The falls can be flown over in twenty minutes. Going up the river takes two days and is a different trip altogether: the Carrao, the portage at Mayupa, the Churún narrowing between walls, and a night listening to 979 metres of water in the dark.
Day by day
Day 1 — Canaima
Light aircraft in. Afternoon on the lagoon past Hacha, Golondrina and Ucaima, and the walk behind Salto El Sapo.
Day 2 — Canaima to the base of the falls
Four to five hours upriver by curiara, the portage at Mayupa, then an hour of steep jungle to the Laime lookout. Swim, and hammocks at camp.
Day 3 — Return to Canaima
Downriver with a stop to swim, and the flight out — or on to the next destination.
Make it yours
Add a night in Canaima at either end, fly one leg and boat the other, or attach the helicopter landing on top of Auyantepui.
