Roraima: The Summit and descent

For our only full day on top of Roraima our guide wanted an early start. As we walked out of our camp into the mist it was easy to see how the tepuis support their own eco system. Truly unique, the mist only added to the eerie atmosphere and quiet stillness on top of Roraima. We walked across the seemingly identical sections, without our guides we would have been entirely lost. We made our way to the Crystal valley to see the quartx fields, passing on our way many of the endemic flora in this harsh little micro climate. The ´jacuzzis´ (cold plunge pools) lay still and deep in the smooth rock which eventually gave way to harsher land with mini pillar like sections perfect for a quick team photo opportunity. The final point of the tour was ´The Window´a hole in the rock floor with plunging views to the ground below. The mist however obscured this view but added to the feeling of an utter abyss below us as we peered over the edge of the Tepui feeling we could topple over at any point.

The descent was much quicker than the trek up, with civilization and more importantly pizza getting closer the group rallied together to reach the goal of a 2 day trip. Setting up camp at Rio Tek the first night the group were in good spirits. Looking back at Roraima, a dark, monstrous shadow in the moonlight as the fire flies flickered through the grass and stars twinkled in the moonlit sky we were able to feel the enormity of our achievements. The final day of the trek had us pushing hard towards the village of Paratepui and after leaving at 6.30am the first of the group crossed the line at around 10am with the others not far behind. Hot and exhausted the majority of the team took the trucks back to Santa Elena, leaving one truck to stop off in the Pemon settlement of San Francisco to look at the crafts. That night back in Kamadac´s camp site the team basked in their achievement of the last 6 days.