La Quebrada (Acapulco)

You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Spanish. (May 2014) Click [show] for important translation instructions.

View a machine-translated version of the Spanish article.
Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia.
Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article.
You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing Spanish Wikipedia article at [[:es:La Quebrada]]; see its history for attribution.
You may also add the template {{Translated|es|La Quebrada}} to the talk page.
For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.

La Quebrada (Spanish for "gulch" or "ravine") is one of the most famous tourist attractions in Acapulco, Mexico. Divers entertain tourists by jumping off either of two ledges on the cliff, one that is 40 feet (12 m) high and the top one which is 80 feet (24 m) high. The divers must calculate the right moment to jump to catch an incoming wave and avoid serious injury or death. Occasionally jumpers dive with a torch. Most of the divers come from the family of Quebrada divers. Although cliff diving at La Quebrada had taken place for many years, it was not until 1934 that the La Quebrada Cliff Divers was formed.^[1]

In one of the walls of the cliff there is a path and a restaurant where tourists gather to watch the human divers and to view pelicans diving for fish.

History

Due to the orography of the port, intense heat was concentrated causing diseases in the population such as cholera and scurvy, so the doctor of the Spanish Crown, Francisco Javier Balmis, proposed a project to open a channel in the area that would allow air the center of the city, calling it “Abra de San Nicolás”. In 1799 the works began, but it was left unfinished due to lack of financial resources.^[2]

In 1876 Colonel José María Lopetegui continued with the works to open a gap that would serve as ventilation for the port. The soldiers under his command removed several thousand cubic meters of rock, a task that is described as heroic for the purpose that was pursued in favor of the population. But again the work was suspended; the lack of resources slowed down progress in difficult terrain, the arduous work was stopped, remaining as it is known and hence the name: "La Quebrada".^[3]

On one of the cliff walls there is a path with a railing, and a restaurant, as well as a viewpoint, from where you can see the divers, even pelicans doing the same to catch fish.

References

^ viamexico. "Los orígenes de La Quebrada". Retrieved 29 January 2019.
^ mexicotravelclub. "La Quebrada, desafiando el peligro". Retrieved 29 January 2019.
^ Previaje: Acapulco, días bajo el sol