Angel Falls is commonly described as the world’s highest uninterrupted waterfall.
Angel Falls drops 979 metres from the summit of Auyán-tepui in Venezuela’s Canaima National Park. Its longest uninterrupted plunge is about 807 metres, a distinction that separates it from waterfalls whose total height includes several cascades or steps. The water falls from a flat-topped tepui, a distinctive highland landform of the Guiana Shield.
The waterfall is known in Pemon Indigenous tradition as Kerepakupai Merú, often translated as “waterfall of the deepest place.” The name Angel Falls comes from American aviator Jimmie Angel, whose aircraft landed on Auyán-tepui in 1937. The plane remained there for decades before being removed and placed in a museum.
Angel Falls is remote and is usually reached through Canaima by river, air, and hiking routes. Victoria Falls has a larger curtain of falling water, while Niagara Falls is especially famous for its flow and accessibility; neither has Angel Falls’ uninterrupted vertical drop.