Iguazu Falls

As an African, I am very proud that the Victoria Falls cracked the nod as one of the official "7 Wonders of the Natural World" (the only waterfall in the list). But having visited both Iguazu Falls and Victoria Falls, I am certain that there must have been some very serious contention between the judges (whoever they were...) as to which falls made the final list. The stupendous roar of Iguazu's 275 different waterfalls crashing 80 metres into the Rio Iguacu is truly spetacular.

The falls are situated on the border between Brazil and Argentina and we visited them on both sides to see them properly. Brazil gives the grand overview and Argentina the closer look. I had already seen the falls on a business trip to Brazil in 2003 but I was thrilled to get a chance to see them again and show them to Ally.

Some photos of the falls on the Argentinian side...

The falls on the Brazilian side...

The most awesome part ofthe falls is the semi circular Garganta del Diablo (Devil's Throat), a deafening and dampening part of the experience, approached by a series of catwalks across the river. There's no doubt that it's spectacular - there's only one question: Where's the bungi jump?

Despite development pressures, the 55,000 hectare park is a natural wonderland of subtropical rainforests with over 2000 identified plant species, countless insects, 400 bird species and many mammals and reptiles. Here is a collage of some of the critters (some cute, some creepy) I managed to catch on camera.

Ok, so these racoons are officially the cutest furry animals I have ever seen (apart, perhaps, from Sally.) They are very social and gregarious - two racoons will disappear into the tree to shake fruit off the branches for their little friends below. Occasionally, with all the shaking, a large branch will fall down to, as I discovered to my cost while photographing. My poor head still has a bump...

This squirrel was also mighty pretty. Check out that blue right eye! No photoshopping there, I assure you.

I went on a 6 km hike through the forest to a clearing with a waterfall. The water cascaded down onto a shiny rock that looked very much like an inviting chair. I couldn't resist - much to the initial amazement (then amusement) of some other hikers.

Here taking a dip close to a somewhat more powerful cascades. I didn't have the courage to duck my hair under this one.

Iguassu Bird Park

A fun place to see a fascinating variety of captive, colourful birds up close. Of course, I couldn't add any of them to my list of new species. That would be cheating!

This parrot took an instant liking to my hat. It nibbled the little button right off the top. No worries though - With the heat increasing exponentially as we move north, I need all the ventilation I can get.

These hummingbirds proved rather tricky to photograph. They're tiny and only hover for a short while before flittering off in unpredictable directions. I have seen a number of them in the wild recently (much to my delight) but not been able to positively identify any yet (much to my frustration) due to them all looking too similar and moving too fast. Hopefully it will be a bit easier in the Amazon.

What a beautiful lizard. They chill out all day and have such an enlightened, happy and peaceful look in their eyes, you'd think they had discovered the meaning of the universe.

Talking of the universe, I really like this analogy of time (on one of the exhibits at Iguazu.) Condensing the age of the earth into just one year provides an amazing perspective. I developed this thought a bit in a previous blog post.

Here are some videos . The power of the water was awe inspiring.

New birds seen in Iguazu

• Red-rumped Cacique
• Squirrel Cuckoo
• Crested Caracara
• Plush-crested Jay
• Amazon Kingfisher
• Great Kiskadee
• Rufous-collared Sparrow
• Great Dusky Swift
• Rufous-bellied Thrush
• Toco Toucan
• Black Vulture
• Black-throated Mango

Provincial Esteros del Iberia

Aquatic plants and grasses, including "floating islands", dominate this wetland reserve that covers 13000 square kilometers in north central Corrientes, Argentina.

Twitching vigorously. That´s what I was doing most of the time here as birds were abundant almost beyond belief. I saw close to 40 new species. We also saw capybara, swamp deer, howler monkeys, otters and caimans (crocodiles).

Capybaras are the largest rodents in the world. They look like giant guineapigs. It is the rodent equivilent of a hippopotamus. Cattle Tyrants perch on their backs and much ticks all day long. Tasty.

Caimans are also abundant in the reserve. They aren´t big enough to eat people but could certainly take off a limb or two - so we were encvouraged not to dangle our feet from the boat.

