Believe it or not, Angel Falls was unkown to Venezuelans until the early 1930′s. With out the invention of the airplane (see pages on Airplane under Inventions of Man on this site) the Venezuelans might not have ever found Angel Falls. The falls are only accessable by boat or aircraft because of steep slopes and thick jungle surrounding them.
Though discovered by the Venezuelans Angel Falls was named after James Angel. He was an American adventurer who crashed his plane near the falls 2 years after they were discovered.
It is said the water appears to be leaping from a flat-topped plateau called Auyan-Tepui, which means “Devils Moutain”.
Here are some other amazing facts about Angel Falls:
The height of the longest uninterrupted drop is 2,640 feet (807 meters)
About 20 times higher than Niagra Falls
It stands 3,212 ft.(979 meters)
Is 500 ft (150 meters) wide at its base
Although Angel Falls is difficult to reach, tourists travel from all parts of the world to visit it. Visitors may go to the falls with guides on prearranged tours. In 1975, one of those visitors was my Dad!
In 1971 three Americans and an Englishman were able to climb the sheer rock face of the falls. This adventure took them 10 days to complete.
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