Argentina’s side of the falls

This was my 2nd day in the Iguazu region and having covered the smaller Brazilian park the day before, I decided to spend whole day in the Argentinean park to get better acquainted with the Devil’s throat.

My plan for the day

  • 9am Depart for Park
  • 10am-noon Devil’s throat
  • 1pm JungleAdventure tour
  • NauticaAdventure tour
  • Remaining Walking Trails
  • 5pm exit park

My driver dropped me off at the park entrance and I proceeded to walk to the internal open-air train which would take me directly to the Garganta del Diablo (The Devil’s throat).

Garganta del Diablo

via GIPHY

The full video clip of the bird swarm can be watched here:

There was long network of well-maintained steel walkways that pass through the quieter parts of the falls before you reach the main attraction.

Jungle tour in comfort

This was probably the most touristy jungle tour I’ve ever been on with comfy seats and bilingual guide describing the flora of the jungle.

The guide was a park ranger and was very knowledgeable of the park flora. For example, this park is not connected to the Amazon Rainforest but was instead part of the Atlantic Forest which due to logging operations, has been reduced to the park boundaries.

Given that the tour with the jungle tour was only marginally more than the boat-only package (about $50 USD) I decided to give it a shot. It was an informative experience but might be a disappointment to most hard-core jungle trekkers from South-East Asia.

Going under the Falls

From the exit of the jungle tour you descent down a well-maintained path down to a small jetty picking up dry-bags & life jackets along the way (I can’t recall if they provided a poncho but you’re advised to put your socks & shoes into the dry bag).

I didn’t feel that thrilled by the 30 minute speedboat ride to the falls though the POV from the riverbed is something you won’t get from the trails above.

They do get you pretty close to the falls themselves.

The short dunking as the boat went under the falls wasn’t as exhilarating as the lonely planet would lead you to believe (that didn’t stop the rest of passengers from hollering), but I suppose its subjective.

I did get quite soaked through to my skin by the downpour (ponchos are recommended). I suppose more water-proofing would be suggested before you go on this tour. Especially if you plan to go hiking on the trails right after (walking about in wet clothes isn’t pleasant). Thankfully I was able to keep my shoes & socks dry using the dry-bag provided (which was also for my electronics).

Remaining trails

Park Map

courtesy of Travelicious

armed with a park map (like the one above), I proceeded to cover the other lesser trails of the park. they were covered the other lesser falls of the park (there were a great many ranging from:

The Black falls

Various other smaller falls

But for the most part it is was to just escape the crowds I’d encountered at the more popular parts of the park and though the remaining sights paled with the grand attraction of the Garganata del diablo, the relative peace & sound of nature made for a pleasing wrap-up to the visit.

Conclusion

As I headed to the exit I passed a makeshift marketplace of traditional handicrafts from the Guaraní villages. I don’t usually collect souvenirs so I just took a casual browse of wooden bows , arrows and carved ornaments before moving onto to the exit.

On the way back to the guesthouse I tried once again to draw some cash from the ATM (this time Santander bank) using my OCBC card with no luck other than the same error message:

You cannot use this card at this ATM

By this time I had used about US$500 of the original $1000 I had brought in cash (most of the cheaper hostels I was staying at for my solo week were cash-only establishments).And my next stop would also be cash-only hostel so I’d need be wary of non-card expenses. The following week I was to rendezvous with another friend who was to join me for the remainder of the trip and requested that he bring emergency cash in light of the ATM issues. More on that in another post.

I got back to the guesthouse and packed my bag for my next destination the frosty lake district of Bariloche on the Northern fringe of Patagonia.

As I dozed off a heavy thunderstorm brewed up outside and proceeded to douse my bungalow in a heavy deluge that seemed to attract a great many beetles into my dry room. Which goes to show you: No matter how well maintained your hotel room is kept, you’ll never be short of bugs in the Iguazu region.