It was pretty alternative of us to be camping at the National Forest, where there were no camp sites and camping was to be done for "experienced campers" only. Brian is a boyscout so I wasn't worried, and now we can brag about spending two nights at El Yunque--the only tropical rain forest in the United States National Forest System. We spent the night semi appreciating the overwhelming sounds coming from birds, (coqui) frogs, monkeys, snakes, etc. The forest sounds grow very loud at night and you hear certain animals or sounds that you don't hear during the day. We also spent the night semi afraid of the crackling and crunching noises coming from branches falling, wind blowing, and leaves rustling. Plus, we were worried that it would start raining really hard at night, which would require us to stop camping and try our best to climb up a muddy, slippery hill in complete darkness. Lying in pitch black, sounds was your biggest sensory clue. When this happens, your imagination can run wild. Has someone spotted our tent and is coming to cause trouble and harm? Is there a wild animal out there trying to cozy up to our tent? Is that rain or a very strong wind?
Talking with Brian was a highlight of this camping experience. You know for sure that (1) no one else is listening in your conversation, (2) you have someone's full attention and vice-versa, and (3) you're in a relaxing environment. Another highlight is being at the forest first thing in the morning. We beat the tourists groups to the La Mina falls, which is found at the end of a 30 minute hike. We had a waterfall all to ourselves. Once we were in the water, a local (Puerto Rico) couple joined the waterfall scene and the male told us there is a rock you can swim to under the waterfall for a boost. We also learned that they are frequent visitors to the waterfall, because even though the water is "freakin' cold," it completely refreshes and invigorates you. After days of slumming and camping, it was exactly what we needed to renew our spirits. I'm not going to lie, if Brian wasn't so good at convincing me to swim up and under the fall, I wouldn't have done it. Even then, I was like, hyperventilating the first time I went up to it. "You have to stay calm and that'll make it a lot easier," advised Brian. I went under it a few more times, but my heart still raced every time. Seriously. I'm really happy I did it. It's such a remarkable experience.
After we ate our backpacker's lunch, we decided we had just enough time before sunset to take on the 4 hr (RT) hike to the El Yunque peak , the highest point in Puerto Rico at 3,496 ft. Our route involved picking up three trails: Mt. Britton Trail, Mt. Britton Spur, El Yunque Trail.There was a viewing point close to the top where you could climb onto some rocks and have a completely unobstructed 270 degree plus downwards peripheral view of the rainforest and then some. It was scary to be there for long but it was a pretty neat view. The top of the mountain was another 10 minute hike up, and you stood among the clouds. I like green.
It was a great day in El Yunque. We celebrated our day by splurging on a hot meal composed of very fatty pork that came with "hot sauce" and "less hot sauce." It was a bit rough camping there again, especially since we were so sore from the day's activities. But, we had each other (awww!).
Not too shabby for a Valentine's Day, right? Best ever.
- Exposed Tree Roots
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