Around Caracas

PARQUE NACIONAL EL ÁVILA

El Ávila national park consists of a steep, verdant mountain that looms just to the north of Caracas. The park encompasses about 90km of the range, running east-west along the coast and separating the city from the sea. The highest peak is Pico Naiguatá (2765m).

The southern slope, overlooking Caracas, is virtually uninhabited but is crisscrossed with dozens of walking trails. The northern face, running down to the sea, is dotted with hamlets and haciendas, yet few tourist trails are on this side. The park is crossed north to south by a few 4WD tracks and the inoperable teleférico (cable car).

Teleférico

The cable car was built by a German company from 1956 to 1957, during the dictatorship of Marcos Pérez Jiménez. It consists of two lines: the one-stage, 4km run from Caracas up to Pico El Ávila; and the three-stage, 7.5km run from El Ávila down to Macuto on the coast. Both lines have been closed since 1988. The teleférico used to go from the Maripérez station (980m), located next to Avenida Boyacá in Caracas, up to El Ávila station (2150m). The terminus is close to Pico El Ávila (2175m), which is crowned by the sparkling, circular 14-story Hotel Humboldt, built in 1956. The hotel was closed soon after the cable car stopped running.

Today it’s just a fantastic landmark over looking Caracas, visible from almost every point in the city. The area around the upper station and the hotel offers breathtaking views of Caracas and the Valle del Tuy beyond, and toward the north is a beautiful panorama of the coast with the Caribbean Sea stretching to the horizon.

Hiking

Of all Venezuela’s national parks, El Ávila provides the best infrastructure for walkers. There are about 200km of walking trails, most of them well signposted. Half a dozen camping grounds distributed around the park are equipped with sanitary facilities, and there are many more places designated for camping (though they’re without facilities).

A dozen entrances lead into the park from Caracas; all originate from Avenida Boyacá, commonly known as ‘Cota Mil’ because it runs at an altitude of l000m. Whichever route you choose, you’ll have a short ascent before you get to a guard post, where you pay a nominal park entrance fee. The guardaparques (park rangers) may provide information about routes and suggest one if you haven’t yet decided. Before you come, however, buy the useful Mapa para el Excursionista — Parque Nacional El Ávila (scale 1:40,000), which has marked trails and camping facilities.

You have plenty of options for a half- or full-day hike. You can, for example, go up to Pico El Ávila; at least four routes lead there. Start early, as it can get extremely hot by midmorning. For those who are prepared to camp, probably the most scenic route is the two-day hike to Pico Naiguatá. Take rain gear and warm clothes. Water is scarce, so bring some along. Don’t forget plastic bags to bring all your rubbish back down. The dry season is from December to April, but even then it may rain in the upper reaches.

LITORAL CENTRAL

The northern face of El Ávila park slopes steeply down almost right into the sea, leaving only a narrow, flat strip of land between the foothills and the shore, referred to as the ‘Litoral Central.’ Still, the area developed into a chain of coastal towns, including, from west to east, Catia La Mar, Maiquetía, La Guaira, Macuto, Caraballeda and Naiguatá. Sadly, most of the area was devastated by mudslides caused by torrential rains in December 1999.

The whole area from La Guaira to Naiguatá has become a sea of ruins, and up to 50,000 people were buried under the mud. Macuto, Caraballeda and Naiguatá, once thrilling seaside resorts for caraqueños, were turned into ruined ghost towns, and they remained much the same half a year after the disaster. One can only guess how many people have remained in the area, which had a population of nearly half a million before the disaster. It will take long years before life returns to anything resembling normal, and perhaps two decades before the urban tissue is fully rebuilt, if ever.

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