Rio Claro

Friday after school, I came home to pack and get ready for the big weekend ahead. What I thought was construction noise was a sudden storm. I looked out the window to a beautiful complete double rainbow. Not going to complain about this view. 

We had our second puente (Colombian public holiday) this Monday. I honestly don't even know what it was for but I'm not complaining. 7 of us newbies decided we needed a weekend getaway to Rio Claro. It is a private reserve, essentially a jungle, about 3.5-4 hours away from Medellin. Adrianne did some research for us and Saturday morning we met at Parque Poblado for a private van there. The van was worth every penny since we didn't have to go to the bus terminal. Plus, it allowed us to make stops for the bathroom and snacks along the way.

On of our stops along the way. Beautiful views along the mountain side. And delicious food. We stopped here again for lunch on the way back home. 

The ride itself was perfect. The views of the countryside were beautiful. It still blows me away how green everything is. We talked and laughed and napped. Pretty good combination. And I even had leg room. It was a win win situation.

Reuben got us there safe and sound. We paid for our rooms and made our way into the reserve. Rio Clara means clear river and it was far from clear when we arrived likely due to the rain. It did clear up throughout the weekend however.

Our accommodations were well into the reserve, about 10 minutes away from the center. We ate a decent but basic lunch and signed up for activities. We wanted to get signed up for everything so it didn't fill up for the weekend. We also didn't want to be worried about the cash we were carrying. My first priority (along with just about every else) was caving. Unfortunately, I am an idiot and I forgot my GoPro so I wasn't able to get any pictures but let me just tell you it was spectacular. 

I bought a flashlight (forgot that too) and then we all got our life jackets on and headed out. Yes... you read that out. We were going caving and we needed life jackets. Guess it comes as not surprise why I didn't risk bringing my camera. We set off for a hike that lasted about an hour before we got to the cave. I did a quick youtube search and came across a video of the cave. There are plenty more but here is a link to one just to give you a taste of the crazy adventure. 

We walked along the river, crossed the above bridge, then hiked up and over the mountain to the entrance of the cave. The cave was obviously a wet cave. We were walking in water the whole time and also jumping in it. There were big drops and it was deep enough for me to go completely under on two of the drops. The ceilings were very tall. Tall enough to be home to some creepy, essentially pterodactyl, birds. We were told that we couldn't look up with their lights because it would disturb them. They did not like us being there and they were yelling and making not too comfortable noises the whole time. It was neat at first but the cool factor wore off by the end. Luckily it was only the first and last 150 meters. Though it was the first thing we did, it was still probably the highlight of the trip. Just remember to pack that waterproof camera. 

Our rooms. Totally open air. Perfection. 

The exit to the cave. There was a rope ladder that you climbed down and then a rope that you held on to as you crossed the deceptively strong rushing river. 

Sunday morning, we woke up to howling monkeys putting on a show for us. It was so fun to watch them move around in the trees and climb up the vines!

After the show that the monkeys put on for us, we grabbed some breakfast and headed out for our morning adventure of ranting. The river is only a 1 so it was more like group tubing with paddles but it was such a fun way to see the landscape. Kelsey and I were up from because we are the tall amazons. We all decided we wanted to do a tougher river but we need to learn our Spanish first since all the commands were in Spanish. He would tell us to paddle and then to rest. Rest is descanse. A while in to the trip, Kathy asked what he was saying because it sounded like Wisconsin. we all laughed so hard about it and we will always think about Wisconsin from now on. The guide showed us placed where they mine for marble and also some history about Pablo Escobar and one of his hideout houses.

We had a great time rafting. We made it back for lunch and then our next adventure which was the via ferrata or rock climbing at 3. It turns out we accidentally signed up for zip lining instead so some people did that. I decided to go find some trees for my hammock and a book. It was a nice, relaxing afternoon to just be alone.

We convinced them to open early Monday morning for us to rock climb. They said it was tough and they weren't kidding! The hardest part was definitely the beginning. It was incredibly challenging but also rewarding. The guide was patient with us and we had a good sweat going before breakfast.

I'll make a seamless plug for the reserve. Whether they know it or not, they should be accepting donations of equipment because I had a little too much challenge course experience to feel good about their claws :) 

 After lots of water, some breakfast, and a cold, refreshing shower, we packed up and headed back. We stopped for a late lunch and I went to town on this plate. It is actually a small version of their local plate, bandeja paisa. Rice, beans, friend egg, mean, blood sausage, plantain, avocado, salad.

We had a phenomenal weekend. The country continues to amaze with its lushness and diversity. And the best part is that I have still seen practically nothing. 

I'm going to wrap this one up this week with a quick shout to this amazing group of girls that have all welcomed me with open arms. We are all doing this crazy thing called life together and I feel lucky to be doing it with them. They have make the transition to living abroad much easier. Watch out Colombia.... we're coming for you!