1/17/25-Friday-Day 42 “Wrong Turn”
While the waterfalls here at Minas Viejas are absolutely stunning, the camping situation leaves something to be desired and so after breakfast we pack up and head out in search of yet another waterfall. After a stop in El Naranjo for water we head a bit further north to the small town of El Meco. As we roll into town there are tour guides at each tope, corner and intersection enticing travelers to buy their services which we politely decline while continuing down the road.
When the turn for our intended camp comes up I manage to completely miss it, fortunately a quick glance at the map shows a road ahead that circles right back to our destination, or so I thought. We make a left turn down a side street and end up in a bit of a market before turning left again down another much narrower side street that runs along a canal. As we continue down the dirt road it gets more and more narrow and we also find ourselves on the wrong side of the canal. With no way to cross other than backing up or continuing another 500 meters or so to the main road we proceed until we come to a concrete utility pole set in the middle of the road. The left side is clearly much too narrow to pass, the right side however looks like a possibility, it also looks like a possibility of rolling our home into an 8 foot deep canal. After some deliberation and with Mark’s help spotting we decide to go for it and manage to squeeze by the pole with no room to spare on the left and about a foot to the drop off on the right.
Once clear of the pole we make it out to the main road where we are able to cross to the other side of the canal and to our camp site for the night. It’s a tight fit but we make it work and we find ourselves camped just above the stunning turquoise river. It’s still quite early so after setting up we walk in to town and pay $40mx ($2us) each to check out some of the small cascades on the river. The park is full of “boardwalks” criss crossing the water to small islands in the river but they’re a bit too sketchy for Heather, the dogs however did surprisingly well on them!
When we’ve seen all that the park has to offer we head to the other end of town in search of dinner. While walking down one of the side streets we manage to acquire an escort in the form of a stray dog who Heather names Jake. It’s quite common when walking through the towns in Mexico to be joined by a stray dog or two for a bit of the way, though they usually seem to hit an invisible boundary line at which point they leave you to be on your way. Not Jake. As we make our way along the canal passing by houses and numerous other dogs who clearly do not take well to him being in their territory Jake sticks by our side. All the way to the restaurant.
As we exit the restaurant Jake is there waiting and he accompanies us the entire way back to camp even hanging around long enough for a nap while we sit next to the river catching up on some work.
Adam Olterman
You can read more on our travels here!
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