MONTE RORAIMA

Most trekkings and climbing trips to Mount Roraima leave Santa Elena de Uairén, a small Venezuelan town on the border with Brazil. This emblematic mount, the highest of the tepuys of the plateau of Guyanes (2,810 m), located at the triple point (Triple Point) of Brazil, Guyana and Venezuela, would have inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle for his lost novel Le Monde.

The first thing you need to know is that you can't climb alone on the Roraima. The presence of a guide is mandatory, not only so that your trek pays the local population, but also because you can lose. At the top, in fog, it is even extremely easy to lose any benchmark - and then, good luck! Basically, you have two possibilities:

Go through an agency. This is the most comfortable, safest and most expensive solution of course. You can count on the fact that the guide is familiar with the terrain, that it has a mobile phone: in case of a hard blow, the agency is rodded, it has insurance and it has an interest in having you come back happy and then make good publicity! Moreover, with an agency, you can claim money in return for a big problem caused by its fault, which is not the case with pirates.

The most economical agencies and, by force, the best prepared are in Santa Elena, while others operate from Ciudad Bolívar, Caracas or elsewhere.

Then see if you climb the Roraima only with a guide or attach the services of a porter to relieve your backpack (tent, food) or even 2 carriers so that you have nothing to wear at all. US $ 20/day per porter.

Go through a pirate. The rule that the closer you are to the site and the more cheaply your turn turns out to be, is absolutely true in the case of the Roraima. It is possible to contact a guide on the San Francisco side of Yuruaní (66 km north of Santa Elena) or Paraitepuy (you can sleep there in dormitory for cheap), with different variants: either the guide buys the food or you buy it yourself, which is a better option if you want to be sure to eat your hunger and reasonably well. You don't have to take food for your guide, but this is strongly advised, because it counts on it… and you have every interest in maintaining good relations with your Indian guide. José Hernandez who lives in San Francisco de Yuruani is an excellent guide used to working with the Santa Elena tour operators. He asks for 120 Bs. F a day. A porter will require 80 BS. F… for up to 20 kg. Beyond that, it will have to pay more!

At these costs, unless you want to walk the 25 km that separates San Francisco from Yuruani from Paraitepuy (take 6 hours), you will have to add the price of the Toyota 7 places: 240 BS. F (single way) or 400 Bs F from Santa Elena. Of course, you can try the stop, but cars are very rare and you can be sure that the agencies will not take you.

Equipment. You will need to adapt to the climate. It is important to take enough warm clothes, which you will try to keep dry for the night. Socks, rolled collar, polar sweater and gloves are fine clothes. If you even have a bonnet, so much better, because 40% of the body heat is lost at the head level. Having a good waterproof is, if not necessary, highly recommended. Please note that there is no good waterproof in Ciudad Bolívar, and of course even less in Santa Elena. Good walking shoes are also highly recommended, while Teva-style beach shoes are useful to cross some rivers. Finally, don't forget your bathing suit. Ustensiles essential: large, resistant plastic bags in which you wrap your clothes, before storing them. Rain protection for your backpack also; In fact, we must pass through a waterfall to reach the summit of the Tépuy…

As you go camping, make sure you have a good tent, impermeable it goes without saying, whose lightning closures work properly. Taking enough food - carbohydrates are highly recommended, as well as soups - is also important to keep you in good condition and finally, to leave the Roraima healthy, plastic bags to bring your waste back. For your information, Inparques inspects your baggage before you leave and check when you return what you bring back. Bring all your waste, but no crystals, unless you want to pay a few hundred dollars of fine.

To really enjoy your trip, it is best to have at least 5 days walking and a full day at the top of the Roraima.

1 st day. You're leaving the Indian village of Paraitepuy. After an hour's walk, a superb view is offered to you. From this junction, you can see almost all the Tepuys chain. From left to right: Ilu Tepuy (north), Wakapiapa (the end, like a finger out of the plain), Yuruani, Kukenan, Roraïma and finally the Wey-Tepuy in Eet. In 3 or 4 hours, after climbing and descending hills with a little marshy terrain, you reach the río Tek, very nice to swim. A part forms a small natural swimming pool. Good place to camp, but the cleanpuris are particularly dreadful there. Apart from the famous magic potion (baby oil and vitamin B 12 injectable), there is nothing else to do but avoid camping too close to the river. If you left early, walk another 45 minutes to the Kukenán río, just as well to spend the first night, but frequented by the same insects. The crossing of this river is sometimes difficult, because of the sometimes violent currents, but always possible thanks to the insight of your guide.

2 nd day. A permanent and pleasant rise of about 3 hours through the savannah - brush, wild herbs, etc. - leads you to what is called Campamento base, which you translated from yourself as the base camp. In order to protect itself from the wind, it is tactical to mount the tent to shrubs. During the day, you will have seen the majesty of the 2 tepuys Roraima and Kukenán (it is forbidden to climb the latter since the mysterious disappearance of a child) and the landscape of trunks burned - memory of the Gran Quemada of 1923 which devastated the forest to Brazil.

3 rd day. Place to serious things: Walking through the jungle takes you to about 3 or 4 hours to the top, which will probably be wrapped in clouds. To do this, you will have to face steep slopes and fall under a waterfall… but the beauty of the landscape quickly forgets every effort. After crossing the wooded part, where small streams lined with primitive ferns can be crossed up to 5 m high, the vertical rock wall of the Tepuy (about 500 m high) is flanked. The panoramic view of the plain is striking, and the path traveled seems ridiculously short… The shadows and light are incredible and look magical! Careful, in the last climb, after the waterfall, the terrain is very slippery and when it rains, the path takes itself to a river. Once on the top, the landscape changes at all: Welcome to the moon!

Start by reserving your "hotel" - that's what you call the few natural shelters protected by rocks. Know that in high season, these very strategic locations are stormed, so come as soon as possible. For peace and quiet, do not stay near the entrance. If you go on for half an hour, you reach the hotel "Las Vegas" which is just a few meters from the precipice… You will then go to the summit. Natural Jacuzzis (but do not wait for a hot bath), pink sand that detaches itself from black stones, exceptional endemic flora and crystals of 2 or 3 centimeters are then offered to you. Please admire these crystals, take 50 photos in macro, but leave them where they are!

4 th day. It is dedicated to the exploration of the summit. There are two options for you: follow a short circuit, or cross almost all the Tepuy to reach the Punto Triple (about 8 hours). This latter option is strongly recommended, if you are not exhausted by 3 days of repeated effort. This excursion passes through a range of landscapes, all of which are more impressive, wandering in a world almost unreal, consisting of small canals and natural pools, surrounded by rocky formations with strange looks. You will first pass through El Fso (the pit): a circular hole of 5 or 6 m deep, in which cascade falls. It is possible to access this magnificent natural swimming pool with crystalline waters, with underground galleries, for a swim more than refreshing. You will reach the Punto Triple where Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana join. You will enter these countries illegally, as many times as you want. Of the entire area of the Roraima, 85% belong to Venezuela, 10% to Guyana and 5% return to Brazil. Finally, the walk ends with the crystal valley (El Valle de los Cristales) with quartz, before returning to your hotel.

Day 5. You return to the Kukenán or Tek ríos, perhaps enjoying the waterfalls that stretch from the tepuy. Attention: the first part of the descent can be very slippery if it just rains.

On the 6 th ^day, you return to civilization and resume normal activity.