La Naturaleza y la belleza - Tayrona National Park, Colombia
Tayrona National Park, Colombia
Where I stayed
San Juan del Guia
This weekend, Kelly, one of the expat teachers, decided that she was going out to Parque Tayrona (since she hadn't been) and invited anyone to come join her. I took her up on that offer. Parque Tayrona is one of my favourite places, because the scenery is stunning. It has some of the best beaches on the coast, the biodiversity of the jungle and the Sierra Nevadas de Santa Marta framing it from behind. As Kelly put it, she felt like she was in Jurassic Park!
I headed out early bright and early on Saturday morning (to save money on hostels). I'm not going to lie, I was quite disoriented when my alarm went off at 5am. The timing was perfect though, and I got to Berlinas (minibus company) just before the next bus was to leave. Berlinas is pretty efficient, and left at 5:45 (scheduled departure 5:40). At this time in the morning, there were only 3 other people on the bus with me. Traffic was also quite light, and 2 hours later, we were arriving in Santa Marta. I got a picture of the sunrise as we got just outside of Barranquilla. We passed a bus that had crashed (not a good sight, I am fairly certain the driver didn't survive, as the whole front end was smashed in).
In Santa Marta, I took a short taxi ride to Mercado (bus terminal where the buses to Tayrona and Palomino leave from). Mercado is different than the bus terminal, as I discovered the last time I tried this. I got on a bus leaving very soon after (these ones wait until they are almost full before going). An hour later, with windblown hair, I stepped off at the entrance to Tayrona (El Zaino). This is the most popular entrance. When you arrive, you need to watch the park information video (in Spanish), and listen to the Park "ranger" talk before they will give you a slip of paper which is needed to buy your ticket. One of the downsides with Tayrona, is that it is the only National park where people who work here but are on a visa, are not considered residents. I think they do this to make more money, as the foreigner price is more than double what a local pays.
From the entrance, you will want to take the minibus up to the parking lot (I forgot to tell Kelly this, and she ended up with a 5 km uphill walk before even beginning the trail). The minibus cost 3000 pesos this time. Everything is getting more expensive.
Since I had started my journey so early in the morning, and I was eager to get to the beach, I opted to take the horse to Cabo San Juan. Well, let me tell you, we made it there lickety-split! If you hike the ridge trail (most scenic), it takes about 2.5-3 hours to get to Cabo. On the horse, it takes about an hour. My horse decided this was not good enough. He was quite agitated on the way to Arrecifes (the first stop). He was neighing a lot and just seemed unhappy. I wasn't sure if this was because he was alone, and wanted other horses, or what. We came across 3 foals, who were loose and running around. My guy tried hard to join them. At Arrecifes, my guide hopped on another horse, and we were joined by another guide and horse. This seemed to make my guy happier. He also decided to do the entire way from Arrecifes to Cabo at a trot. There was a lot of bouncing involved. Personally, the short bursts where he would canter were much nicer... I did make sure that we walked down the steep hilly sections. My guide checked that it was ok if we went faster, and I said that was fine. My tent had to be adjusted on my backpack a couple of times, but other than that, no major issues. (By the way, I was carrying my tent, sleeping bag and sleeping pad on my back. Another reason for taking the horse) I got to Cabo in record time! Just a bit over 40 minutes. I had time to check-in and set up my tent before 11:30!
I managed to find Kelly chilling out in her hammock. She had already been at the beach quite a bit in the morning. As I hadn't had a substantial breakfast, I got a sandwich from one of the vendors at the beach (the restaurant didn't open until 12:30). This did the trick, and we lied out on the beach for a while. I had also brought my snorkel, so we tried to snorkel a bit. You couldn't see anything. My snorkel was also closing and stopping air from coming in (it has a valve that stops water from entering too, but this wasn't well designed).
In the afternoon, I went to explore a bit, and ventured over to another beach a bit further (5 minutes). This beach is known as the nude beach, or rather "clothing optional", since it is more secluded, and lets you have more privacy. It is a much nicer beach, especially since there are fewer people there. On Saturday, I only saw one couple at the far end who might have been in the buff. Sunday brought more brave souls (including myself), who shed some or all of their clothing. The water is rougher here, so it is not advisable to swim (although it is no worse than the currents and waves at Costeno beach). It felt like I was on a private island somewhere.
During dinner (which doesn't start until 6:30), I stocked up on water (the cantina is only open for certain periods of time, which I didn't know, and I was getting parched). We also met a girl from Chicago, named... Julie! I rarely ever meet others with my name! She is traveling for about 5 months total, and was in Guatemala before Colombia. I was still quite stressed from the work week, and needed to vent to calm down. She, not being a teacher, didn't seem to realize that teaching is not a job where you can just "turn the switch off". It is something that you are constantly thinking about, even when not at work. Once we got off the subject of work however, I was a much happier person! Kelly went to bed early; the sun and a cold night's sleep had worn her out. I didn't last much longer, and tucked into my tent around 8:30 to read for a bit. I have started reading Cinder, part of the Lunar Chronicles. It is a young adult fiction, but it is so good! I have to thank Amanda and Kate for the recommendation. I will be starting the second book in the series very shortly! (Think Cinderella, but in the future, with androids and cyborgs and lunar colonies).
