In 1978 we visited Canaima and stayed near the lagoon. On the way there,our airplane routed us past Angel Falls and we got a good look at the incredible sight. Soon after,we landed near the camp site. We ate our good meals outside under some trees. We spent a lot of time walking on trails away from the camp site to see the forest and hopefully some creatures. The Canaima lagoon was fed by a waterfall and there was a path nearby that enabled us to reach the top of the falls. Once there, we saw expansive fields with a path away from the falls. We hiked along this path and eventually came upon a camp site with a house. While there, we met a fellow named Jungle Rudy Truffino. We had a long converstion with him in which he explained how and why he had come to Canaima. His story was very interesting and I learned more from him about Canaima than any other source at that time. This was the best and most interesting place Jody and I had discovered in all our years of traveling. In January of 2015, I discovered a book titled Jungle Rudy which was written by Jan Brokken and published in English in 2004. The original version was published in Dutch. I’m now in the process of reading it and recommend reading this amazing story of Jungle Rudy’s life in the Venezuelan Jungle. I’m 85 years old now and wish I could return to Canaima.
Gene Primoff
