Kettle Mucubají ( es, Laguna de Mucubají) is a

glacial lake A glacial lake is a body of water with origins from glacier activity. They are formed when a glacier erodes the land and then melts, filling the depression created by the glacier. Formation Near the end of the last glacial period, roughly 10,0 ...

located in Sierra Nevada National Park, in the Mérida State of

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. The lake is 3625–3655 metres above sea level. Kettle Mucubají is one of the biggest kettles in the valley and is one of the main tourist attractions in the area, which is known for its scenic beauty. In 2007, the

Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance This is the list of Wetlands of International Importance as defined by the Ramsar Convention for the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands and their economic, cultural, scientif ...

recognised the importance of Lake Mucubají in the region.

Origin

The glacial origin of the Kettle Mucubají is evident because of the visible footprint left by the Mucubají

ravine A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion.glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

, which was also sealed by an accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris (

moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice shee ...

) created by the lake. This moraine changed the course of the ravine from

Rio Chama The Rio Chama, a major tributary river of the Rio Grande, is located in the U.S. states of Colorado and New Mexico. The river is about long altogether. From its source to El Vado Dam its length is about , from El Vado Dam to Abiquiu Dam is about ...

Rio Orinoco The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers , with 76.3 percent of it in Venezuela and the remainder in Colombia. It is the fourth largest river in the wor ...

and to the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

Fauna and vegetation

The kettle is located in a

páramo Páramo () can refer to a variety of alpine tundra ecosystems located in the Andes Mountain Range, South America. Some ecologists describe the páramo broadly as "all high, tropical, montane vegetation above the continuous timberline". A narrower ...

ecosystem characteristic of the high mountains of the

northern Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S l ...

. Vegetation is dominated by

espeletia ''Espeletia'', commonly known as 'frailejones' ("big monks"), is a genus of perennial subshrubs, in the family Asteraceae. The genus, which is native mainly to Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador, was first formally described in 1808. The genus was n ...

and several grasses, mosses and herbs. The páramo brown,

Redonda chiquinquirana ''Redonda chiquinquirana'' is a butterfly species from the subfamily Satyrinae in the family Nymphalidae. It is endemic from the Cordillera de Merida páramo in Venezuela, in northern South America. ''R. chiquinquirana'' show high degree of sexu ...

, is a butterfly species that is currently known from only three localities around Mucubají. Exotic species of plants and fishes have been introduced for ornamental and recreational purposes.

Pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...

s were planted around the kettle and some walking trails.

Trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salmoni ...

s were brought from

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

in 1937 and there is a fishing season from October 16 to September 30.

Tourism and access routes

Located sixty km from the city of Mérida, Kettle Mucubají has a car access route that takes visitors directly to the kettle, where they can park nearby. In the general area there are several small businesses offering guide services, travel guides and maps. There are several options to explore the area and visit other scenic kettles such Laguna Negra, which is about one and a half hour walk or a 40-minute horse ride from Kettle Mucubají. Tourists make this journey in order to view the landscapes in this

glacial valley U-shaped valleys, also called trough valleys or glacial troughs, are formed by the process of glaciation. They are characteristic of mountain glaciation in particular. They have a characteristic U shape in cross-section, with steep, straight s ...

. Special permission is required for

camping Camping is an outdoor activity involving overnight stays away from home, either without shelter or using basic shelter such as a tent, or a recreational vehicle. Typically, participants leave developed areas to spend time outdoors in more nat ...

in order to access higher lands with other kettles such as Laguna Los Patos. Additional equipment and training is also required. The permit is easy to obtain by following the necessary process in the forest ranger's office, which is located in the area.

References

*"Laguna de Mucubají, remanso de paz; en Caminos de Venezuela." http://caminosdevenezuela.com/contenidos/destinos/mucubaji/index.html *"Laguna de Mucubají y Santo Domingo" http://www.venezuelatuya.com/andes/mucubaji.htm *"Las lagunas del páramo de Mucubají" http://www.mucubaji.com/1Lagunas.html *"Photography by Elides Subaran" {{DEFAULTSORT:Kettle Mucubaji Lakes of Venezuela Geography of Mérida (state) Kettle lakes in Venezuela