Brazil: September 2023: Day 4: Iguazu Falls (Argentina)

Brazil

September 2023: Day 4: Argentina

Parque Nacional Iguazu just after opening at 8:00am.

Black capuchin monkey.

Plush-crested jay. Lizard.

Lizard.

Great dusky swift live right next to waterfalls.

Isla San Martin, the little island in the middle of Iguazu Falls.

San Martin Falls, also viewable right from the Hotel das Cataratas.

Close-up of San Martin Falls.

Orange fungus.

I think this is Sister Falls.

No piggyback rides.

Or maybe this is Sister Falls. I should have taken better notes.

Salto Chico.

Salto Bosetti.

Salto Adan.

Salto Guardaparque Bernabe Mendez.

Pretty sure this is Salto Mbigua.

Not sure which waterfall this is, maybe the edge of Salto San Martin?

The trail/bridge system here is superb.

Viewing platform for Salto San Martin.

Salto San Martin.

One of many butterflies.

Starting the walk to Garganta del Diablo.

Even a thousand feet away you can feel the power of the water.

Extensive viewing platforms sunk into the solid basalt that makes up Iguazu Falls.

The Devils Throat is impressive.

Panoramic shot from the viewing area at the top of Devils Throat.

You go clockwise around the viewing area-- this is from about as far clockwise as you can go and still be at the edge of the falls.

Heading back towards land, getting soaked in the process.

Do not pet.

Park map including hiking/walking routes.

Back on the Brazilian side, Helisul's very affordable 10 minute helicopter ride.

Snagged the front-left seat!

Can see the mist from the falls in the distance, along with the very top of the Hotel das Cataratas.

Getting closer. So much green.

An impressive tower of mist coming from Garganta del Diablo.

Changing angles. I think the helicopter ultimately did 4 passes over the falls area.

Garganta del Diablo, the viewing area on the Brazilian side, the road, and the Iguazu River.

Rainbows, mist, and Iguazu Falls. Plus the Holel das Cataratas at the very edge.

Rainbows, mist, and Iguazu Falls, with San Martin Island prominently in the middle of the falls.

Better shot of the rainbows formed by the mist.

One last shot of Garganta del Diablo.

Getting ready to fly back

Butterflies on the side of the road.

Iguazu Falls at sunset.

Garganta del Diablo at sunset. Not sure this was the best angle, but the industrial vibe of the viewing platform was fun.

Got an early start and managed to beat the crowds twice, not only at the border crossing to Argentina, but also into Parque Nacional Iguazu. Eduard was a great driver/guide, clearly very experienced as he said hi to seemingly half the park employees as he showed me both the lower and upper trails inside the national park. Saved a ton of time too, as a tour guide he was able to cut a lot of the long lines for the little train inside the park that goes from the main viewing areas to the separate viewing area for Garganta Del Diablo, and knew all of the little details about not just the falls but animals and forests.

Eduard's sharp eyes caught not only egrets on the side of the viewing paths/bridges but the great dusky swift perched right next o some of the falls, was very cool. After a half day, ended up at Garganta Del Diablo, where the guides (including him) hang back to let all the tourists crowd the final viewing area. Like the experience from the Brazilian side, the sheer power Iguazu Falls is very clearly in evidence, and being right on top of the falls on the Argentina side is equally dramatic in size and experience. Absolutely worth the time to see both sides of the falls if you can.

As predicted by noon or so we were done (~4 hours actually in the park), and was time to head back to the Brazilian side. With yesterday's foggy weather and a quick border crossing back to Brazil, ended up doing the very affordable shared helicopter ride offered by Helisul on the way back. They keep it affordable by keeping it short, barely 10 minutes long, but the four or so passes you get over the falls is enough to appreciate the tower of spray reaching into the air, the scale of the falls all in front of your eyes at once, and ideally, the sun refracted in the mist kicked up by the falls making a rainbow or two only visible from the air.

Tried to get a few sunset photos before dinner, but with so much water through the falls today (Eduard said average was 2000 or 2200 cubic meters per second, and today was more than 2700 cubic meters per second earlier in the day) there was a ton of mist. And while a few locations on the Brazilian side's trail are okay, particular over San Martin falls, apparently the popular angle is over the Devil's Throat from the multi-level viewing platform. Alas... still tomorrow!