1/16/25-Thursday-Day 41 “Minas Viejas”
First thing this morning Mark and Michele ask if we would like to join them for a swim at the base of the falls. We aren’t quite as ambitious and decide to forego the descent and ascent of the 175 stairs. Instead we check out what the area up top has to offer and hit up the restaurant for breakfast. The boneless wings were good enough last night to warrant a second order along with a plate of huevos al gusto which to be honest kind of lacked the gusto. Thankfully the boneless wings made up for it!
It’s another short drive toady that is full of sugarcane fields at all stages, some recently harvested, some burnt out awaiting harvest and plenty of fields still growing. There are also plenty of trucks on the route loaded to the brim with sugarcane stalks. We make our way along mostly dirt roads before finding pavement in Ampliación La Hincada where it seems all of the sugarcane in this region must be headed as we pass by a processing plant on our way out of town.
Another 20km or so down the road we find the turn off for tonights intended camp, “Cascada Minas Viejas” though we quickly wonder if that is even a possibility. The sugarcane field along the road is being burnt off for harvest and the flames are much too close to the road for our comfort. We decide to try a slight detour only to find the fields along that road ablaze as well. After some deliberation we turn back to our original route and by the time we circle back the field is now barely smoldering allowing us to safely pass.
It takes a bit of back and forth on arrival to determine the entry fee as well as the cost of camping but eventually through my broken Spanish it gets sorted out. We once again find ourselves camping in a parking lot but it’s level and just a short walk down to the falls that we are here to see, plus it seems we are the only ones staying for the night, that is aside from the two sweet strays that have now joined our camp.
Once the campers are set up we walk down to the courtyard where it is apparent that this place gets quite busy at times as there are plenty of small tiendas and food stands though they are all closed at this time. Before heading down to the falls we are offered to rent a “chaleco” (a life jacket) as they are required for swimming. After declining we make our way down and at the bottom are greeted with the most beautiful turquoise water any of us have ever seen, to the point of moving Heather to tears. The four of us walk around in amazement taking what seems to be a thousand pictures though it sometimes feels impossible to capture the beauty of a scene like this in its entirety through photos alone.
Adam Olterman
You can read more on our travels here!
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