Dubbed the “River of Five Colors” and “Liquid Rainbow”, the Caño Cristales river in Colombia’s La Macarena is famous for bursting with amazing colors of rainbow. The clear water of the magical river reflect green, yellow, red, and purple colors flowing down. According to Insider, what colors the river takes depends on the water conditions and light.
Owing to its unprecedented beauty, Caño Cristales is referred as the “river of five colors,” “the river that ran away from paradise,” and “the most beautiful river in the world.”
Secret Behind The Unique Biological Wonder?
It’s no magic! According to reports, the colors in the river are because of a plant called macarenia clavigera. The particular aquatic plant gives the river vibrant hues. The unique plant is itself very beautiful and is highly sensitive to its environmental conditions. On bright, sunny days, the river looks most magnificent as light reflects colors vividly.
In order to thrive, the plant needs specific water level or else it dies and turns brown when the level is so high that the river bottom is not visible.
Best Time To Visit
The best time to visit is between July and November when the colors are at their peak vibrancy. The colourful rainbow river certainly offers excellent photo opportunity and if you want to feel more thrill, you can also go swimming in certain parts. In order to protect the plants, the maximum limit of swimmers per day has been restricted to 200 people per day.
Getting There
To get to the river, you have to fly into Villavicencio which is located in central Colombia. You then have to charter another plane to La Macarena where a guide will take you to the mountain range -Serrania de la Macarena.
Next time you plan a trip to South America, do not forget to capture this Columbia’s most spectacular nature wonder. Get ready to add some colors to your Instagram feed to get more hits.
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