Iguazú Falls under the Rain

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Breakfast on our day of exploration of the Iguazú National Park was very expeditious by our standards. Following the advice of our Cuenca Tours operator, we had prepared a full change of clothes so that we could be more comfortable after our “gomones” boat expedition to the base of the falls. We were also carrying with us our full load of camera gear (video and still photography).

A small Cuenca-branded van with a driver and a couple of young female passengers pulled in front of our hotel at the appointed time (7:45 AM). We were actually expecting something a little bigger considering the popularity of the Iguazú Falls. Our driver explained that we were going to be delivered to another hotel in the area where a bigger bus was going to pick us up and deliver us to the National Park. The trip to the other hotel was short and as anticipated, we joined a bigger group of people on a large tour coach and at this time we also had the opportunity to meet our tour guide for the day; her name was Cristina.

As the coach was taking us to the National Park, our guide gave us an overview of what the day was going to be like. After going through an informal survey of the countries represented in our group, she called out the different tour packages that the various members of our group had purchased and explained what those packages included. This experience was something different for us, since we typically travel by ourselves and not as a part of a large tour group. Given our limited time in the Iguazú area we had decided that using a tour was the most efficient way to see as much as possible, but it certainly had its drawbacks and the biggest one was surrendering our independence and becoming subjected to somebody else’s schedule.

During this inventory of what was being done by who, we discovered that we were the only members of the group that had initially signed up for the “gomones” (or semi-rigid boats) expedition to the base of the falls. Cristina also informed us that there was a slightly more expensive “package” that also included a 4x4 expedition through the jungle immediately after the boat ride. We decided to upgrade to this “Grand Adventure” as the tour package was called.

After going through the park’s road gate and paying for our entrance tickets, the coach delivered us to the actual park entrance where we gathered to receive additional instructions from Cristina, including a small badge that would identify us as part of her group. She also pointed to the sky as she held a large umbrella that she was carrying with her. She told us that the entire Misiones Province, where the park is located, had not seen any rain in the last 26 days, but there were now a few rain clouds in the horizon that could bring a shower or two later in the day. She also mentioned that near the falls, the mist produced by the falling water could get one’s clothes totally drenched, she recommended using ponchos or similar protection to avoid getting wet and pointed out that the park convenience stores had disposable ponchos for sale for anyone who wanted them. She also mentioned that these ponchos would offer some, but not much protection for those of us going through the base of the falls on “gomones” boats. I decided to buy one but neither Sergio nor Joaquín accepted my offer to get one.

One other staff person in the group was Carlos, a professional videographer that was going to capture our experiences in Iguazú. Later, we would be able to buy a DVD or VHS tape with the video captured through the day. I was surprised that Carlos was using an older and very bulky S-VHS camera for capturing our experience that day. This mostly consumer-grade format offers limited sampling when compared with the newer, widely available and very low-cost DV format cameras. Very few professional videographers still use S-VHS, especially when DVDs are the intended output. In any case, getting a record of the day was still an attractive proposition for me, though based on Carlos’ equipment, I was not expecting great quality in the final product. From that point on, Carlos would become a constant presence during our explorations of the park.

According to Cristina’s directions, our first destination was to see “Garganta del Diablo” (or Devil’s Throat) Falls. To get there, we needed to ride the park’s Jungle Train from the park’s entrance (Main Station) to a point very close to our destination: Garganta del Diablo (Devil’s Throat’s) Station. In the short walk from the park’s entrance to the Main Station, I had the opportunity to meet some of our fellow travelers. Among them, I met a Mexican doctor who was very friendly.

