Aleksandrs Laime
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Aleksandrs Laime (, ) was a famous
Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
n-born explorer. He is most noted for being the first recorded human to reach
Angel Falls Angel Falls (; Pemon: ''Kerepakupai Merú'' or ''Parakupá Vená'') is a waterfall in Venezuela. It is the world's tallest uninterrupted waterfall, with a height of , and a plunge of . The waterfall drops over the edge of the Auyán-tepui m ...
, located in
Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
, by foot. He also established, together with Charles Baughan, the tourist camp of Canaima, created solely for the purpose of bringing tourists to Angel Falls.


Early life

Aleksandrs Laime was born on July 9, 1911, in
Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...
. He grew up in
Grīziņkalns Grīziņkalns is a neighbourhood in Riga, the capital of Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Li ...
neighborhood, and since early childhood was interested in adventure stories and shipping. At the age of 15, he learned basic principles of sailing in Ķīšezers. Together with some friends, they stole a sailboat and traveled to
Liepāja Liepāja () (formerly: Libau) is a Administrative divisions of Latvia, state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest city in the Courland region and the third-largest in the country after Riga and Daugavpils. It is an ...
. They planned to sail across the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
to Sweden, but due to a storm were washed ashore on the Estonian island of
Saaremaa Saaremaa (; ) is the largest and most populous island in Estonia. Measuring , its population is 31,435 (as of January 2020). The main island of the West Estonian archipelago (Moonsund archipelago), it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hi ...
. At age 16, Laime went to
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, from where he traveled by foot through France. In
Marseilles Marseille (; ; see below) is a city in southern France, the prefecture of the department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the Provence region, it is located on the coast of the Mediterranean S ...
, he boarded a
merchant ship A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are ...
and traveled to
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
, where he lived in
Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
for several months until his parents sent him money for his journey back home. After his return to Riga, Laime studied at the Riga Technical School and graduated as a
land surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. These points are usually on the ...
. In 1936, Laime and a friend took a sailing trip to Danzig. There they changed their
sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...
for
kayak ] A kayak is a small, narrow human-powered watercraft typically propelled by means of a long, double-bladed paddle. The word ''kayak'' originates from the Inuktitut word '' qajaq'' (). In British English, the kayak is also considered to be ...
s and traveled through
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
. They wanted to reach the
Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...
, but were discouraged from such move by
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
n border guards. His friend went back home, but Laime traveled to Paris on a bicycle. In 1939, Laime started a sailing trip from Riga to
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
, but due to start of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
was stopped in
Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...
. However, he managed to reach Africa via the United Kingdom and Spain. He traveled across the western coast of Africa until he reached
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
. Laime then boarded a merchant ship and traveled to the coasts of the United States and Canada. In 1940, he landed in
Caracas Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...
and settled in
Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
.


Activity in Venezuela

After moving to Venezuela in 1940, Laime led many explorations through the jungles of the south of the country. During his first years in Venezuela, Laime worked as a
topographer Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary scienc ...
for a
road construction A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. The ...
department, and later he worked for the oil company Socony and Ingenerie de Orinoko. In 1942, Laime visited Canaima for the first time, and he settled there. Together with Charles Baughan and some other European partners, they started to develop tourism in Canaima and built an
airfield An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes in ...
and houses for visitors. In 1949, he was part of Ruth Robertson's team that reached Angel Falls by ground and surveyed the falls. He reached the summit of Auyantepui in 1955, and, along with his native companion Manuel Fiorentino, were the first to reach
Jimmie Angel James "Jimmie" Crawford Angel (August 1, 1899December 8, 1956) was an American aviator after whom Angel Falls in Venezuela, the tallest waterfall in the world, is named. Early life James Crawford Angel was born August 1, 1899, near Cedar Valley, ...
's crashed plane "Flamingo." Laime explored the surface of the tepui, and named formerly unnamed rivers there. He gave the
river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...
on which Angel Falls is located the name
Gauja The Gauja River (, ) is a river in the Vidzeme region of Latvia. It is the only large river of Latvia that begins and ends its flow in Latvia. Its length is 460 km, of which 93.5 km (approximately one-fifth) are in Gauja National P ...
, after the Latvian river of the same name. It is sometimes written as Río Gauya. He also named three other rivers, Río Venta, Río Daugava and Río Ogre, all after celebrated rivers of Latvia. He was married to Vilma Laime, who died in April 2009 at her residence in Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania, and is survived by his son Alexander Laime, stepdaughter Ilse Wood, grandchildren Robert Wood Jr. and Sandra Jones, and great-grandchildren, Rachel Wood, Carissa Wood, Zackary Wood, and Richard Jones, all of whom reside in the states of Pennsylvania or New Jersey.


Search for the "Golden River"

After hearing news of Jimmie Angel's famed "Golden River", Laime, like many of his contemporaries, went in search of the river. He never publicized if he actually found it, but close friends claim that he actually had found it. After Laime's death in 1994, approximately $20,000 were found in a tin can, underneath Laime's fireplace in his house on Isla Orquidea (an island on the Río Carrao, two hours upstream from Canaima).


Death

Laime came down the Churun River on March 20, 1994, to stockpile food and supplies for the next few weeks, as he usually did. He spoke to the wife of Ramón Jiménez, asking for him. He complained to her about chest pains, and said that he knew that the end was near. He is reported as saying that he wanted to climb the great tepui ( Auyantepui) one last time, to die up there. He then went to the nearby Waku Lodge for a drink. He died shortly thereafter in the bathroom, having had a heart attack.


References

* Stavro, Andris., "Aleksandrs Laime un viņa zelta upe" (Apgāds Jāņa Sēta, Rīga, 1999, ) * Personal account of Maria Jimenez, March 13, 2008


External links


Well-known Latvian Adventurers

Commentary about meeting Laime
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laime, Aleksandrs 1911 births 1994 deaths Explorers of South America People from Riga Immigrants to Venezuela Latvian emigrants