I wouldn´t want to be a juicy fly with one of these in the vicinity. Easily the biggest frog I have ever seen. It would provide a month of meals for a gastronome except I suspect they are poisonous. When my knuckle brushed against one (curiosity can be a killer), it felt like I had touched a stinging nettle.

We never did hear the Howler Monkeys howl. They were far too busy lazing around in the trees, doing nothing. The alpha male did come to check me out but from the disdain on his face, obviously did not think I was much of a threat, and he wandered on.

Most of the reserve consists of rivers, reeds and lakes so the best way to explore it is by boat. I was lucky to find a guide who was a guru on birds who also took me on some walks into the reeds. As you walk, you can feel the ground sponging beneath you and you realise that you are walking on a huge island of floating grass. Happily we didn´t fall through - much to the disappointment of the caimans.

The sunsets were gorgeous. We appreciated the early mornings and evenings as a refreshing reprieve from the very hot and muggy days. We were expecting to do battle with swarms of mosquitos but were suprised (and delighted) at how few there were. Probably thanks to my many feathered friends, not to mention the giant frogs.

We also explored part of the park on horse back. Where else can you rent horses and a guide for $ 3,50 an hour? We enjoyed it tremendously but sure felt it the next day. Our guide was a fun and chatty guy so we got to practise our Spanish. We are finally getting to grips with the language, just as we head off into Portuguese speaking lands. That´s life!

Cloudy reflections

You know you are in swamp lands when...

...you share your shower with a baby frog.


New birds seen

• Olivaceous cormorant
• White-necked Heron
• Maguari Stork
• Southern Screamer
• Brazilian Duck
• Snail kite
• Rufous-sided crake
• Giant Wood-Rail
• Limpkin
• Yellow-billed tern
• Spot-winged pigeon
• Picui Ground Dove
• Smooth-billed Ani
• Guira cuckoo
• Band-winged Nightjar
• Green-barred Woodpecker
• Field Flcker
• Narrow-billed woodcreeper
• Yellow-chinned Spinetail
• Sooty Tyrannulet
• Pied water tyrant
• White headed Marsh-Tyrant
• Cattle Tyrant
• Brown-crested Flycatcher
• Masked gnatcatcher
• Tropical Parula
• Greenwinged Saltator
• Yellow-billed Cardinal
• Redcrested finch
• Rusty-collared seedeater
• Great Pampa-Finch
• Shiny cowbird
• Bay-winged cowbird
• Golden-winged cacique
• Unicoloured Blackbird
• Epaulet Oriole
• Troupial
• Scarlet-headed Blackbird

Excerpt from Ally's dairy

We arrived in the small village which is inside the park and found a lovely hostel. R60 for the night for a luxury room with bathroom including shampoo and conditioner. It is the bargain of our trip so far.

The next morning we went out early by boat to see the birds. The air was thick with them and they were not worried about us as all. G was twicthing merrily as every bird he saw was new. His admin manager (me) could hardly keep up with ticking them off.

It was so hot during the day that all we did was sleep but we had a horse ride to look forward to that evening. The horses were just right for me. I could get on them by myself from the ground and they were sturdy and happy to listen to you when you wanted to direct them. We tried to communicate with our guide who was so patient with us but I would have loved to have had a real conversation with him – he was so nice. He quickly cottoned on that G was looking at all the birds so at least there was a subject in common. It was a very poor town. He pointed out the one house in the village with satellite TV and also a tiny tradtional house made from mud and grass which housed 8 people. I actually could think of nothing worse than living in a two roomed place with 7 other family members and it is 35C in the shade! We are blessed. Needless to say there are no stables for the horses as the lowest tempreture it gets is 20C. We did a bit of a gallop on the horses which was fun but I was bowed legged when I got off – and I certainly walked funny the nexy day!

We went to the only restaurant in town. Well it was really a room in someone´s house which was subdivided with the (very tiny) supermarket and we could watch the family TV from our table. They had three items on the menu - crumbed veal, pizza and meat pasty. The veal was great and we arranged to come back for the special the next day. We ended going four nights in a row - it became our local spot.

