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The Secret Waterfall
What may be the world's third highest waterfall was unveiled for media attention in 2006 by Peruvian authorities. Measured at 2500 feet, or 250 stories, the falls is located in the province of Chachapoyas in Amazonas. Known to the locals for centuries, this spectacular waterfall is now being promoted by the Peruvian Government as one of the next great tourist attractions in this country.
It is named Gocta Waterfall, or la cataracta Gocta in Spanish, and according to information from the National Geographic Society, it is the third ranking free leaping waterfall after Angel Falls in Venezuela and Tugela Falls in South Africa.
Because it was unknown, few tourists have visited the site. Also, as would be logical, services for visitors have not yet been developed. The Peruvian Government has plans for accommodation in 2007.
To get there, fly to Chiclayo from Lima. Then take a bus or car to Chachapoyas which is the gateway to another interesting site, Kuelap. From Chachapoyas, take a van to San Pablo and hike from there.
The waterfall is two-tiered; dropping over a ridge and hitting a shelf on the cliff, where it collects for a few hundred feet before falling to the valley floor. It is spectacular. A visitor has described it in poetic fashion as follows:
“Gocta , at this time of the year, is a misty wraith dancing with gravity, a huge, twisting, white column of froth chasing itself down the cliff face. It made an immense noise. Even two miles away we could feel its strange clackety vibe, like an infinite train over a bad track. In the rainy season it must shake the world.”
Another great attraction in this amazing country.
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