Gran Sabana Evening

The red sky swathes the green sea below in a warm glow that makes this already sweaty environment even more warm, penetrating the very pores that try to cool you. The calls of animals far and wide begin to turn your very composed demeanor into the natural, wild creature that you were always meant to be. Your muscles become taught with nocturnal excitement and the smells of the jungle seem to jump out at you from every corner. The Gran Sabana is an important natural attraction in Venezuela, located in the south of Bolívar State on the Venezuelan-Brazilian border, approximately 1,400 km from Caracas. It lies on a plateau with a mean altitude of 1,000 meters above sea level and is dotted with huge table-top mountains called tepuis, which rise dramatically from the surrounding plains. The tallest of the tepuis is Mount Roraima at 2,810 meters above sea level. Mount Roraima also marks the triple border point for Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana. The Gran Sabana is inhabited by several indigenous groups, including the Pemon, who are the most numerous. Canaima National Park, which was created by a decree on the 12th of June, 1962, encompasses most of the Gran Sabana but the areas do not exactly match. In 1975 the park was extended from the original 10,000 km² to 30,000 km², making it the sixth largest national park in the world. The main attractions for visitors to the region are Angel Falls, the world's highest waterfall, Mount Roraima, the mountain which inspired Arthur Conan Doyle's 1912 novel The Lost World, and the many other mountains and waterfalls.