The approach trail from the train station was over elevated metallic walkways that were to lead us to a vantage point just over the largest falls in the park. In spite of the large number of people in the area, the elevated two-way path kept everyone moving and from time to time we could enjoy the wildlife surrounding us. As we approached the overlook, the noise from the falling water got louder and we finally reached a point where the mist from the falls became dangerous for our electronic photo and video equipment. As the rest of the group approached the overlook, I had to spend time protecting my cameras with plastic bags that I had carried with me for this purpose. Several local professional photographers were equipped with aluminum stepladders to have the perfect viewpoint for willing tourist’s portrait pictures with the falls as background. I was disappointed that I did not have with me a more appropriate housing for my camera. The mist at the rim was so intense that within a couple of seconds, the lens would get totally fogged and wet. The moisture even threatened to get inside more delicate parts of the camera, so I limited my shooting to a few opportunistic shots.

Soon enough, our entire group was leaving the area and heading for the next destination. The weather was also getting worse. By now, a heavy cloud cover was starting to close in all directions as we approached the Devil’s Throat Station for the train ride to the base for our next two destinations within the park: Cataratas (or Falls) Station.

As I was walking back from the overlook over “Garganta del Diablo” on the walkways with my new friend, the Mexican doctor, another member of the group was walking behind us with the two young females that were in the van that picked up Sergio, Joaquín, and me from our hotel. They said that they were French but they were having a perfect conversation in Argentinean-accented Spanish, explaining that they were working in Argentina as part of their university study program. My Mexican friend and I were so impressed with their command of the language, that we joined the conversation. This is how I came to meet Maria and Julia (they later admitted that their real names were Marie and Julie!).

As we arrived to the base for our next two trips within the park, heavy rain started to fall as it only does on tropical countries. Not even the dense trees provided a dry place for us to find refuge away from the roof cover at the train station but the short break forced by the rain provided an opportunity for me to introduce Marie and Julie to Sergio and Joaquín. Being about the same age, the four of them immediately found common ground to talk about. In the meantime, Cristina gave us instructions for the next excursion over the upper rim trail of the park. As we entered the trail, it was hard to enjoy the great views all around us, since the rain made it difficult to stay in exposed areas for more than a few seconds and the large number of people in our group created contention for the best vantage points along the route. In spite of the heavy rain, it was hard not to admire the natural beauty all around us. The rain actually gave the landscape a more natural, timeless quality.

Cristina efficiently led our group through most of the upper rim vantage points before returning to our base at the Cataratas Station. Here we had a brief break for lunch (There was a choice of three establishments offering lunch opportunities inside the park).

Sergio, Joaquín, and I selected “El Fortin” Restaurant for our break and welcomed the dry comfort inside to dry our drenched equipment and ourselves. It was really a pity that we had to use some of our break’s 45 minutes for this purpose, since the restaurant offered a great buffet and live South American music.

After lunch, the rain had subsided a bit and we met outside with our French friends Marie and Julie. Taking advantage of the dryer weather, I was able to snap a couple of group pictures of them with Joaquín and Sergio. Cristina arrived a short while later and as many more members of our group gathered under the previously agreed tree, we all got ready to start exploring the lower rim path. As before, with a large group as ours was, it was still contentious to secure the best vantage points for photography. Water still dripped from the canopy above and it was still smart to protect our equipment with plastic covers.

After enjoying a series of incredible observation decks, we arrived at the point where we needed to head for the edge of the river for our boat exploration at the base of the falls. Even the descent to the water’s edge presented extraordinary views of the largest falls in the park. We also could watch other visitors doing exactly what we were about to do and it appeared to be great fun.

We arrived to a point just above the embarkation point to be outfitted for our water adventure. The equipment was simple: a flotation vest and a large plastic bag to protect our belongings during the short excursions that our boat was going to make into the falling walls of water. Sergio, Joaquín and I got seated towards the back of the boat, close to the engines. Our Mexican doctor friend and his wife were actually seating on the last row of the boat. Another professional videographer was seating directly in front of everyone, ready to capture the experience. He did have the good sense to have a complete camera housing to protect his equipment even if the camera were to fall directly on the water.

