Caracas: El Ávila and the Valley at Dawn

Caracas sits at 900 meters in a narrow east-west valley on the Venezuelan coastal range, with El Ávila National Park (Cerro El Ávila, 2,765 m) forming a dramatic north wall that separates the city from the Caribbean Sea. The Teleférico de Caracas gondola climbs 1,800 meters from the Maripérez station to the Hotel Humboldt at 2,100 meters; from the upper station, the Caribbean coast appears to the north with Caracas in the valley below. Sunrise enters from the east through the valley; the Ávila wall catches direct light on its southern face 30 minutes after the valley floor receives first light. Parque del Este, the largest park in Caracas, offers flat ground-level reflections in the morning lake. El Hatillo historic village, 15 kilometers southeast at 1,000 meters, has colonial cobblestone streets in early morning light. At 10.5°N, golden hour lasts only 22 minutes.