Iguazu Falls

From Buenos Aires, we booked a last minute side-trip to Iguazu Falls. Being here in the low season worked out well for us because first of all we were able to pull this off last minute, and secondly we were the only ones on our tour and who doesn’t prefer having a private tour?? Also, being that it is winter here, we didn’t have to be too bugged by mosquitoes and the temperature was a pleasant 70 degrees (vs. over 100 with 100% humidity in the summer).

The falls are between the Argentine and Brazilian borders. Since we didn’t have visas for Brazil, we stuck to the Argentine side (where 80% of the falls are). They’ve done a great job of setting up walkways so that you can view the falls from a variety of different angles and you can get frightfully close. The best part is that the area is still very commercial-free. Looking out at the falls and the surrounding jungle, it seems so untouched by humans that you almost expect to see a dinosaur walk into the picture.

Its hard to explain just how impressive the falls are. One of the great natural wonders of the world, the falls are massive. According to our guide, there are around 275 falls, but it depends on how much rainfall there has been. We must have visited 10 different viewpoints and probably only saw 75% of the falls. Our first approach up to the largest fall, Devil’s Throat, literally got our hearts pounding.

The highlight of our day was taking a boat ride into the falls. You ride upstream for a few miles, enjoying the beautiful view. Then the driver takes the boat under the falls making sure everyone gets a good soaking. Nothing like a boatload of adults squealing with delight under the spray of a powerful waterfall. We all convinced the driver to dunk us a couple more times by chanting “Otra! Otra!” It was definitely a thrill: ”Hi, I’m looking for Ray Finkel…and a clean pair of shorts.”

If anyone is planning on visiting Buenos Aires a side trip to Iguazu is a must.

For more pictures, check out our Iguazu Falls photo album dated 4th June 2010