Punta Pariñas
Coordinates: 4 ° 40 ′ 11 " S , 81 ° 19 ′ 45" W
Punta Pariñas is a cape on the Pacific Ocean in Peru . It forms the westernmost point of mainland South America and belongs to the La Brea district , Talara province , in the Piura region . It was discovered by Europeans in 1527 by Francisco Pizarro and Bartolomé Ruiz .
The closest settlement is Caleta San Pablo in the northeastern municipality of Negritos (1993: 5200 inhabitants), 1.8 km to the east. Punta Pariñas is at the end of a headland about 2.2 km long and at least 1.6 km wide. 1.25 km to the south is Cape Punta Balcones , which is on the same geographic length and can therefore also be counted as the westernmost mainland point in South America. The popular beach of Playa Balcones forms a bay between the capes, from where you can climb to Punta Pariñas and watch seals. It is also used as a surfing beach.
The cape is rocky and covered by loose sediments. 900 meters to the southeast is a lake about 1.7 km long and 200 m wide, which in the north reaches less than 80 m to the ocean. There is a large gasoline storage facility on its east bank. Directly at the cape, 180 m northeast, is the 18 m high, not accessible via the road lighthouse Punta Pariñas , which was opened in 1974 and is still in operation. The cone-shaped white tower with a red stripe shines with white light every ten seconds for two seconds.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ All distances from Google Maps .
- ↑ La Punta Más Occidental De Sudamérica Está En Talara: Punta Balcones , Talara mi orgullo, February 19, 2019 (article with pictures)
- ^ The Extreme Points Of South America , worldatlas.com
- ↑ Punta Parinas or Balcones - Western Most Point of Mainland South America and Peru , mostpoint.com
- ^ Lighthouses of Northern Perú in the Lighthouse Directory