December, 2017 Rio Claro Colombia
Colombia, has a pretty healthy middle class compared to many other Latin American countries. So the locals are pretty active with tourista things. With something like 28% of the population being middle class. And 50% or so in the United States.
”In Colombia the numbers are different. A household can be considered middle class if it earns between US$300 and US$850 per month, which is US$10 and US$29 per day. Any household earning anything more that this is considered high class and will be located on the top 10% of the richest in Colombia.”
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_class_in_Colombia#:~:text=In Colombia the numbers are,of the richest in Colombia.
1 USD =
4,082.185049 COP Sep 28, 2023 08:22 UTC
It is Jungle, so when it rains we would all pile into the FWC and play cards. My Eno Double nest sleep system also worked, very well. And when mixed with the fly and bug screen was a good place to relax, and read or watch movies that I had saved on my tablet.
The next morning,
We geared up, and kind of geared down. As we were limited to what we could bring. They did not want any shoes that don’t close. So No flip flops. I ended up buying some water shoes there. And still use them to this day. They also did not really want anyone to bring phones. Although we snuck ours in with ID(s) in a small dry bag.
For a reason lost to time, : All the pictures from the go pro have never been found. So no pictures, *any posted for this were re appropriated off of google.*
https://www.google.com/search?sca_e...0KHcWHDE8Q0pQJegQIDRAB&biw=1920&bih=931&dpr=1
We signed some waivers, and then the guide did a very long safety talk, that I understood none of. But judging by the others in the group, it was done will with humor.
We began the hike, maybe ¾ mile, in a well-used jungle trail, and scramble/ steep climb another 1.4 mile up rocks after crossing the river, on a small suspension bridge. Passing where folks we jumping off a water fall, from a cave into the river. Where we would end. This particular group was mostly 20, somethings. And what looked like some college bros trying to impress the ladies in the group. With things like, tripping each other on the trail, hitting each other with branches, and trying to get their buddies to place their hands in holes with scorpions and big ass spiders. Once we passed them on the narrow trail, it went much better.
On a side note, none of the ladies seemed impressed. The guide stopped often to take pictures of everyone with his camera.
It may be worth noting, that I can’t swim. Well I can’t float…. I have spent time on rivers, and running white water and haven’t died yet. I wonder if anything was important in the 45min long trail side safety briefing.
However, my family knows that, and we all had to have life jackets on. We eventually hike away from the river and over a hill, that opens up to a large cave mouth. We all put on our life jackets, and helmets. And strap on our personally provided head lamps. I do love my black diamond head lamps, they are great. And into the dark we go.
Most places I was able to touch or grab on to something. It was very pretty inside, toward the end: there was a plunge, where we jumped off a waterfall into a deep pool, it was probably only a jump of 10 feet or so.
I tightened my gear” Chin to chest, arms crossed with nose pinched. Jumped, making sure to cross my ankles. It took about 23 Mississippi’s to pop back up. And Kp and Taylor probably thought I had died, as they both grabbed an arm from each side when I popped up. And I had bruises for a week. All was well.
To finish the tour, you can jump from the cave mouth, into the river. Or slide down, and then grab one of the ropes and pull yourself back across the river.
The guide again took pictures and videos of all of us as we did the things.
