Iguazù
Disembarking the plane from our flight north, we're enveloped in warm tropical air. We've arrived in Puerto Iguazú close to the border with both Paraguay and Brazil, in the North East corner of Argentina. This area is home to the largest remaining expanse of Atlantic tropical rainforest and also Iguazú Falls.
Our hotel is close to the town, but feels like we're out in the jungle, with a view from our balcony out over the treetops and down to a stretch of the Rio Iguaçu, the river that separates Brazil and Argentina.
For the afternoon we visit a wildlife hospital and sanctuary. We see many creatures from the local jungle - colourful birds, several varieties of monkeys, ocelots and small mammals.
Next morning we're on the bus bound for Brazil. The border crossing is swift and efficient: we're stamped out of Argentina, cross the bridge spanning the Rio Iguaçu, and are stamped into Brazil on the other side.
The park is well organised, with regular buses from the entrance of the national park deeper into the jungle to the falls walkway. We catch our first glimpse of the falls as soon as we exit the bus. It's spectacular but is really only a taste of what's to come. The paths meander down the hillside through the pleasantly cool forest, with lookouts drawing us closer to the Devil's Throat, the most powerful part of the 2.7km long falls complex.
For the main event, a walkway leads us out onto the river and up close to the falls. The power of the water rushing over the edge is incredible; the roar and the spray kicked up into the air are amazing.
Even with people around the forest is filled with wildlife. Birds dart through the trees and lizards bask where the hot sun penetrates the canopy. Coatí are both cute and curious, attracted to anything that smells or sounds like food, but with vicious teeth and claws. At lunch we're provided with a long stick with a tin on the end to bang on the ground when a coatí approaches. It works to some extent, but coatí are still super-quick and one makes a lunge for another diner's food - while it's still in his hand!
After contemplating the extra activities available, from boat trips to offroad dirt buggies, we decide to treat ourselves to a helicopter flight over the falls.
The view from the air is spectacular. We can see the full width of the river as it spreads out before the falls, and the immense scale of the falls becomes fully apparent, spray rising high into the air above them. An exhilarating way to end our day on the Brazilian side, and we have a better sense of what we will see tomorrow on the Argentinian side with it's much larger complex of walkways.
In the evening, back in Puerto Iguazú, we walk out to the bluff above the confluence of two great rivers, that forms the border between Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. In the dusk, the frog calls sound like the rhythmic chants of football fans echoing up from the river's edge. Back in town there is delicious steak for dinner to fuel us for the next day's walking.
We begin day two as far away from the crowds of tourists as we can get. We walk the Macuco Trail - 3.5km through the jungle to a hidden waterfall. We walk quietly, looking up into the trees for signs of wildlife slightly more interesting than the clouds of mosquitoes following us. Less than half way in we are rewarded, as the sound of breaking branches and showering debris reveal a family of monkeys watching us from the trees. We watch them as they jump from tree to tree, crossing the path above us and moving away into the forest.
We spend the rest of the day exploring the walkways in the park. A particular highlight is viewing the Devil's Throat waterfall from above, walking out along almost 2km of boardwalk, over the river and crossing little islands, observing birds and aquatic life. We welcome the cool spray from the falls when we reach the viewing platform. It's great to look back to the other side of the river where we were the day before.
All through our exploring we had been keeping our eyes directed up at the tree tops as much as possible in the hope of spotting more wildlife. Jane was especially keen to see a toucan in the wild. At the end of the last trail for the day we were rewarded: a toucan flew overhead and perched on some trees above us, allowing us an excellent chance to view this stunning bird. On our walk to exit the park we were also lucky enough to see more monkeys playing in the trees!
Our hotel is close to the town, but feels like we're out in the jungle, with a view from our balcony out over the treetops and down to a stretch of the Rio Iguaçu, the river that separates Brazil and Argentina.
For the afternoon we visit a wildlife hospital and sanctuary. We see many creatures from the local jungle - colourful birds, several varieties of monkeys, ocelots and small mammals.
The park is well organised, with regular buses from the entrance of the national park deeper into the jungle to the falls walkway. We catch our first glimpse of the falls as soon as we exit the bus. It's spectacular but is really only a taste of what's to come. The paths meander down the hillside through the pleasantly cool forest, with lookouts drawing us closer to the Devil's Throat, the most powerful part of the 2.7km long falls complex.
For the main event, a walkway leads us out onto the river and up close to the falls. The power of the water rushing over the edge is incredible; the roar and the spray kicked up into the air are amazing.
Even with people around the forest is filled with wildlife. Birds dart through the trees and lizards bask where the hot sun penetrates the canopy. Coatí are both cute and curious, attracted to anything that smells or sounds like food, but with vicious teeth and claws. At lunch we're provided with a long stick with a tin on the end to bang on the ground when a coatí approaches. It works to some extent, but coatí are still super-quick and one makes a lunge for another diner's food - while it's still in his hand!
After contemplating the extra activities available, from boat trips to offroad dirt buggies, we decide to treat ourselves to a helicopter flight over the falls.
The view from the air is spectacular. We can see the full width of the river as it spreads out before the falls, and the immense scale of the falls becomes fully apparent, spray rising high into the air above them. An exhilarating way to end our day on the Brazilian side, and we have a better sense of what we will see tomorrow on the Argentinian side with it's much larger complex of walkways.
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