Monday, June 7, 2010

Macuco: the nature trail


The morning started out foggy again, but just like the previous day, it cleared up just as we headed out to the park.  This time, we had decided to take the Macuco Trail, a more rustic trail that led to a small fall.  As we started on the trail, it was the thick red clay-like mud that is typical of the region.  But to step in it, it really is a mess, and we were afraid that the entire 3 km trail would be like this.





































my foot after stepping in the muck


















Luckily, it was only that little area that was wet and the rest was perfectly dry and a wonderful hike through the jungle. 
























The scenery of intertwining philodendron roots and the noise of birds chirping and flitting around just brought a peacefulness over the area and words didn’t need to be spoken.  

lots of philodendron
























































































































































































































bamboo - but no pandas





































The whirring of the helicopters was extremely disruptive when inside the jungle.  In the areas of the falls, it wasn’t as evident, as the water overpowers the noise.  We noticed how silent all of the animals became when the helicopter would start to approach the area.

tiger ant
 


































rodent of the jungle
 


































  
mariposa


















We did hear a monkey on our way back to the main park, but neither Tyrone nor I got to see our animals.  

just before the falls


















Tyrone looking down the falls


















Salta Arrechea






























































































































not sure what we're going to encounter at the end of the trail

 
















We walked along the upper loop to get a different perspective.

giant mate
























lizards
























from the Circuito Superior


































steam from the Garganta del Diablo










































the boat we were on the day before
























































































































As we still had some time left before we had to catch our bus back to Buenos Aires, we returned to the Garganta del Diablo.  This time, the steam from the water crashing below was much higher and made the visibility lower.

photographer without too many customers

































































































We asked a park ranger why the volume of water was so much greater, and he said that it had rained 30 cm upstream in Brazil the night before and caused the falls to be significantly stronger.

bird in need of some mate













 










Our adventures in Misiones had come to an end, and it was time to head back to the busy-ness of the city again.

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