We are in the oldest place on earth.
Its formation began 200 million years ago, when the supercontinent Pangea began to split apart.
Since then, the devastating force of nature has constantly modelled it,
sculpting the most beautiful forms in a never-ending work of creation.
Here, on the Guayana Massif, in the south of Venezuela, along the Brazilian border,
lies the largest, most intact virgin forest in the world.
Hundreds of waterfalls, torrents and fast-flowing rivers and streams
are the only clearings breaking up the lush vegetation of the jungle.
The snake among the dense green canopy, crashing down from the spectacular rock formations,
the sacred tepuys of the Indians, the dwelling place of the gods of the Great Savanna of Venezuela.
The Mountain of Mistery
In the interior of this green world lost in time,
live men intimately adapted to their jungle environment which, though fascinating, is full of dangers.
They are the inhabitants of the jungle, who live alongside and respect the endless different life forms around them.
Their culture is ancient, almost as ancient as the landscape in which it has developed.
It is the scene of hunters and hunted
drop your guard for just a single moment, and the order is immediately reversed,
the hunter can become the prey and the prey an implacable predator.
But the king is always the tiger, the jaguar who is always on the lookout with its sinister gaze.
Its roar silences the forest, paralyses the beat of life.
The jungle does not regain its breath until his majesty has collected his blood tribute.
Here live Indians of different ethnic groups: Pemon, Maquiritar, Panar and Hotis,
divided into an endless number of tribes.
All of them, and especially the Pemons, fear and respect the tepuys,
these table mountains that seem to have been carved by mighty beings,
giants of the universe like those described in their mythology.
Without a doubt, the most venerated tepuy of all is the Auyan-Tepuy,
"the Mountain of the Devil" in the Pemon language.
They believe that up there live extraordinary beings, evil monsters and three-headed serpents.
Down one of its faces crashes the Kerepakupai-Meru,
also known as the Angel Falls, which is absolutely taboo for the natives.
In their psychedelic trances the Shamans sing to warn their people:
"When you walk through the forest or sail along the river Churun,
bow down your heads and be respectful.
Do not look up! Be cautious!
On the Auyan live cruel, perverse spirits who may not be observed.
And if you have to go to the "Devil's Canyon",
your eyes should never see the great Karapakupai falls.
Behind it live the most powerful of the gods.
If you see them, they will immediately take your life."
You don't have to believe in the myths of the natives
to recognise that this natural setting exercises its influence over us.
The Auyan is one of the most beautiful tepuys in Venezuela.
A colossal rock formation that dramatically rises out of the dense forest vegetation,
vertical walls over a thousand metres high.
The waters of the rivers Churun and Carrao are reddish,
and along the rapids become multicoloured due to the effect of the foam.
This colouring is due to the large quantity of tannin they contain.
The disinfectant power of this substance means that the tea-coloured water is fit for drinking.
The Churun is a tributary of the Carrao,
whose dark waters in turn flow into the cloudy, brown, alluvial waters of the Caroni,
a tributary of the Orinoco.
These rivers are difficult to navigate due to the many rapids and falls along them.
In the dry season, from December to June, the Churun runs almost dry,
making travel along it impossible.
Here, everything takes on colossal dimensions.
The force of nature constantly manifests itself,
creating an awe-inspiring atmosphere which, for centuries,
has fired the imagination of the traveller, and has given rise to all types of legends.
Perhaps that is why Arthur Conan Doyle was inspired by Canaima when he wrote the novel
"The Lost World"
Rounding a tight bend in the river Churun, the mythical Kerepakupai of the Pemons, the Angel Falls, appear.
It is a spectacular sight, a unique landscape.
It is not surprising that the first European travellers were profoundly moved by its very presence,
and that it has been, since time immemorial, the home and origin of the native pantheon.
It is the highest waterfall in the world.
The accumulated rain waters of this part of the plateau crash down from a height of 972 metros, almost a kilometre.
It is 17 times higher than the Niagara Falls.
Flying over the Auyan-Tepuy, looking down at the walls of the Devil's Canyon,
it does not surprise us that Arthur Conan Doyle should dream of dinosaurs inhabiting this lost world.
On the 700 square kilometres of the Auyan-Tepuy,
the vegetation and wildlife are different from those below.
The tepuys are the remains of an enormous plateau which in the pre-Cambrian era occupied the entire region.
The vegetable species that covered the ancient massif,
and part of its fauna, have survived on the summits of these hills,
isolated by the high vertical walls.
After falling for almost kilometre, the water crashes to the ground forming rain,
and creating a ghostly atmosphere, giving the falls an ethereal, dreamlike appearance.
At dawn, the reflection of the first rays of sun produce a rainbow which adds even further
to spectacular image of what the Indians call Kerepakupai.