The other side of the Falls
Time to go and see the falls from the other side. Unfortunately it's overcast, which promises to make the photos rather less stunning than they might be. Ah well. Second minor disappointment of the morning is the breakfast - having got used to the generally fantastic brekkies in Brasilian hostels, it was a bit of a shock to be confronted with an Argentine breakfast consisting of cornflakes (with a choice, bizarrely, of cold yoghurt or hot milk to go on them - obviously I had a bit of both, just to be different) and small chunks of bread or rolls with butter and Dolce de Leche (ultra-sweet, milk-based brown spread that the Argentines are mad for). Where is my pineapple? Where is my unidentifiable tropical fruit juice slushie? Where is my cake? Still, life is full of these little disappointments, and we move on.
Getting to the Falls was pretty straightforward, just a case of hopping on the bus round the corner from the hostel and going. However, our trip out was enlivened somewhat when our bus came across another one which had broken down by the side of the road, and whose passengers were thus in need of a rescue. Said passengers amusingly included Stephen and Tricia, from the crossing the previous day - the habit of bumping into some of the same people over and over again is alive and well in South America. So, after a rather more crowded ride than had been expected, we got to the entrance to Parque Nacional Iguazu. Here, we found that this is one of the relatively few things which is more expensive in Argentina, being 60 pesos (about 12 quid), compared to 20 Reais (about 6 quid).
Disdaining the miniature train which is there for those who really don't want to walk when they can avoid it, we took a little trail through the forest, where we encountered Coatis. This pleased Ross no end, as he'd been quite disappointed not to have seen any of the little racoon-like creatures whilst we were on the Brasilian side. We also got a demonstration of why you are advised to keep any food out of sight in backpacks and the like - the lady walking in front of us had a whicker bag, which the Coatis zero'd in on and started trying to scrabble their way into. They apparently do this all the time to plastic or paper bags, as they've learnt that these often have food in. Given that Coatis, despite their cuteness, are potential rabies carriers, and can bite, we stayed mostly clear, with the closest contact being when they swarmed past our legs headed for the large group of tourists behind us.
Once into the park, there are 3 main things to do - the Paseo Superior (Upper Trail) takes you up along by the tops of some of the waterfalls, while the Paseo Inferior (Lower Trail) takes you face-to-face with the lower sections, usually from a fair way distant, but sometimes within a few feet of the water. The Lower Trail also gives access to the Aventura Nautica, a boat trip that Ross and I had decided to do. This consists of around 12-15 minutes in a Zodiac-type inflatable boat, taking in the views of the falls from river level and going in close to some of them. Very close. We went into the spray at the base of the Salto San Martin (which I think is the second largest flow after the Garganta), and actually dipped under one of the lesser falls round the far side of the Isla San Martin. Total soaking - thank heavens for dry bags - but quite an experience!
After our dousing, we climbed back up to by the rim, and grabbed some lunch, bumping into Stephen and Tricia again along the way. To top off his cold, Ross also had a bit of an upset stomach at this point (well, he'd had it since Floripa, but it was bothering him again), and the sun had come out, so we stopped in the restaurant and had a proper sit-down meal in the cool indoors. After that, it was onto the miniature train at last for the connection over to the final pass, out to the Garganta del Diablo. This actually takes you out over the river above the falls, so is mostly over-water boardwalks, giving opportunities for spotting Caimans (small, much less aggressive cousins of alligators) and the like. With the sun shining, the views out over the cauldron of foam and mist that is the Garganta were stunning. It was then a case of back to the bus, back to town, and back to the hostel. Ross and I clubbed together to get some pasta and sauce, and cooked ourselves some food that evening (the only time I've done so so far this trip). I spent a couple of hours downloading, sorting and backing up my photos so far to DVD, and then fixed a couple of the flags on my pack that were coming loose, as well as adding the Brasilian flag to my collection. And then it was time, once again, to crash out.
Getting to the Falls was pretty straightforward, just a case of hopping on the bus round the corner from the hostel and going. However, our trip out was enlivened somewhat when our bus came across another one which had broken down by the side of the road, and whose passengers were thus in need of a rescue. Said passengers amusingly included Stephen and Tricia, from the crossing the previous day - the habit of bumping into some of the same people over and over again is alive and well in South America. So, after a rather more crowded ride than had been expected, we got to the entrance to Parque Nacional Iguazu. Here, we found that this is one of the relatively few things which is more expensive in Argentina, being 60 pesos (about 12 quid), compared to 20 Reais (about 6 quid).
Disdaining the miniature train which is there for those who really don't want to walk when they can avoid it, we took a little trail through the forest, where we encountered Coatis. This pleased Ross no end, as he'd been quite disappointed not to have seen any of the little racoon-like creatures whilst we were on the Brasilian side. We also got a demonstration of why you are advised to keep any food out of sight in backpacks and the like - the lady walking in front of us had a whicker bag, which the Coatis zero'd in on and started trying to scrabble their way into. They apparently do this all the time to plastic or paper bags, as they've learnt that these often have food in. Given that Coatis, despite their cuteness, are potential rabies carriers, and can bite, we stayed mostly clear, with the closest contact being when they swarmed past our legs headed for the large group of tourists behind us.
Once into the park, there are 3 main things to do - the Paseo Superior (Upper Trail) takes you up along by the tops of some of the waterfalls, while the Paseo Inferior (Lower Trail) takes you face-to-face with the lower sections, usually from a fair way distant, but sometimes within a few feet of the water. The Lower Trail also gives access to the Aventura Nautica, a boat trip that Ross and I had decided to do. This consists of around 12-15 minutes in a Zodiac-type inflatable boat, taking in the views of the falls from river level and going in close to some of them. Very close. We went into the spray at the base of the Salto San Martin (which I think is the second largest flow after the Garganta), and actually dipped under one of the lesser falls round the far side of the Isla San Martin. Total soaking - thank heavens for dry bags - but quite an experience!
After our dousing, we climbed back up to by the rim, and grabbed some lunch, bumping into Stephen and Tricia again along the way. To top off his cold, Ross also had a bit of an upset stomach at this point (well, he'd had it since Floripa, but it was bothering him again), and the sun had come out, so we stopped in the restaurant and had a proper sit-down meal in the cool indoors. After that, it was onto the miniature train at last for the connection over to the final pass, out to the Garganta del Diablo. This actually takes you out over the river above the falls, so is mostly over-water boardwalks, giving opportunities for spotting Caimans (small, much less aggressive cousins of alligators) and the like. With the sun shining, the views out over the cauldron of foam and mist that is the Garganta were stunning. It was then a case of back to the bus, back to town, and back to the hostel. Ross and I clubbed together to get some pasta and sauce, and cooked ourselves some food that evening (the only time I've done so so far this trip). I spent a couple of hours downloading, sorting and backing up my photos so far to DVD, and then fixed a couple of the flags on my pack that were coming loose, as well as adding the Brasilian flag to my collection. And then it was time, once again, to crash out.
posted by Pat at 12:00 pm
<< Home