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The Gocta Waterfall is located in the province of Chachapoyas in the deparment of Amazonas, about 700 kilometers north-east of Lima. Local residents have known of the fall for centuries, but it remained unkown to outsiders because locals feared the curse of a beautiful blond mermaid who lived in its waters if they revealed its whereabouts. After leading an expedition to Gocta in 2002, German Stefan Ziemendorff announced its existence to the world. On March 11, 2006, after his 3rd expedition to the falls, Ziemendorff announced that the falls measured 771 meters, or 2,532 feet, making them the 3rd tallest free-falling waterfall after Angel Falls in Venezuela and Tugela Falls in South Africa, based on information from the National Geographic Society. However, this ranking has been widely disputed, mainly depending on the exact definition of “waterfall” used. The World Waterfall Database places Gocta as the 14th tallest.

Nearby, sitting 3000 meters (9,842 ft) above sea level, the Kuelap ruins are located on a ridge overlooking the Utcubamba Valley in northern Peru. The fortress is the best example of the Chachapoyas culture’s architecture, and was built around 800 AD.  It consists of more than 400 buildings surrounded by massive exterior stone walls thought to have been built to defend the city against hostile peoples such as the Huari.

Without further adue, let’s hear from Ric himself:

“Kuelap and Gocta are great. All of you should go when you have the chance. You can see Gocta from far away which makes it more impressive (you can even hear the rumble of the waterfalls when you are several hours away). It is an interesting town to visit, as the community has just now discovered its jewel. The community members are proud to share the natural beauty of their land, and are excited about bettering the local economy through the development of tourism in the area.
The walk is a bit tough, so be sure to stretch well before you start or you will be sore. Upon my arrival to the base of Gocta, I realized that the waterfall is so high that by the time the water hits the ground it is more of a violent mist than a solid stream of water. I got as close as possible (less than 10 meters (30 feet) from the waterfall), got totally soaked, and felt the awesome power of GOCTA!
The next day I was off to Kuelap.
Kuelap is by all means Machu Picchu II. There is an airport in Chachapoyas, and once commercial airlines start flying there, this place will be a huge hit. I have seen almost all of the most important ruins in Peru, and Kuelap is the best after Machu Picchu. I know that no ruins will ever beat how photogenic Machu Picchu is, but Kuelap is less photogenic because it was more of a fortress, whereas Machu Picchu was the Inca’s penthouse. The cool thing is that Kuelap is not Inca, so the ideas and architecture are very different. Kuelap, in addition to the outer stone wall includes a fully stoned city. About 70% of Kuelap still needs to be uncovered and cleaned up. There is a lot of work and restoration going on- in a couple of years it will be just beautiful.

Are you convinced? Ready to visit Gotca and Kuelap? Contact Peru For Less, and you can follow in Ric’s footsteps!

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