We were going back into Argentina, so we had to do another border crossing. Thiago took care of everything for us. On the way to the park, Thiago told us that he had checked to water level the night before and it was at 4,500 cubic meters per second. (Remember on Sunday it was twice the normal amount at 3,000 cubic meters.) He said if it was any higher today, they might close Devil's Throat, the biggest part of the falls. At 5,000 cubic meters per sec they shut it down because the water reaches the walkways. When we got to the park we found out that in 8 hours since Thiago had checked it had raised to over 9,000 cubic meters per second!!! (That's six times higher than normal.)
We were a bit disappointed not to go to Devil's Throat, but we had more time to enjoy the other walks. It also gave Thiago, who is an expert in plants, time to tell us all about many of the plants and their medical uses. It was really interesting. We saw all sorts of things, plants for stomach issues, coughs, birth control, and more.
There were two waterfall trails that we hiked, the upper trail which went above the falls and the lower trail which went down along the bottom. After our nature hike, on the green trail we started the upper trail. The amount of water was incredible! Last time I was at Iguazu, it was beautiful and amazing and it was this time. But POWERFUL was the number one word that came to mind. It was unbelievable!
After the upper trail, we headed back to the entrance for lunch. Several of us ate at a big buffet which seems to be the specialty of the area. It was really good. I asked if we could take a nap before moving on. :) Wimon told me only in my dreams. Har Har Har! We then were ready for the lower trail.
Oh my goodness was there a lot of water. It was beautiful. We could see lots and lots of waterfall rainbows. We all got a little wet from the amount of mist coming off the crazy amounts of water coming off the falls. Some of the students got soaked. :) It was an amazing day, way beyond my ability to describe. I've included several pictures below that still don't do it justice.
I mentioned that we didn't go to Devil's Throat, which I had been really disappointed about early in the day. What makes Devil's Throat so special is that half the river goes through a smallish area, so it is super powerful. Well the massive amount of water made the rest of the falls as powerful or more so than the last time I went. So I really don't think we missed much, esp. since we would have died had we gone to Devil's Throat this time.
After we returned to the hotel, the biochem majors and I, plus our audience, made a video for this years Chem Circus. We had a lot of fun.
Here are some pictures:
Thiago talking to us about one of the plants.
Huge amounts of mist coming up from Devil's Throat in the distance.
Lots O' Water
If you look at my post from Day 1, there is a picture of these same falls from a a different angle with a lot less water.
Here they are again.
Biochem I Class 2009
Biochem Majors
It almost felt like the world was being washed away
See that walkway that's being splashed like crazy??? When I was here last time, we stood there and took pictures. We might have felt a bit of mist.
Over the edge!
OK, so I was (am) fascinated by the amount of water. It was almost up to the walkway.
Very close to one of the smaller falls.
In the spray... we kept telling Kate to stand there while we took pictures... she got soaked! HeHeHe
I just like this one.
This is on the walkway that was getting splashed, but not out at the end, it was roped off. The students still came back looking like they had stood in the shower.
One of the really cool things about all the spray was that there were rainbows everywhere.
Waterfalls and Rainbows #2 out of roughly 673.Hopefully I'll get the last day (which should be short) tomorrow. :)
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