Fascination and chills in the heart of the lost world of Roraima

There is a world where neither time nor men have any right. Raise the veil on the mysterious world buried in Roraima.

Where Brazil, Venezuela and Guyana meet, time seems to have been frozen. In the heart of the rainforest, mazes of lush vegetation and endemic animal markers, a few summits have been proudly crowned for two billion years. They have come out of the earth, majesticly piercing the Amazon, and have become among the oldest and mysterious geological formations of the world. These giants have a name: the Tepuys. If they are so secret, it is indeed because only ten per cent of them were visited by Man. But it seems that they are the cradle of unique animal and plant species, and perhaps even of another world... Among those you can access: Mount Roraima. But you are warned: up there, all encounters and discoveries are possible.

Welcome to the lost world of Roraima, altitude plateau with mystical, disturbing and dazzling looks.

Sacred, isolated and unique mountains in the world: discover the Tepuys

In the heart of Venezuelan Gran Sabana, meaning Grande Savane, lives the Pemon people. They live at the feet of strange and fascinating rocky promontories, unique on Earth and confidential for the most part. They call these tabular mountains, millions and millions of years old, the Tepuys. If you prefer, name the Houses of the Gods or Houses of the Spirits. It is true, it seems old royal voices to the heavens...

But the real legend tells us that these mountains were old tree trunks, sheltering all the fruits and vegetables of Earth. They were divided by a greedy and hungry giant. By falling, these gigantic trunks would have flooded the whole plain and given birth to the Brazilian rainforest.

Some will say, however, that the Tepuys hide much more secrets and promise many more daring experiences... At the same time, they still house prehistoric plant and animal species, unique in the world, having developed in complete isolation for millions of years!

The most famous and sacred of them is the Roraima. Extended over 30 square kilometers and perched at two thousand eight hundred meters above sea level, it is also the highest. Many explorers rubbed themselves on its dizzying flanks, to make it a Tepuy accessible to the temeral visitors of the world. The first were British. After their adventure, in 1884, their scientific conference and their relationship with the Tepuy species, Mount Roraima entered the legend.

Since then, the mountain inspires many stories, like the Lost World of Conan Doyle . This is why today we call this place: the lost world of Roraima.

Now get ready. Warm your waterproof boots, put on your Indiana Jones clothes and, even, hang a few survival instruments on your belt!

What does a dive look like in Roraima's lost world?

The sun hits the plain flooded with light. Fortunately, some streams trace their way and offer the freshness of their waters to the Rougi faces by the heat. In the distance, the Tepuys sinks into the clouds. They seem laid there, imposing and out of nowhere, but dominant La Gran Savana without crushing. By approaching, their immensity is as overwhelming as it is breathtaking.

Ascension is rough. The tabular mountain, shaped by erosion, has retained its shredded and abrupt profiles. When the climb starts, the landscape changes. The allure of savanna leaves room for the tropical tables. The rain rushes and feeds the streams of water that can become torrential. Humidity pearls of green leaves. The tufted and sparkling plants are buried in clusters full of life. The paths are narrowed down as nature grows. The soft woods enter the edges, while the earth becomes furniture and sweating. Hidden in foliage, carpets under the plants, to the creme of the stifling trees the rays of the sun, a whole ecosystem without such a reign in silence.

Suddenly, dense and explosive vegetation dissipates. The stifling tropical heat leaves room for dry cold. The mist descends slowly and winds through a flat, rocky and mysterious expanse. It then seems that the entry of the lost world is...

The tame sound of the mellow earth disappears for the sake of the noise of the interchoing rocks. However, the stone does not resemble anything else on Earth. The rocks are black, sometimes flat, sometimes rounded, sometimes shiny, sometimes piled up, but one thing is sure: the decoration has prehistoric looks. They seem to rise in the Jurassic towers and in parterres welcoming the heavy pass of the dinosaurs. Their dark color immediately contrasts with the scattered tasks of vegetation. There, trees and bushes are confused. All shades of green are in the hollow of slate stones. Sometimes even, some colorful tasks announce pimping and exotic flowers. But their beauty is traitor, because in this unprecedented eco-system, they learned to survive and become... carnivores.

This lunar landscape even hides a few shrimps and swells at the bottom of which natural pools silently shine. These crystalline waters, with secret properties, invite the bravest to a dip. Open the eye, no one knows what these dark funds are hiding, straight out of the center of the Earth. Otherwise, dip the head under a cascade, or the whole body in the middle of a lake nestled with strangeness. The cold and out of time will sweep some traces of the salty days in the heart of the jungle...

This anarchical, blackened, cracked and paired with colorful bosquets, also houses some rougi water courses and crystal beaches and pink sand. It is, in reality, a real labyrinth of mineral treasures that catches the fogs and maintains the mystical and disturbing vision.

When the sun disappears on the horizon, caves dug over the millennia welcome adventurers for the night. Under their inexpugnable roof, they can dream of their discovery, loved in downs and under tents, which must be worn on their back.

But the nights under the stars of the lost world do not happen without some strange or uncomfortable noises. Maybe it’s a dinosaur that looks after you, carpet in the cold air of the rocky plateau. Or maybe it is the cold that manages to interfere in you.

One thing is for sure, you have to be a thriller and passionate to rub yourself in the lost world of Roraima. This fortress, springing like an island in the middle of the savannah, calls only the adventurers and dreaming of forgotten treasures...

Go to Mont Roraima

When do you try adventure?

The tropical and wet climate at the foot of the mountain maintains temperatures around 30 degrees . At the top, weather conditions are moderated around ten degrees . However, the nights are very cold and it rains almost all year round. Even more between March and December, when the trek is closed.

How to get to a lost world?

• The uniqu, a gateway to the lost world of Roraima, is located in Venezuela. The starting point of all trekkers is the city of Santa Elena de Uairén. It has an airport and is very well served by bus from the nearby major cities.
• The city has many agencies can help you organize your trek. At the top, with the rock labyrinth pierced with bottomless gouffs and the almost frozen blanket, it is very easy to lose. No tourists climb the Roraima without a guide! From Paraitepui, the last village before the mountain, located a few kilometers from Santa Elena de Uénair, you can still find yours.
• From Paraitepui, with your guide, count a day to reach the base of Mont Roraima.
• On the second day, you rub yourself in La Rampa:Natural staircase leading to the top of the Tepuy. An ascension committed!
• Upstairs, you spend two nights in a tent and a full day exploring the fascinating depths of the lost world. Some people spend an extra night there, to sink further. Especially at the prow of Mont Roraima and at the edges of the strange and fantastic Gladys Lake.
• Finally, count two days to come down.

In the end, a trek at Mont Roraima takes between five and six days .

Note : If the weather allows you and you are not a hiker, you can land at the top of the world lost by helicopter. The helipad is located near Santa Elena de Uairén.

What other big secret is La Gran Sabana?

Another confidential wonder in this region, adorned with Tepuys at unbeatable and populated peaks of surrealist eco-systems, is the Salto Angel cascade. This waterfall is the highest in the world. It devalues the Auyàn-Tepui, another of these sacred tabular mountains, almost a thousand meters!

The Salto Angel even inspired Disney Pixar studios for the film There-Haut!