manual work there) in order to explore the world and follow their dreams. I found the two Venezuelan girls in the group made to be rather amusing – one of them was very chubby but loved to do a ‘model-style’ pose in every location she went to, racing ahead to be photographed in all her graceless glory. My first impression was that she was worthy of her own sketch on the satirical TV show ‘Little Britain’, but she actually turned out to be a thoughtful, politically-opinionated, moderately intelligent girl as well as a brilliant singer. She was also a mother taking a brief vacation from her family.

The jungle beach next to Canaima

On the first day in Canaima, we went on a boat-ride to a number of waterfalls in the lake next to the village. The highlight of this experience is to get behind one of the waterfalls (and get drenched in the process). It feels like standing right behind a giant wall of water, with light and plenty of water drops filling the chilly cave. At one point, I put my head and shoulders under the powerful gush of water - somewhat afraid of getting knocked to the ground - but it actually felt like a very strong massage. The chubby Venezuelan girl kept on exhibiting her awkward poses in front of every waterfall she saw. Whilst this was initially irritating, over time it actually became (more or less) endearing. 

Waterfalls around Canaima

A wall of water

Talk of the town in Canaima was that a big movie starring Gerard Butler (the lead actor in the blockbuster ‘300’) was being filmed in the area and especially over the Angel Falls. Everyone was hoping to have a beer with the famous star, which didn’t seem too unlikely given the tiny size of the indigenous village which is now full of tourist lodges. That night, Sofia and I went to the local riverside disco for a beer and a dance but Gerard Butler didn’t turn up.

River and rainbow next to Canaima

 

The following morning, we got up very early since we had a five hour boat ride against the raging current in order to reach the Angel Falls. I hadn’t realised that they were so far off from Canaima and hard to reach. The small motorised canoe had to face the strong flow of the river and its passengers often got splashed all over. Getting wet is something you cannot avoid when going up this river. As the Angel Falls approached, the rapids along the river increased. Looking at a map, it had seemed that the Angel Falls should be accessible by river from the north, but rivers on maps don’t include rapids and now it was obvious to me why bigger boats cannot reach this area from further away. At one point, we had to get off the boat and walk for about 30 minutes as the boat bounced its way through the most intense part of the rapids. This five hour boat ride up the river is a spectacle in itself even if there wasn’t one of the most impressive waterfalls at the end of it. The river banks are lined up with jungle vegetation and you can see several tepuis in the distance. As the journey upriver progresses, the tepuis increase, as does the proximity of the river to them. A few small (but very high) waterfalls drop from the cliffs of some of the tepuis, though I suspect  they don’t have enough volume of water to classify as true waterfalls – otherwise they would probably also be some of highest waterfalls in the world.

The motorised canoe used to reach the Angel Falls

Facing the rapids up the river

Indigenous huts and tepuis on the way to the Angel Falls

The first glimpse of the Angel Falls from afar is a spectacle. Dropping from the top of the very high Auyantepui, you can sense the force of that water plunging down an incredible height (979m / 3,212 ft). We noticed helicopters flying around the top of the waterfall, so high above us that they looked like mere specks. Apparently, the helicopters were part of the film being made (though I’m not sure if the helicopters were being used to shoot the film or if they were part of the film itself). Someone on the boat told us that they heard the film being shot is a sequel to Point Break, one of my favourite action movies when I was a teenager. That film was about extreme sports – but mainly about surfing. I’m not sure what high waterfalls have to do with surfing, unless someone was trying to surf down the falls!

First glimpse of the Angel Falls from afar

Totally drenched to the bone, we finally arrived at a part of the river where the boat could stop and drop us off. The aim was to cross through a small stretch of jungle to a view point from where the Angel Falls can be observed in all their glory. We initially walked through the jungle, crossing a river barefooted along the way, and then started to climb. The climb was mild next to the Roraima trek and, thankfully, my muscles had finally recovered from that experience. Nevertheless, there were a lot of tree roots jutting out along the path and I recalled the Russian woman who had injured herself by twisting her ankle on a root whilst descending Mt. Roraima. I therefore proceeded with a small dose of caution whilst speeding ahead to get to the viewpoint. I wanted to get there before the Venezuelan girl arrived and started posing, thus making the waterfall seem more like the backdrop to a farce. Thankfully, she took her good time to arrive.