We approached the “Three Musketeers” falls and our pilot gave us time to snap a few pictures before instructing everyone to protect cameras in the provided plastic bags. Shortly after, we were experiencing what Susana at Dalla Fontana described as “having bucket-loads of water thrown at you with buckets that never go empty”. In spite of being close to the Equator, the cloudy skies, our drenched clothes, and the wind produced by the boat’s speed, all contributed to a somewhat chilly experience that everyone in our boat appeared to be enjoying. It certainly gave all of us a lot of energy during the ride.

After going under “Garganta del Diablo”, our boat started going up-river with white water on a river branch approaching from another direction. This branch eventually led us to the end of our “gomones” experience: another dock close to where our large 4x4 was waiting for us to take us on the jungle adventure.

Upon disembarking, we had just a few minutes to unload our belongings from the heavy plastic bags that were given to us to keep them dry. Since we were sitting close to the back of the boat, Sergio, Joaquín, and I were among the last to climb to the dock area and by the time we had unloaded our things and returned the gear, almost everyone in our boat was already half way up a steep hill towards the large vehicle waiting for us. We actually jogged up hill until we found a small building with restrooms. Joaquín and I took advantage of the opportunity to quickly change into our dry clothes prior to continuing our run up hill. I guess we were taking more time than we thought because Sergio actually came back to where we were and told us that the tour was about to leave without us. We ran up-hill and quickly reached our destination and boarded a large 4x4 truck with very basic seats for about 20 people. It was a bit embarrassing to arrive late and realize that everyone else was still wearing drenched clothes.

The trek through the jungle was informative but was also an eye opener concerning the level of commercialization of the park. At least three other large 4x4s, just like ours, passed by going in the other direction. Our very animated group, lead by our Mexican doctor friend, jokingly warned the other groups about a “tiger” loose in the direction we were coming from (and they were going to). Our group certainly had its characters, including a Guatemalan businessman who was traveling with his son. This particular character found every opportunity during our short trip to try to get our tour guide, Cecilia, to help him buy some local herbal product for him. Cecilia politely declined the request several times, but the Guatemalan appeared to be accustomed to always get his way and started to become very annoying.

Our jungle adventure ended very close to the gates of the park where our tour started in the morning. Cristina and the other members of the group, who were returning on foot from the point where we descended into to dock area, had not arrived yet. We took the opportunity to browse the Guaraní merchandise being sold in the open areas close to the gates.

Sergio and Joaquín wanted to buy gifts for their friends, so this break was a good opportunity for them to check out all of the native vendors. While they were busy with the native vendors, Cristina and the rest of the group arrived. We also found out that the scheduled departure from the park was 4:00 PM. Several members of our group were going to a similar catamaran tour as the one we had had the prior evening.
Since the park’s closing time was 6:00 PM, I realized that I had the opportunity to re-visit some of the sites that we had seen earlier in the middle of the heavy rain shower. Perhaps it was still possible to get some decent photos!

Sergio and Joaquín were not as enthusiastic as I was with the prospect of returning to the park’s trails; they actually preferred to stay where we were and shop. After lending them some Argentinean pesos and telling them about my approximate itinerary within the park, I left them behind and headed straight for all the photos waiting to be taken.

After being with the large group for most of the day, being finally alone and master of my own time felt great! In addition to being able to stay as long as necessary at any given location, the park was now virtually empty and I was able to explore for the best vantage points without having to collide with all kinds of people around me. Although, the sky was still very cloudy, the quality of the diffused light gave the place a resemblance to a Lost World.

I had had about twenty minutes of communion with nature when I was surprised to be re-joined by my two heirs. Happy after spending my money, they did not mind now to enjoy what I was to keen to see again. We enjoyed the park until very close to 6:00 PM and then started to approach the gate area. Cristina had told us that our best chance to go back to town was to take a “colectivo” (public bus), but the last bus departing from the area was at 6:00 PM so we barely made it to the stop in time.

