Iguazu Falls
It starts as a whisper that becomes a murmuring background to your anticipation. The muted babble, pierced occasionally by bird calls or the conversation of fellow travellers, keeps time with your steps on the latticed metal walkway that winds its way over streams and past spreading trees. Your excitement rises along with the growing rumble and the fine mist of dancing water droplets that begin to swirl and sparkle around you. You turn that last corner and the lofty power that is
Garganta del Diablo (the Devil's Throat) glistens and roars before you, invading all your senses and leaving you dizzy and speechless with awe. This is the
Iguazu Falls of my imagination that I have come so far to see.
View of The Devil's Throat from the Argentinian viewing platform. Photo taken by writer.
The Devil's Throat is the crowning glory of Iguazu Falls National Park; to call it a mere waterfall seems to me about as useful as calling the Grand Canyon a hole in the ground, but I am unable to select a suitable superlative. As we stood beholding its breathtaking wonder and staggering scope I was glad that we had left our viewing of the Devil's Throat until late in our day. It provided a fitting climax to our journey to this wonderful place, the finest jewel amongst the pearls that had been thrown before us all day.
Iguazu National Park
We had set off in great anticipation from our lodgings at Puerto Iguazu in the Argentinian rainforest early that morning. The ride in the local bus gave us no clue of the magnificence to follow as we travelled over bumpy, red-dust roads to the park's entrance.
Created in 1934 and declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1984,
Iguazu National Park covers more than 550 km2 and boasts between 150 and 300 separate waterfalls, depending on the time of year and the level of water in the Iguazu River, which forms the boundary between Argentina and Brazil. In 2011 Iguazu Falls was announced as one of the seven winners of the
New Seven Wonders of Nature.
View of the falls from the walking trail. Photo taken by writer.
The park is divided into four main parts: the Lower Trail, Upper Trail, San MartÃn Island and Garganta del Diablo. It is a blend of efficient and beautiful design, low environmental impact, user friendliness, tidiness and cleanliness. It owes much to the Argentinian's thoughtful appreciation of their role as custodians of this delicate grandeur, balanced with their awareness of its significance as one of the world's great tourist destinations. I think that it is a model of how a national park ought to be designed and managed; it's without doubt the best national park I have ever visited.
Everything is well maintained and well signed in Spanish and English and the walks are accessible and not too difficult for people of average walking ability. Excellent easy-to-follow maps are provided along with well-constructed walkways, pretty rest stops, and clean cafes and toilets, and everything sits as unobtrusively as possible within the rainforest.
The beginning of the walking trail to the Devil's Throat. Photo taken by writer.
At the The Visitors Centre that greets you when you enter the park you can buy a range of souvenirs, many produced by local artisans and craftsmen. Here you can arrange and pay for extras such as a trip on the Rainforest Ecological Train that takes you close to The Devil's Throat, or your action-packed ride in an inflatable boat that takes you right in under the falls.
The Trails and Boat Ride
We began our visit with a meander along the Upper Trail, where you can view so many dazzling, rainbow shrouded waterfalls that you could almost become blase about their beauty... almost.
Not surprisingly, rainbows are everywhere at Iguazu. Photo taken by writer.
One of the dazzling Upper Falls. Photo taken by writer.
We ate empanadas for lunch at a small cafe with outdoor seating, where we were introduced to some of the local wildlife. A ranger explained that coati, indigenous members of the raccoon family, emerge from their homes in the forest at lunchtime each day, in search of food scraps. They look cute but beware: they are quite bold and persistent as the following video shows. They've been known to jump on people to take their food.
The Lower Trail takes you past more waterfalls and gives you the most expansive view in the park. This is the boarding spot for your wild, soaking ride in an inflatable boat. The ride takes you past San Martin Island towards even more waterfalls, some on the Brazilian side of the falls, and then comes back for a literally breathtaking dunking under one of the falls. Your valuables (including your camera) are stowed in waterproof bags for the fifteen minute trip. Expect to leave drenched to the skin but exhilarated and happy. We dried off in the winter sunshine on our walk back up the trail towards the Paseo Garganta del Diablo, the 1-kilometre ride in the Rainforest Ecological Train towards The Devil's Throat.
An inflatable boat makes for an exhilarating ride. Photo taken by writer.
The waterfall train runs from the Visitors' Centre at the park's entrance and stops at the Cataratas (Waterfalls) Station and then on to the Devil's Gorge Station, a 7 kilometre ride in all. We jumped on at the Waterfalls Station, joining about 120 passengers. It's a slow ride that allows to fully appreciate the beauty of the rainforest.
The rainforest train station and train. Photo taken by writer.
You alight at the Devil's Gorge where you embark on the final twenty minute walk to the spectacular Devil's Throat.
Travellers on the latticed metal walkway to the Devil's Throat. Photo taken by writer.
Be prepared for crowds at your destination viewing platform. You may need to jostle a little for a front row position, but your fellow travellers are all so aware of the immense privilege it is to witness this spectacle that everyone is happy to share.
As I mentioned in my introduction there are really no adequate words to describe this monumental display of rushing, tumbling, roaring power and majesty. Since
a picture paints a thousand words, I'll let some images do the talking instead.
The mist-shrouded Devil's Throat, looking toward the Brazilian side. Photo taken by writer.
The hills are alive with the sound of The Devil's Throat. Photo taken by writer.
The Argentine flag flies above the falls. Photo taken by writer.
The Devil's Throat. Photo taken by writer.
Suffice to say my bucket list now has its major entry, not just crossed off, but firmly etched in my memory and my heart. My advice is to add it to your bucket list too.