The Angel Falls in all her glory

Unless you hire a plane and fly over them or somehow manage to climb to the top, the Angel Falls are seen from beneath – a giant mass of water dropping from a cliff. The tiny helicopters buzzing around on the top put its massive size into perspective. I wasn’t sure if Gerard Butler was dangling over the cliff next to the waterfall as I stood there and admired the intense beauty of this natural wonder. I was definitely glad that I was not dangling from the top of the waterfall myself. It’s not easy to photograph the waterfall since the spray caused by the water hitting the bottom wets the camera lens in a matter of seconds. At times, a change in wind direction gave a short break within which to shoot – but my camera did get soaked anyway. My poor lens had already been battered whilst climbing Roraima and stopped functioning automatically, making the photography even more complicated.

Under pressure - the water crashes to the bottom of its massive plunge

The making of the Point Break remake

We must have stopped at the viewpoint to admire the falls for a long time, but no time ever seems long enough when admiring such beauty. As the sun was setting, we needed to head back to the boat and find our camping spot for the night. Just before darkness wrapped itself around the jungle, we managed to arrive to the camping area – a large space at the other side of the river covered by a wooden roof from which we could hang up our hammocks. The camp was rather organised, with a kitchen area and toilets. I spent the evening talking about English football with the two English guys in our group. It had been ages since I could chat about the beautiful game with people who love it as much as I do. 

Sofia on her hammock for the night

The following day, we got up before dawn and began to travel down the river on the canoe – this time taking much less time given that we were going in the same direction as the strong current. By mid-morning, we were back at Canaima and proceeded to the little airport to catch our flight back to Ciudad Bolivar. By a twist of fate, we ended up on a six-seater plane with Motoki, who was not in our same group this time since he was hoping to find a cheaper price than that offered by Francisco Alvarez (he didn’t and ended up paying more then us). The approach to the airport of Ciudad Bolivar was an exciting last minute turn and quick descent onto the runway, as if the little plane were a car calmly going into a garage. The police at the airport somehow recognised Motoki as a famous boxer so they took photos of him next to the plane. It was time to really say goodbye to Motoki at this point, since he was heading north to Caracas on a cheap flight whilst Sofia and I were heading back south towards Santa Elena on a night bus. Our bus was delayed by a few hours, so Sofia and I just sat around the bus station whilst Sofia cooked up some melodrama to keep the evening ‘interesting’!

Back in Canaima

We arrived in Santa Elena the following morning and hopped onto a shared taxi going to the border with Brazil. The immigration formalities were quicker this time but just as simple. I was given 60 days to stay within Brazil – even though I actually only needed one. The following day, I wanted to cross into Guyana to begin what promised to be the most complicated part of this long travel. Despite sharing a border with Venezuela, there’s no border-crossing between Guyana and Venezuela, meaning that one has to get to Brazil before entering into Guyana. And this is just the beginning of the hassle of crossing Guyana!

As a postscript to this story, once I was back in Ciudad Bolivar with an internet connection, I went to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) to check what movies Gerard Butler is currently working on and to verify if they are really making a Point Break sequel. In actual fact, they are currently making a Point Break remake (which sounds like a dumb idea  - Point Less rather than Point Break given that the star of the original, Keanu Reeves, is still a big star and the director, Katherine Bigalow, recently won an Oscar for best director for ‘The Hurt Locker’). This Point Break remake doesn’t seem to have any big stars in it – not even Gerard Butler – who apparently has nothing to do with this film. Interestingly, there is a certain Jaymes (yes – he spells it that way!) Butler on the cast list. Could it be that everyone got confused by the similar names? Or that this Jaymes Butler is telling everyone that he is the more famous actor to benefit from his popularity? … Though poor Gerard mustn’t be that popular since nobody in Canaima seemed to have noticed that this unknown actor isn’t the real thing!

There is only ONE Point Break!