Tuparro National Natural Park. It is part of the wonders of the Orinoco River, within the National System of National Natural Parks.
It was created by agreement No. 019 of 1970. Declared in 1982 as a National Monument and Core Zone of the Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO.
The name of the park is due to the hills of Tuparro, small mountains of less than 900 meters high, which belonged to the old Guiana massif and are made of quartz.
El Tuparro, located in the easternmost corner of Colombia.
When the German naturalist Alexander Von Humboldt visited the area that today is part of the El Tuparro National Natural Park (which is reached from Inírida after a journey of three and a half hours) at the beginning of the 19th century.
He called the Maipures stream » Eighth wonder of the world «
Overwhelmed with amazement standing at the imposing stream that the Indians of the region called Quituna.
There also exists an old cemetery that belonged to the indigenous nation of the Maipures, today disappeared.
Tuparro Park could be described as an extensive green savanna furrowed by large rivers with powerful streams and golden beaches.
- Small channels of crystalline waters, gallery forests, morichales and saladillales, in addition to enormous crystalline rocks in the form of rounded hills.
Here the presence of more than 320 species of birds, many of them aquatic, is calculated.
It encompasses a territory that resembles a sea of herbs, barely dotted with bush and cut by lush forest corridors, which follow the course of the rivers.
It is a clear expression of immense beauty of the Colombian Orinoquía.
In the Tuparro National Natural Park
Forests are of two types, ripiaries or gallery forests, which follow the courses of rivers and streams, some of which are floodable or overflow, while others are not flooded.
- In the majority of the headwaters of the pipes there are two very typical tree communities: the morichal and the saladillal.
There are other types of vegetation, such as that of the grass savannas and the typical savanna tree that is El Chaparro.
Fire-prone areas, sand dunes and wooded swamps, to date more than 20 species of orchids.
El Tuparro has a very diverse fauna.
As far as mammals are concerned, there are five species of primates.
The water dog, the otter, the butterfly tiger and the cougar, among others, are also observed.
More than three hundred and twenty bird species are calculated for the Park and there is a great variety of fish.
One of the most striking is the osteoglossum ferreyrae, «living fossil» that migrated from the Amazon to the Orinoquia.
This interests you:
As a tourist destination
El Tuparro Park is a privileged place.
Its natural attractions of incomparable beauty allow us to offer the visitor different possibilities for recreation.
In addition to admiring the streams and exotic surroundings, visitors can go hiking, kayaking, artisanal and sport fishing, climbing and photography.
We also find an extensive artisanal production that includes the work of indigenous communities, and indigenous cemeteries decorated with pictograms.
The ecotourism offer in the area is privileged thanks to some exuberant natural attractions that allow visitors to offer different possibilities of activity during their visit.
Infrastructure
At the Maipures Visitor Center there are three (3) cabins available, one hexagonal one-story with capacity for two people and two rectangular two-story cabins with capacity for eight (8) people.
Recommendations; Get vaccinated against yellow fever and tetanus, and bring a complete first aid kit and antivenom serum.
Also wear boots, cotton clothing, long-sleeved shirts, raincoat, flashlight, hat, sunscreen, insect repellent, bathing suit and camera.
Bring enough gasoline, depending on the kilometers you plan to travel. The last service station is in Puerto Gaitán and after that it is very difficult to get fuel.
And do not forget, do not leave trash and do not pollute water sources, as well as do not destroy nature.