When we walked home we saw thousands of bugs in the road and looked up and realised that they wre being killed by the light. No wonder there are so many birds around with the easy pickings off the road.

At the hostel where we stayed, there was a little girl who had so many pets. Dogs, a little puppy (whose eyes had no even opened), a baby capybara and a pony. Just amazing to be surrounded by all these animals. I loved the puppy. It made that special crooning noise that only a very small puppy makes. I wanted to take it home.

Thinking about the village it gives the expression a one horse town a new meaning. The population ratio must be, to every 1 person, something like:

• 10000 mozi`s (renewed daily)
• 1000 frogs (they turn up everywhere – even your shower)
• 500 crocs (they look so menacing)
• 4 horses
• 3 dogs (and boy, do they bark)
• 2 cows
  

All in all a great place

On our last evening we went out in the boat. The birds were singing, the water lapping, the sky was changing to a deep pink and slowly sinking and then our guides cell phone went. He went a deep pink himself and I think if the water could have swollowed him he would have gladly gone. You just can`t get away from it all, no matter how hard one tries. But this place was magic.

So onward to Igauza Falls.

The mother of all bus journeys

We have just arrived back in Buenos Airies (and the land of fast internet!) after a marathon 44 hour bus trip from Southern Argentina (El Calafete). The trip actually wasn't too bad apart from my feet and ankles swelling up to twice their usual size. We got to watch some movies dubbed into Spanish, slept a lot, read a bit and gazed out of the window. Hence the collage. I loved Patagonia. Vast landscapes, big skies, amazing mountains, fantastic hiking.

Route 3 from the bus

Ally's Account

Our 44 hour trip from El Chalten to Buenos Aires was express – and they mean express. There was a 20 min stop for lunch and that was all. By 9pm I was worried that I would not get my dinner. I couldn`t believe the young kids and how well behaved they were. For 12 hours they had sat on their parents laps – some as old as 6 – so quiet with no cries for food or entertainment. Unlike me. We did actually get a light meal so I was happy.

Our first part of the trip was uneventful but then we had to change buses and I realised I had left my pillow on the bus. I shed a tear as my pillow is such a comfort to me. It even goes on hikes to both Witels and Torres. But then I brightened as I realised that both buses would be going in the same direction. I was delighted to find my pillow safe and sound, being used as some else`s back rest.

For 2000km the scenery does not change. Just flat and bone dry with very low scrub due to the icy wind and lack of rain. It was so flat we could see the sun set and the moon rise at the same time. I had never seen that before. I would love to have been able to sit outside and smell the air and watch the colours change.

I did get a fright that night. It was our second night on the bus and when I looked at G`s feet they had swollen to twice their normal size. You couldn`t see his ankles and his toes were like pork sausages. I realised it was because he had been sitting too long. So now I have solved the mystery of Big Foot. He was just some guy who rode a bus too long in the Himalayas and then had to walk home through the snow.

When kids get bored (Ally)

During our trip from El Chalten to El Calafate, we stopped at a country shop in the middle of no-where for a pit stop and coffee. Two local young girls, looking for a laugh, started hunting a hen and her brood of chicks with stones - trying to aim and hit them as the little chicks scrambled to take cover in the sparce foliage.

Their excited giggles and the terrified clucks of the mom hen brought out the hunter´s instinct in the local german shephard, who then also went after a chick. He was a better hunter than the girls and managed to eat one – just in time to be seen by the master of the house, who went mad. The dog ended up being chained and the girls left to their own devices. All this happened while buying a cup of coffee.

So there we were enjoying the sunshine and caffeine (we had been up since 4 am) when the girls, evidently bored and undisciplined, started hunting the fluffy chicks yet again. With rocks in hand and about to throw they turned around with very surprised expressions when simultanously 5 foreign adults (us and our travelling companions) screamed NO!! They then slunk away, waiting, no doubt, for us to leave. There is after all nothing to do. No TV or other kids for 100s of miles.

