Rafting on the Rio la Vieja

---

Today we left La Tata and were taken on the Jeep Willy around town to pick up our life jackets and our lunch (that was made at one of the locals homes) and down into the valley to the Rio la Vieja (River of Old Women.. not Carrie and I).

The raft was made completely from bamboo and we found out later that after the 17km trip down the river, they take the raft completely apart and load it into a truck to get it back to it's starting point.

The raft we were on had two benches, but another held 3 benches and another group got on that one. We had two guides/people who used large bamboo sticks to make us go in the correct direction and not run into any rocks or trees. One was on the front, and one in the back. They didn't say much throughout the trip, but rather let us enjoy the peacefulness of floating down this river and taking in the, once again, gorgeous scenery.

We did have to stop for a bit while one of the guides gathered more bamboo to stick underneath our raft because apparently the large gringos were making it sink too much and there were some rougher rapids further down the river. They didn't gather enough because a few minutes later, the front of the raft went under a wake, and all of a sudden the guide was diving in my direction, and we were leaning from side to side trying to keep it from tipping on it's side. Water was up to my waist and this event was, sadly, the cause of death of my camera. But we made it out without tipping!! Whew!

That was the only close call on this trip. The raft holding 7 behind us made it through fine. We then stopped for lunch and to hike up a hill to see a beautiful waterfall. It was halfway through this trip that we even realized it was Valentine's Day. I got Greg to make out (just kiss for a photo) with me under the waterfall.

There was, thankfully, a bathroom in the middle of nowhere that also flushed!

We enjoyed lunch and headed back down the river to complete our trip. When we arrived back at the hotel, we were greeted with two roses and a few chocolates from the staff.

---