Kelly was not lying when she said it got chilly at night. Even in my tent, I could feel the breeze, and was glad that I had brought my sleeping bag with me. I slept well for about 4 hours, before I got too hot. Then, people were standing outside my tent, and talking and shining their lights into my tent. It was 1:30 am... Not impressed. Go stand somewhere else people! Unfortunately for me, my nice shady spot under the tree also happened to be in the middle of a highly trafficked area. In the morning, I could hear the horses hooves right outside, and more people walking around.
Oh! I forgot. I also had quite a fright when I went to my tent in the dark, and there was a cat staring up at me. I had barely recovered before a bat flew at my head!
Bats were not the only flying animals to watch out for. Unfortunately for me, there were a TON of wasps around. As I went to brush my teeth/go to the bathroom in the morning, I was stung on the forearm. It hurt like a _______. Immediately, a wheel formed (raised white part around the sting). For those of you who have met me in later years, when I was a teenager, I had an anaphylactic reaction to a wasp sting on my ankle, where my whole body swelled up in hives, and my throat started to close. Throughout high school, I dutifully carried around my epipen, but after 3 years of monthly injections of venom (allergy shots) I was deemed to have a "normal reaction". This is not the first wasp to sting me in Colombia, but this is the first one to really get me good. (The others "grazed" me more or less). It is still itchy as I sit here writing. Anyways, my reaction started out as fairly normal, but I didn't want to chance anything, since we were a 3 hour walk away from the highway, and another hour into Santa Marta. I took a benadryl, and it seemed to be ok. My forearm continued to swell throughout the day, until it was completely swollen (from wrist to elbow, and all the way around) by the early afternoon. I continued with the benadryl. At least the itching was kept at bay. The bus ride home was not fun, as the itching increased, and the swelling gave way to a dull, aching pain throughout my forearm. Me being me, I didn't think to find a clinic or anything. It was Sunday after all!
Going back to the earlier part of the day, before my trip home, I once again returned to the "playa nudista". Today, there were more people, and more in the buff. I personally had gone over because I wanted some topless tanning time. Pretty much all of the women were topless, but not naked. They kept their thong bottoms on (which I have a pair too). I decided to find myself a secluded spot to shed my swim suit. I enjoyed my time sans clothes (it is especially nice not to have a bra or the straps on my bathing suit digging into me). I continued to enjoy my book, alongside the crashing waves and jungle noises. I wish this was closer to Barranquilla, so I could come here more often. Of course, then everyone would be there more, and it wouldn't be so secluded and beautiful.
When I returned from basking in the sun (honestly, I swear I was a reptile in a past life), I packed up my tent and headed out. I didn't see any of Kelly's things, and I knew that she was thinking of heading out earlier than me, so I didn't think much of it, and went on my merry way. Turns out, she was sitting on the beach waiting for me. We must have crossed paths (since there was no other way from the beach to the campsite), but I missed her and the iguana in the tree. I hiked alone (which I quite enjoyed). I like to be alone in nature, so that I can better hear all of the noises in the trees. It connects me more. Some people do not get this, as they blasted their music, destroying the peace and quiet.
I made it to Arrecifes in just under an hour, and stopped by the Kogi's (indigenous tribe of Tayrona) for a refreshing orange juice. Tayrona basically has a rain forest, and it is very humid and hot. Anyone who has visited the Colombian Caribbean coast will agree. I think I sweat any toxins out of me by the time I made it to the park entrance. Luckily, this was my second time doing the hike, so I knew to keep a change of clothes on hand. The beaches of Cañaveral are some of the best in Tayrona, but they are off limits because of the strong rip currents. More than 200 people have died there, so I respect the sea, and will not be tempted. I like my life too much (and let's face it, having done all of my life-guarding courses and learning about the dangers of the ocean before ever setting foot near one has impacted my fear/respect for it). I got some stunning pictures, and saw many lizards along the way. I also saw a ñeque (agouti). They are like giant guinea pigs, and are part of the rodent family. I also saw some beautiful birds, but I wasn't able to get pictures of most of the birds or the ñeque. I was a bit saddened to not have seen any monkeys. Kelly saw 4 of them on her way into the park. I have not seen any in the 3 times I have been here. I was starting to think that it would be like the elusive lions in Tsavo National park when our minibus driver (on the way back from the park entrance to the highway) stopped and pointed out 2 monkeys jumping from tree to tree! Happiness! (even if they aren't the titis, which are what I REALLY want to see...)
The rest of the ride back was fine. I was very passive aggressive on the berlinas bus, by keeping my knee up against the back of the seat in front of me to stop them from reclining into my lap. I let them recline a bit, just not too much to take up my space. There is very little regard for others space here. I mean, why wouldn't you want someone's head practically in your lap?
Well, that is all for now. I can report that I was even more swollen and red when I got home. At the time of writing, the swelling is gone, although some itchiness remains. Got some good antihistamines (stronger than benadryl) from the school doctor. I will be picking up more before I go on the Ciudad Perdida trek on Saturday. Also, my knees seem to be ok with hiking. Legs are sore, but my knees didn't feel too bad. Let's hope they hold up for 4 more days (and about 40 kms or so)!