THE RIVER OF THE FIVE COLORS: CAÑO CRISTALES

It is an incredibly colorful river in Colombia. This river is painted in many different colors: Yellow, green, blue, black and especially ...

Red, due to the algae found in the background (Macarenia Clavigera).

This is how the red "Caño Cristales" looks, looks like something straight out of the bible.

Interestingly, most of the year the river is like any other river.

Usually, it's just a river like a bed of mossy rocks.

But part of the year, the river comes alive with an explosion of colors.

For a short period of time, between dry and wet seasons, when the water is at its proper level, a unique species of plants cover the river floor and the river becomes bright red.

The river was closed to the public for several years due to guerrilla activities and also for the concern of the impact that the human could cause to him.

It reopened in 2009 and today there are several tour companies that can take you on a guided tour of the area.

This is how the Macarenia Clavigera looks.