March 17, 2007
Day 535
A girl jumping off a rock.
The bus arrived at 5:00 AM at Lencois today and sure enough, there were ten guys trying to get me to go to their hotels before I even got off the bus. My options were significantly narrowed as soon as I indicated that i preferred camping, and soon I was delivered to a large backyard with a few tents already set up from the night before.
Soon I met an Israeli named Omer who wanted to do the standard three-day trek to Cachoeira da Fumaca, which at 420 meters is the tallest in Brazil. The gears started moving immediately and soon we found a Belgian guy named Pierre and an Argentine/French couple (Matias and Ana) who also seemed interested in joining us. Omer found a guide who was willing to give us a steep discount since we wanted to carry our own gear and cook our own food.
Having taken care of a lot of the logistics for the trek, Pierre, Omer, and I decided to do a day walk in the area. We went a few K's outside of town to a place called Ribeirao do Meio, which had a natural swimming pool and a slight waterfall which was possible to slide down. I went across the pool, got out off the water, and climbed the rocks to the river. Then I went to the center of the rapids, sat down, and crossed my fingers. The strong current of the water soon had me bouncing over the rocks to the bottom of the slide and into the water. It was quite a fun experience.
Back in town, we made some final arrangements with our guide. We found out that the other people we had met earlier in the day already signed up to go, and payed more money for food and equipment. It was going to be a big group.
Pierre, Omer, and I bought food, got some fuel, and planned to meet at the guide's hotel at 8:30, when we were supposed to begin the trek. Having accomplished a lot today, I kicked back with the other campers in the backyard with a few caipirihnas.
The photo album for this entry is here.
