The Chicamocha Canyon in eastern Colombia
was not selected as one of the finalists in the New Seven Wonders of Nature. The Canyon competed with
77 other natural wonders worldwide for a place in the top seven.
A group of six experts chaired by former UNESCO director Federico Mayor
Zaragoza announced this Tuesday the 28 finalists for the New Seven Wonders of Nature, selected on natural beauty, diversity, ecological importance,
historical legacy and geographic location.
The Chicamocha Canyon did not make it to the finalists but five other natural wonders of Latin America convinced the experts: the Amazon Rainforest, the Angel Falls (Venezuela), the Galapagos Islands, El Yunque Rainforest (Puerto Rico) and the Iguazu Falls (on the border of Argentina and Brasil).
Voters will have until 2011 to choose the
top seven Wonders of Nature.
The
Chicamocha Canyon, which covers over 108,000 hectares and is almost 2,000 meters deep, was formed 4.6 billion
years ago. Since a cable car was installed over the canyon in January,
120,000 visitors have looked down on its beauty.
The Chicamocha National Park, in which the canyon is situated, offers a range of adventure activities such as paragliding and rafting.
