The final stage of this grand adventure was visiting Iguazu Falls which Google says are “waterfalls of the Iguazu River on the border of the Argentine province of Misiones and the Brazilian state of Paraná. Together they make up the largest waterfall system in the world.”
Gotta say . . . they totally fit with the UNBELIEVABLE mantra of this trip.
Photos can’t really capture it and that didn’t stop me, and the thousands of others visiting the falls on the two days I was there, to fill up our phones
I’m not sure what specifically made the experience so gob-smacking.
Maybe the number of falls? There’s 275 when the water levels are high . . . and seemed close to maximum when I was there.
Or maybe it’s how flowing water is as mesmerizing as watching fire . . . the power, majesty, force of nature. I know I’d had some deep thoughts about the power of water etc. in Patagonia, but Iguazu took it to a whole new level.
Or maybe it’s the accessibility? Both Brazil and Argentina have done a stand-out job of letting visitors safely be in the middle of it (i.e. get wet).
There’s many observation decks, including this one on the Brazilian side, where you can actually touch the wall behind the falls.
And there’s walkways like this one that gets you to Devil’s Throat on the Argentine side (you can’t see it really from the Brazilian side because there’s an islandish hunk of land in the way).
Oh, and how did I manage to get the aerial shot of the walkway? Because I took a helicopter ride over the falls! Yup I did.
Join with me here . . . UNBELIEVABLE, or as you can hear the woman beside me “wow wow wow”. Note: if you ever take this ride, do your best to sit up with the pilot. I got stuck in the middle of the back seat, which explains why the video is kinda sideways.
If you look carefully at this video you’ll notice there’s boats in the river because, yup, you can take a jet boat (i.e. tricked out large zodiac) right up to the falls.
Yes you can. Yes I did. And yes, it was FANTASTIC!
The driver puts the boat right into the falls. We knew ahead of time we’d get soaked so I’d changed into my bathing suit, and they told us when to put our cameras away.
Such a rush. So much fun. So much awe.
We had a bonus wildlife experience at the end of the boat ride with a caiman (i.e. alligator) being in the water beside where we docked (very effective way to dissuade wayward tourists from jumping into the water), and family of capybaras (family of at least 6 despite what I say in the video).
Iguazu Falls is a rain forest and the temperatures were in the mid-30’s (celcius) so by the time we got back to the trails we were dried off.
Pretty great. Yes I did visit the bird sanctuary with many native species including toucans, parrots, vultures, flamingos and many more. Birders can reach out and I’ll send along pix.
All right. Well. This trip is drawing to a close. If you’re up for it, stay tuned for the last entry . . . miscellany bits I meant to include + pictures that expedition buddies have sent my way.
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