Tours | Los Llanos VIP - Hato el Cedral

At Hato el Frio you can get very close to the animals and the cameras with little zoom are enough to make great animal shots. The main project of WWF in the Llanos is the resettlement of the extinct Orinoco crocodiles. The project runs for over 20 years and in the mean time the biological station has managed to reintroduce exemplars of seven meters. The number of these animals can only increase in the protected territory of Hato el Cedral. The gains out of the visits are used for the well and the continuity and some other projects of the biological station.

Day 1:

Early in the morning at 7am we will drive from Merida to los Llanos. At 2pm we reach the huge Hato El Cedral (80.000Hect) -the biological Station of WWF. In the afternoon we will make a 4 hours jeep safari in the savanna. This takes us along different water holes and to a lake where we can easily observe spectacle caimans, capybaras, white tailed deer, and different turtles. Moreover, this is the place where around 300 bird species can be seen: Ibis, roseate Spoonbill, Jabiru Stork, Owls, as well as Macaws and Parrots, Eagles.
The overnight stay is in Hato el Cedral.

Day 2:

In the morning we will make a small guided tour through the biological station, where we will learn about the Orinoco Crocodile. After that we make a boat excursion at the Cuaritico River to look for different birds, fresh water dolphins and other animals (the boat excursion can not take place if the water level is to low). In the afternoon we will drive for 3 hours to the Andes until we reach the colonial village Altamira.
The overnight stay is in Posada Caseres.

Day 3:

The most beautiful road of Venezuela takes us along the colonial Andean towns. At the glacier lake of Mucubají we’ll hike to Laguna Negra. For lunch we’ll eat fresh trout fried in garlic. Then, we drive up to 4200mts to the Eagle Pass. At this altitude there is particular vegetation: Frailejones which can grow up to 3mts. Then we visit the Condor station.
On the way back to Merida we’ll stop at the stone church of Juan Felix Sánchez (UNESCO culture heritage).
At around 6pm we will be back in Merida in our guesthouse.

Day 4:

After breakfast we go for a 1-2 hour hike through the foothill scenery - like a tropical rainforest - with the majestic Sierra Nevada in the background. Afterwards we are tubing down the Acequias River for 1 - 2 hours This river is one of the cleanest and most scenic in all Venezuela. For lunch we return to the Arassari Trek adventure camp. In the afternoon we return to Barinas, where we arrive about 03:00 pm and to Merida where we arrive about 08:00 pm.

Photos... (You will find more photos in our Photo Gallery)

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