While paying our fare to the driver, we told him the name of our hotel and requested that he notified us when we were there. We sat in the back of the bus and enjoyed our ride to town. Several stops later, we started to recognize the road we were following, but we patiently waited for the bus driver to notify us when we had arrived. Soon we realized that we were past our stop. By then we were approaching downtown Puerto Iguazú. We were very annoyed since everyone else appeared to be getting stop calls. At the time, we did not have the slightest idea that overshooting our stop was going to be the luckiest event of the day!

We continued on the bus until it finally arrived at the bus terminal. On descending from the bus, we complained to the driver, but he claimed that he had indeed made the call and that we had not heard it. Since there was no point in making a scene, we just considered the mishap another adventure and asked around for the right place to catch a remise. Following the directions of one of the locals, we climbed a flight of stairs to the upper level of the terminal, where we found an entire row of cars for hire. As I was searching for my wallet on my back pocket and the multiple pockets on my photographers vest, I felt the sinking sensation that my wallet was not on me. Trying to remember when had been the last time that I had it with me, I realized it that it was when I paid the bus fare upon leaving the national park.

In panic, Sergio, Joaquín and I ran down the flight of stairs and returned to the place where we had left the bus, just to discover a big empty space. The bus was gone!!

My face must have been very easy to read at this time for a local woman asked me what the matter was. When I told her my predicament, she very quickly told me exactly what I needed to do: Hire a remise and ask the driver to follow the bus. According to my newly-found guardian angel, the bus was heading for “Tres Naciones” and should be easy to catch in route.

Sergio, Joaquín, and I flew back upstairs and got into the remise at the head of the line. We explained the situation and our driver promptly left the terminal behind, driving as we had seen other Argentinean drivers do it in Buenos Aires. This time, we did not mind it at all.

Our driver knew exactly the route to follow and a few minutes later we caught up with our bus. The car approached the bus from the side and we all signaled the bus driver to stop. The remise then sped ahead of the bus and started to stop half a block later. I got out of the remise and into the bus. The driver immediately recognized me and I was glad that I did not make too much of a fuss earlier. I briefly explained that I had left something in the bus and headed straight for what had been our seat. Lodged in between the seat and the interior wall of the bus, I found my unfolded, but still intact wallet! Happy to be reunited with it again, I thanked the bus driver and promptly re-joined Sergio and Joaquín for our trip back to our hotel in our remise.

As we entered our hotel, we started to notice that a few more guests had arrived and were dispersed among the various lounges and public seating areas. As we headed for our room to unload our wet clothes and other gear we realized that all the rooms in our side of the building appeared to be occupied by college-age American girls; all of them were engaged in loud chatter and making lots of noise. Not surprisingly, Sergio decided to go downstairs ahead of us and wait at the lobby so that we could have dinner together. In the meantime, I called the front desk to inquire about any messages from my wife Elizabeth. Surprised that she had not tried to call us, I sent Joaquín down to inquire about the procedure to place international calls from our room. He went down but did not come back.

As time came to have dinner, I headed downstairs to re-join my two sons. I found them at the lounge at the entrance of the restaurant in the middle of a conversation with a group of young Americans. We went inside the restaurant and Sergio & Joaquín explained that a large group of exchange students from the University of New Mexico were staying at the hotel for a quick visit to the falls the following day.

At first, none of the new arrivals went inside the restaurant. We theorized that they might be waiting for their chaperons. We had the opportunity to have a few minutes of quiet dinner before the New Mexican crowds invaded the place… and when they did, it became very hard to have a conversation or to go to the buffet tables to get more food. There were long lines of people everywhere and the noise level of the entire room went off the meter.

As we returned to our room after dinner, we had to cross a hall that was also full of activity and noise. We hoped but not really expected that the noise was going to subside as time went by.

For the very fist time during our Argentinean trip, we did not have a very restful night. We were actually in the middle of a female college dorm and all of our freshman coed neighbors appeared to be more interested in partying all night instead of getting any sleep. The night was full of chatter, giggles, shrill voices and other unidentifiable sounds.

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Photos

Shopping
Sergio inspecting the merchandise