The first time the mainland of the continent of South America was sighted by European eyes, was at the third voyage of Christopher Columbus in August 1498.
During the first half of the month, he explored the Paria Peninsula, presently part of eastern Venezuela.
On this voyage, Columbus saw the mouth of the Orinoco River, which water mass he rightly interpreted as a sign the continent must be large.
The Orinoco River drainage basin extends to the west into the terrain of the Muisca, via the rivers Meta and its tributaries Lengupá, Upía and Cusiana.
Although the country of Colombia is named after Columbus, he never saw the land pertaining to present-day Colombia, while on his fourth and final voyage, he landed in Panama that until 1903 was part of the current republic.

The second time the Orinoco was spotted, was by Amerigo Vespucci who took part in the first expedition that landed on Colombian soil, that of Alonso de Ojeda.
Vespucci, as part of a Portuguese expedition, went east and south from the Orinoco and De Ojeda with three ships went west.
The first Colombian landmass sighted by De Ojeda was the peninsula of La Guajira in late August 1499.
De Ojeda misinterpreted this part of later Colombia as an island, that he called Coquivacoa (currently known as Cabo de la Vela; "Cape of Sails").

De Ojeda's second voyage commenced in January 1502 and following the same route as his first, he landed on the Colombian mainland on May 3, 1502, founding the first colony in South America; Santa Cruz today part of Bahia Honda.
The colony didn't last more than three months due to various factors.
The indigenous Wayuu resisted ferociously and the Spanish explorers couldn't find enough food and fresh water in the barren desert region to maintain the colony.
De Ojeda set sail towards Santo Domingo in Hispaniola.
His failure to establish a colony for the Spanish Crown condemned him to pay large sums upon arrival in Hispaniola.
This made it impossible for him to perform new expeditions for some years.

While De Ojeda was underway to Colombia, his rival Christopher Columbus started his fourth voyage, with thirty ships from Cádiz on May 11, 1502.
Columbus landed on the previously unknown island of Martinique on June 15 and he continued his journey northwestward to reach Santo Domingo on June 29.
As he was denied port in the Caribbean capital, Columbus sailed in the direction of Jamaica and from there to Guanaja, one of the Bay Islands off the coast of later Honduras, arriving one month later.
On August 14, 1502, he landed as first European on the mainland of Central America, at a settlement that would later be called Puerto Castilla.
Over the course of the next two months, Columbus explored the Caribbean Mosquito Coast of later Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica, reaching the bay of Almirante on October 16.
In this region, currently known as Bocas del Toro, he made first contact with the Chibcha-speaking Ngäbe people, learning about the resources of gold.
After getting in conflict with the cacique of the area, El Quibían, Columbus and his men had to flee the region and set sail back to Hispaniola on April 16, 1503.
After sighting the Cayman Islands on May 10, he arrived in Jamaica on June 25.

Nicolás de Ovando y Cáceres, who had sailed to the New World on February 13, 1502 with 32 ships, the biggest fleet of the time, had become governor of Hispaniola.
A distant relative of him, the 19-year young Hernán Cortés from Medellín, Spain, left for Hispaniola in 1504.
He would later become famous as the conquistador who brought down the Aztec Empire.
Cortés's mother (Catalina Pizarro Altamirano) was related to the family of Francisco Pizarro, the later conquistador of the Inca Empire.
The first time the mainland of the continent of South America was sighted by European eyes, was at the third voyage of Christopher Columbus in August 1498. During the first half of the month, he explored the Paria Peninsula, presently part of eastern Venezuela. On this voyage, Columbus saw the mouth of the Orinoco River, which water mass he rightly interpreted as a sign the continent must be large. The Orinoco River drainage basin extends to the west into the terrain of the Muisca, via the rivers Meta and its tributaries Lengupá, Upía and Cusiana. Although the country of Colombia is named after Columbus, he never saw the land pertaining to present-day Colombia, while on his fourth and final voyage, he landed in Panama that until 1903 was part of the current republic.
The second time the Orinoco was spotted, was by Amerigo Vespucci who took part in the first expedition that landed on Colombian soil, that of Alonso de Ojeda. Vespucci, as part of a Portuguese expedition, went east and south from the Orinoco and De Ojeda with three ships went west. The first Colombian landmass sighted by De Ojeda was the peninsula of La Guajira in late August 1499. De Ojeda misinterpreted this part of later Colombia as an island, that he called Coquivacoa (currently known as Cabo de la Vela; "Cape of Sails").
De Ojeda's second voyage commenced in January 1502 and following the same route as his first, he landed on the Colombian mainland on May 3, 1502, founding the first colony in South America; Santa Cruz today part of Bahia Honda. The colony didn't last more than three months due to various factors. The indigenous Wayuu resisted ferociously and the Spanish explorers couldn't find enough food and fresh water in the barren desert region to maintain the colony. De Ojeda set sail towards Santo Domingo in Hispaniola. His failure to establish a colony for the Spanish Crown condemned him to pay large sums upon arrival in Hispaniola. This made it impossible for him to perform new expeditions for some years.
While De Ojeda was underway to Colombia, his rival Christopher Columbus started his fourth voyage, with thirty ships from Cádiz on May 11, 1502. Columbus landed on the previously unknown island of Martinique on June 15 and he continued his journey northwestward to reach Santo Domingo on June 29. As he was denied port in the Caribbean capital, Columbus sailed in the direction of Jamaica and from there to Guanaja, one of the Bay Islands off the coast of later Honduras, arriving one month later. On August 14, 1502, he landed as first European on the mainland of Central America, at a settlement that would later be called Puerto Castilla. Over the course of the next two months, Columbus explored the Caribbean Mosquito Coast of later Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica, reaching the bay of Almirante on October 16. In this region, currently known as Bocas del Toro, he made first contact with the Chibcha-speaking Ngäbe people, learning about the resources of gold. After getting in conflict with the cacique of the area, El Quibían, Columbus and his men had to flee the region and set sail back to Hispaniola on April 16, 1503. After sighting the Cayman Islands on May 10, he arrived in Jamaica on June 25.
Nicolás de Ovando y Cáceres, who had sailed to the New World on February 13, 1502 with 32 ships, the biggest fleet of the time, had become governor of Hispaniola. A distant relative of him, the 19-year young Hernán Cortés from Medellín, Spain, left for Hispaniola in 1504. He would later become famous as the conquistador who brought down the Aztec Empire. Cortés's mother (Catalina Pizarro Altamirano) was related to the family of Francisco Pizarro, the later conquistador of the Inca Empire.
Spanish conquest of the Muisca