Caño Cristales - Known as the “River of Five Colors” or the “Liquid Rainbow”

Caño Cristales - Known as the “River of Five Colors” or the “Liquid Rainbow”

 Introduction

Located in Meta Colombia, there is a beautiful 62.1-mile-long river which runs through the mountain range of Serranía de la Macarena national park. The river has a spectrum of five different colours (yellow, green, black, blue, and red) caused by the different factors like a red plant called Macarenia Clavigera that usually grows on the riverbed, giving red colour. Other colours come from black rocks, green algae, blue water and yellow sand. The river, thus, called “River of Five Colours” or famously as “Liquid Rainbow”.

The river borders the Amazon rainforest and has peculiar types of plants and animals which don’t exist anywhere else in the world.

History

This mesmerizing river was hidden to the world until a group of Colombian cattle farmers in 1969 discovered it while grazing their animals. The news of the discovery was confined to the local area because of the lack of road & transportation system. Instead, the journey was possible through a long and dangerous trek through the wilds that dare hearted travelers can afford.

In 1989, Andrés Hurtado García - a Colombian photographer, ecologist, and journalist decided to visit the areas of La Macarena, where he found this beautiful river and named it as “Caño Cristales”. He also published an article and photos of the river in a Colombian newspaper “El Tiempo” and Georgian based magazine “Iberia”.

In 2012, a picture of the river was published on the cover page of a book “Caminando Colombia”, due to which the place became a famous tourist spot throughout the world.

Another reason that the river remained hidden to the world was the guerilla activity that made the beautiful village of Macarena into a hub of cocaine production. Thanks to the Colombian national army that flushed guerillas out, busted their hideouts and made them to sign a peace agreement.

After peace agreement with FARC guerrillas in 2016 which ended 50 years of civil war, Colombia experienced a solid yearly growth in tourists visiting the country. Millions of international tourists as well as locals flock to the area, and between 2017 and 2018 alone, the country saw visitor numbers increased by 38%.

Climate

Caño Cristales is located in the municipal of tropic and humid area of la Macarena where temperatures ranges from 5.5 ° C (42 ° F) to 31 ° C (88 ° F), due to which a high level of biodiversity, with numerous widespread and rare species can be expected.

Colombia is known for its variable weather at different places due to the closeness to the equator throughout the year. The wet season occurs during the months of April, May, October and November. The dry or hot season occurs in the months of December, January, July, and August.

Flora & Fauna

The area of Serranía de la Macarena contains almost 550 species of birds, 1,200 species of insects, 100 species of reptiles, and over 2,000 species of plants, 50 species of orchards, 8 species of monkeys, anteaters, jaguars, cougars and deer.

During rainy season, water levels rises and little amount of sunlight reaches the depths of the riverbed. Macarenia clavigera, which is the cause of red colour of the river, is hardly visible. New plants start to sprout in the wet season, with the growing roots deriving their nutrients from the minerals in the rocks in the riverbed.

During dry season, Macarenia clavigera sheds its seeds as it lacks water to flourish.

Macarenia clavigera gets its ideal amount of sunlight and water from August to the end of October. During this period, it blooms in a large quantity, giving the rainbow look to the river Cano Cristales.

In 1971, a national park was proposed of 6200 square kilometers by the Colombian Government to protect its biodiversity.

Preservation of Cano Cristales

Cano Cristales is tourist spot which attracts thousands of people worldwide. It is estimated that around 15,000 tourists visit Caño Cristales every year, and the number continues to grow.

Before COVID-19, this had raised serious alarm among biologists about the degradation of environment of the river. During pandemic, Caño Cristales did not receive one single visitor. The closure during COVID-19 has been beneficial for the region.

Flavia Santoro, head of ProColombia, a government agency of the Executive Branch (tourism board), says that measures had to be taken to protect the area - so large was the influx of visitors. The agency "severely restricted development" of tourism infrastructure in La Macarena, the nearest small town to the national park, as well as capping the number of tourists allowed in at 200 per day.

Faber Ramos, a park ranger and eco-tourism coordinator in the Colombian national park system's Orinoco region, says the pandemic has had a "positive effect" on the river's health and that there was now a greater presence of fauna.

How to visit Caño Cristales?

The nearest town to Caño Cristales is La Macarena. La Macarena is a rural and less developed southern part of Colombia. There is no direct transport that connects big cities like Bogotá or Medellin or Villavicencio. The best way to get to the town is by plane. After the arrival in La Macarena, there is a need to book a tour with a local tour guide, as it is not permissible to tourists to enter the national park by themselves.

Is it safe to visit Caño Cristales?

Yes, it is absolutely safe to visit Caño Cristales. But there are some areas in Meta that aren’t safe and the best way to visit Caño Cristales is by plane. There is a strong military presence in the adjoining areas of the river, that’s why, hundreds of tourists pay visit to the river every day.