Cueva Cataratas de Hueque

Useful Information

Location:	Parque Nacional Juan Crisostomo Falcon, San Nicolás 4163, Falcón. (11.177169, -69.560762)
Open:	no restrictions. [2023]
Fee:	free. [2023]
Classification:	Karst Cave
Light:	bring torch
Dimension:
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Cueva Cataratas de Hueque, Parque Nacional Juan Crisostomo Falcon, San Nicolás 4163, Falcón.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

06-MAY-1987

declared a National Park.

Description

Cueva Cataratas de Hueque is named after a nearby waterfall, both the waterfall and the cave are popular sites for local tourism. The name is also shortened to Cueva Hueque. The cave is an easy wild cave, which actually only has a single horizontal passage which is high enough to walk upright. This is definitely the type of wild cave which is easy and save to visit. It still has some nice speleothems, although this may change with increasing visitor numbers.

Its only 30 km from the state capital, but due to the winding roads the drive needs some time. Nevertheless, it's a popular day trip destination for the locals, foreign tourists are rare. Most visitors actually come for the waterfalls, some for climbing activities which are allowed at dedicated spots. There are also several trails with 1.5 and 2 hour round courses.

The site is located at the Parque Nacional Juan Crisostomo Falcon (Juan Crisóstomo Falcón National Park), which is named after Juan Crisóstomo Falcón, the president of Venezuela from 1863 to 1868. The 200 km² park has lush vegetation a is a source of water for the surrounding towns. It is karstified and has numerous caves, many river caves, and underground lakes. The Cueva del río Acarite (Acarite River Cave) has the largest underground lake in Venezuela called La Fosa de San Luis. It's possible to visit several other caves with a guide from the national park. The park actually has five waterfalls with an average height of 5 m.