El Calafate Bird Reserve

A gorgeous bird reserve in El Calafete with daisy bordered lakes and a mountain back drop. I did a very pleasant walk around the lake and saw 8 new birds, including the harrier in my bird photos. This brings my list of new birds in South America to over 50 which I am delighted with.


New birds seen

• White tufted grebe
• Chilean flamingo
• Brown pintail
• Red shoveler
• Ruddy Duck
• Cinereous harrier
• Red-gartered Coot
• Hellmayr's Pipit

Morraine Glacier

One of the tourist highlights of Argentina (we arrived here from Southern Chile) and very impressive indeed. This is one of the most active glaciers in the world with huge slabs of ice sheering off the glacier every half hour or so, causing mini tidal waves and deafening booms accross the lake.  I tried in vain to capture the falling ice on camera but my trigger finger was just not snappy enough.

Excerpt from Ally's email


We arrived in El Calafate and struggled to find a room to rest our weary heads but eventually found a place
with a “matrimonial” room. It was a bit musty but it was private and had as much hot water as we wanted so
I was thrilled.

Seeing Moreno Glacier is one of the highlights for me. It is one of the most active glaciers in the world and is advancing at a rate of 2m per day. The wall of ice was about 200m in front of us. Within half an hour of getting there we had seen huge pieces if ice sheer off into the lake causing huge waves. The wall of ice about the water was about 50m high but below the water it went as far as 700m. The front wall must be under the most immense pressure and it is no wonder pieces fall off. G´s dearest wish was to capture a piece falling on video but then it all went quiet.

Against all odds we met Pete and Donna (the Oz couple from Pucon) at the glacier. We had a super dinner
with them catching up and they raved about a town close by called El Chalten so we duly bought tickets
and here we are. It has the famous Fitz Roy mountain which is a huge jagged granite towering mountain. I must admit that I was feeling a little hiked out so G has gone up to so some self bonding (and taking that National Geographic winning photo) and I have hang out at the hostel enjoying great coffee and reading.

We leave here tomorrow and head back up to Buenos Aires. I think it will take us about 3 days on the
bus – well we are traveling just about the whole length of Argentina. After a couple of days there and only after we have uploaded all photos so that you can see what I have tried to describe we will be going to Uruguay for some fun on the beach.

The Fitzroy Mountains

I went on a spectacular two day hike to view Laguna Tres, at the base of the Fitzroy Mountains, as well as Laguna Torre  Not as well marketed as Torres del Paine in Chile, this area in Argentina is definitely on a par in its awe inspiring magnificence.

Laguna Tres

Spoken about by hikers with bated breath, Fitzroy is one of the toughest mountains to climb in the Andes - and like all Ice Queens, breath takingly beautiful. Here I am at sunrise, flustered after a very energetic climb up a steep slope in the dark. Thank goodness for head torches.

The mountain was like a chameleon, adorning itself in different colours at different parts of the day. The photos show pre dawn, sunrise (red, then orange), early morning (all lit up) and late dusk.

The Los Tres Glacier at dawn and dusk. Really beautiful.

The mountain made a stunning backdrop to the lakes, streams and forests of the park.

Laguna Torre

Another impressive set of towers similar to Torres del Paine in Chille with a glacier lake in front. The tallest tower is officially the toughest climb in South America and has been described by one climber as "a mischievous needle that wears its ice mushroom like a bonnet at an arrogant slant."

I was very luck with the weather as the towers usually love to skulk away behind clouds.

I did an extra hours hike along the lake to get a close up view of the glacier and was rewarded when a large chunk of ice broke away from the glacier and landed in the lake with a mighty splash.

More scenes along the way...

Exhausted but exultant after a great two days, Ally did not come as she was all hiked out from Torres del Paine. Got back to find her curled up with a good book at the hostel. I was promptly dispatched to take a shower.

El Chalten at dawn

Here the tiny town sleeps while above, nature performs her morning spectacle of red fire. We happended to catch it at the bus stop on our way out. I used to sympathise with the saying that "If God wanted us to watch sun rises, He'd have made them come at 11 in the morning." But I am starting to revise my opinion.