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Gocta – Our Niagra falls without the hotdog vendors!


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In preparation for our waterfall walk we went to pick up some snacks, A bottle of water and to pay our entrance fee at a little hut in the village. The man at the desk clearly didnt know what kind of week we were having when he told us we MUST take a guide in case of injury and that it would cost us a further 25S. The look on Alex’s face was priceless and as 3 people rambled on at me in ridiculously fast Spanish (even though I had told them I only speak a little), Alex just plopped himself down with a disgusted look on his face.

When the 3 people finally drew breath I managed to stop them and say ‘No entiendo’ and Alex got up and handed them back our tickets for the walk. He said ‘We’re not going at all if we can’t go on our own’…somehow they understood and let us go. Clealry the face of being peeved is universal!

We could see the waterfall from our camping spot and it really didn’t look that far away. The local map suggested it was a 2 hour walk each way so we guessed it would be roughly 8km return and set off on our way. The first climb was along a farmers track where cows and horses were the main form of traffic and the path reflected it. Poop, mud and boulders all mushed up with hooves, up a steep incline at approximately 3000m and first thing in the morning we were worn out after the first hurdle. We put it down to being out of practise at excersising and the altitude. As we got further into the walk the path got worse, the poop and mud got thicker and deeper and the boulders fewer so we had to walk directly in the squelchy wet mess. I was certainly not having the time of my life and little did we know it but we were so far from the waterfall it was untrue.

The walk (aside from the mud) was pretty and patches of light warmed the ground through the trees making a perfect sunning spot for hundreds of butterflies. Bright blues, reds and greens they all danced up and down in the sun and flitted around us when we disturbed them. We crossed rickety plank bridges and even passed a sugar cane press in the middle of nowhere that was clearly still in use. The path upped and downed around 3 mountains and switch backed for miles and miles. I was ready to give up at one point (as always…I’m weak) and Alex spurred me on to make it all the way. The hardest thing was that the waterfall never seemed to get any closer until we were literally on top of it! When we finally got there with a friendly dog along for the walk we ran straight to the waterfall which was falling so hard and from so high that we were completely soaked to the skin within seconds. It was exhilerating and the wind coming from the power of the water was intense, we were nearly blown away. Freezing cold and happy that we had made it we sat and contemplated our return struggle. The walk had taken us 4 hours and must have been a good 6 miles. we turned on our heels and started back with a new burst of energy mainly due to trying to stay warm in our wet clothes. The hike back was tough but we were encouraged further when we saw a couple of groups (with guides) being pulled along by their sleeves on their way to the falls. We felt better knowing that we looked better than they did and we were on the home run…as long as it may be! As we passed the sugar cane press for the second time there was a man and a horse busy pressing their days harvest and he kindly offered us a taste of the freshly pressed raw juice. It looked like muddy water but in need of a burst of energy and actually seeing the stuff being squeezed out of a plant we gave it a go. It was like pure good for you sweetness in liquid form even with the sandy bits in it! The man was keen to chat which let us catch our breath even though we could only understand a few words. We thanked him and carried on our way through the mud and dirt back to Peggy and the friendly ladies garden.

It was a tough walk back but when we made it we took a freezing cold, but welcome shower, dressed in clean clothes and went to get a bite to eat. The whole walk took us 6 hours and must have been 12 miles all told. We ate comida typica, cockerel soup, meat and rice and drank freshly whizzed pineapple juice and felt ready to face the rest of the day. As we walked back to Peggy we saw the groups we had passed on the route coming back on horse back wrapped in foil sheets! We patted ourselves on the back at making it there and back in one piece, minus a horse drama with barely a blister!
Thank goodness we had had an improved day…finally!
Feeling good and energised we decided to press on to our next adventure…Kuelap. Whilst in the area of Chachapoyas we had been treated to paved roads and with the bus to Kuelap taking only 2-3 hours we decided to make a go of it.
Within 5km we were back to the dirt road and following the river with our only just settled bones being re-rattled out of our skins. We found the turn off to start up yet another mountain to the site which sits at 3000m (seems to be a favourite number around here) and looked at each other trying to decide whether to risk taking rattled to death Pegs up there or to take a cab. We brought some fruit and asked how far and about the state of the road. We were told that the road is ‘Muy Bueno’ and stupidly took the mans word for it. I dont know how it happens, we should really consider that their main road is a dirt track and go from there on hearing the road is good…goodness only knows what a bad road would be!
We started up our mountain and found a small village perched on an angle at 1800m. We parked in the main square and called it a day. We had started to ache from our 12mile ‘stroll’ and the thought of fighting our way up a mountain after climbing one already was wearing thin.
We ate some salad we had left over and got a good nights sleep in the quiet plaza looking forward to seeing something amazing 2 days in a row!

Find out what happens next on our travelling wedding adventure!

comments

  1. Jacquie says:

    Why am I not surprised that you had a challenging climb to the waterfall nor that you had a bone-shaking journey up the mountain to Kuelap (at least I think that is where you ended up for the night in the village square?). It seems you made a wise decision in undertaking the journey yourselves, without guides. Going by what you describe on the guided group they had a rougher time than you.

    Gocta waterfall is very impressive. It is good to hear that Alex can encourage you to carry on the path when muscles are aching and it just seems to difficult…..a real partnership there, Lisa 🙂

    Happy trails. xx

  2. Lisa & Alex says:

    He is my strength and always keeps me going, I’m a very lucky girl…or a mad one to listen to him!!! Xx

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