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Bookmark & shareA Top Day in Puerto Iguazú
I am waiting at the entrance of the Parque Nacional Iguazú when they open the gate. I want to get an early start on my hike along the Sendero Macuco, a 7km (4.4km) trail. It's early enough that the animals are active, and I spot the troupe of brown capuchins that lives in these parts. I finally arrive at the Arrechea Waterfall, a 20m (65ft) cascade that crashes into a natural pool below.
After spending the morning in tranquil solitude, I make my way back to the park entrance for lunch. Then I am ready for an afternoon of waterfalls - one after another after another - offering an endless array of fantastic photo ops.
I start with the Circuito Superior and Circuito Inferior (Upper and Lower Circuits) two loops that offer views of the falls from above and below, respectively. They are all lovely, and I am snapping photos incessantly. But it only sweetens the anticipation, because I know I have saved the best for last.
I take the train to Estación Garganta del Diablo. Here the catwalk begins at a quiet point upstream from the falls. Walking across, I spot a caiman in the water below, while flocks of butterflies flutter around the handrails. At the Garganta, the serene river suddenly turns violent, as thousands of cubic meters of water crash down 14 falls around a horseshoe-shaped canyon. I am awestruck as the roar fills my ears and the mist dews my face. Swifts drop like rocks into the misty abyss, catching insects in mid-air and shooting back up to perch on the cliffs behind the falls. And I snap still more photos - this time capturing the huge rainbow stretching across the rush.
Author: Mara Vorhees
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