Kukenán-tepui

Kukenán Tepui
Kukenan Tepui
Highest point
Elevation	2,680 m (8,790 ft)
Coordinates	5°12′36.38″N 60°49′52.18″W
Geography
Kukenán Tepui Location within Venezuela
Location	Venezuela
Parent range	Guyana Highlands
Geology
Mountain type	Plateau
Climbing
Easiest route	Hike

Kukenán, also known as Matawi or Cuquenán, is a tepui in Bolívar State, Guayana Region, Venezuela. It has an estimated surface area of 2185 hectares (equivalent to 21.85 square kilometres). It is 2,680 metres (8,790 ft) high and about 3 km (1.9 mi) long. Kukenan Falls, which is 674 m (2,211 ft) high, is located at the south end of the tepui.

Kukenán was climbed in 1972 by Stephen Platt, Hans Schwarzer and Ramon Blanco, with Ambrosio Perez, A Pemon Indian guide. The first ascent may have been in 1963 by a party from Bangor University. Kukenán was closed to climbers in 1997 on safety and environmental grounds.

Kukenán is located in Canaima National Park. Next to Kukenán, to the southeast, is Mount Roraima, a better known tepui. Kukenán is more difficult to climb, so it is ascended much less frequently than Mount Roraima.

Canaima National Park is also home to the highest waterfall in the world, which is located in Auyán Tepui.

In the 1840s, the Bekeranta community committed mass murder-suicide at the base of the mountain.

Scenery on top of Kukenán provided inspiration for the 2009 film Up.

Kukenán-tepui as seen from Mount Roraima Kukenán viewed from the base Kukenán Falls

See also

• Gran Sabana

Further reading

• Kok, P.J.R., R.D. MacCulloch, D.B. Means, K. Roelants, I. Van Bocxlaer & F. Bossuyt (7 August 2012). "Low genetic diversity in tepui summit vertebrates" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 June 2013. Current Biology 22(15): R589–R590. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2012.06.034 ["supplementary information" (PDF).]