So today we cleaned and got ready to go see a waterfall. Once our chores were all done we all jumped into our rental car and squished together so we could all fit. We first stopped at a beach with what looked like mini mountains jutting 300 feet out of the lagoon with palm trees sprouting out of the top. After many pictures and a yummy beach picnic, we drove off down the blue coastline. After a few minutes, the scenery slowly changed from crashing waves to dense jungle road. We soon had to stop and ask directions at a house to get to the falls. And the response was, “Who told you to park here? This is private property. You are lucky you asked or we would have set our dogs loose!.” She said jokingly.
As she and her family set out to show us the waterfall, we could quickly see why the Samoans prized them so much. We all walked into the densely wooded area and picked our way across logs and through the river to get to the main path. Once we got there the light shone through the leaves of the tall trees growing along the river to illuminate the trail ahead. Ten minutes later our trek came to a halt. Once we rounded the bend, towering 500 feet above us, was a cascade of free-falling water. It only took moments for us all to dive into the misty pool at the base of the cliff.
After we had our fill of jumping and climbing, we decided we needed a little more adventure. And what better than climbing up the side of the waterfall! While holding onto vines for dear life, we (Eli, Orin, Jaeden and I) Tugged and pulled our way to the very top.
Looking over the edge of the waterfall was breathtaking. No just because we were tired, but because you could see the tops of all the trees all the way to the ocean. Soon we started throwing rocks at the boulders near us to see how far we could throw them. Jaeden’s red rock sailed through the air and made contact with the boulder in a crunch and explosion of red paste and pebbles.
Soon finding this could be used as war paint. We wasted no time in painting ourselves and dying our hair a bright red brown. We then continued up the rocks through the river for about 20 more minutes. The plants on the way were just massive. The giant ferns stood 20 feet tall. Once you pushed your way past the green human sized leaves, you could see Banyan trees climbing like ladders to reach the sky. Looking past them, we saw another waterfall! Once we arrived we started swimming and splashing. That was when we found the cave. Set in the rock at the base of the cliff, this was the perfect hideout.
Soon time passed and we knew we had better get heading back. Halfway down we re-dyed our hair and applied our crazy jungle paint and rounded the bend to see Mom standing there… for some reason she wasn’t too surprised and told us we looked like Lost Boys crossed with Lord of the Flies.
We got back to the first waterfall and hiked back to the car to finish our day full of fun.
Glad to hear this explanation of the photo of red-headed warriors. We thought maybe you went to the marine exchange and switched out your crew for firetops.
On another note, it’s easy to see how beneficial your ‘PX90minutes of torture’ exercise program has been – otherwise you wouldn’t be able to climb all those dangerous cliffs holding only on to vines (and your swim trunks). We love reading about these amazing experiences.