27 Waterfalls of Damajagua
Be sure to check out BOTH videos in this post!!
While waiting for our engine to be re-rebuilt in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, we had some extra time on our hands. We didn't want to waste our time on this beautiful island, especially since we had seriously considered bypassing it on our way back to Florida. While I'm not really thrilled with the amount of time and money we've spent here, I am thankful for the beauty we've seen in the Dominican Republic from both it's landscape and it's people.
While visiting the teleferico (cable car) one day, we met a tour guide named Arian, who was very helpful and informative. He suggested we visit the 27 Waterfalls before we left the country. Not knowing exactly what our time here would look like, we decided to go the next day, and asked Arian to come along.
I arranged with Arian to join us on our trip the next morning, hoping that he would provide with as much insider knowledge about the falls as he did the Pico Isabel de Torres at the top of the cable car ride. After picking Arian up, we drove through the lush countryside, trying to avoid being run off the roads, to the falls.
When we arrived at the falls, we were informed that we had to have close-toed shoes, and wear life jackets and helmets. This was already panning out to be a bigger adventure than any of us assumed. Once we had our proper gear fit, we met up with our water guide, Moreno, and started up the trail. We elected to do 12 falls, as the 27 falls included a pretty vigorous hike that we weren't prepared for.
As we meandered through the forest up the trail, Moreno explained that he had lived in the area all his life, and had been a water guide for nearly 20 years. He enjoyed the job, however, he usually only is assigned one tour per day. He constantly reminded us that we were "the boss", and could set the pace on the hike however we wanted. We took a few short breaks in the shade, but trying to move along as quickly as possible so we could find the cool water.
After one short stop, Moreno advised us to buckle up our life jackets, and strap on our helmets. We were almost to the first jump. We turned off the path, and walked down a small stream to the first jump of about 10 feet. Everyone jumped, one at a time, without hesitation. When Lisa jumped in, the bag of cookies she had in her pocket for a quick snack bobbed to the surface. Moreno pointed them out, and we all joked that she had lost her cookies. She lost her cookies at least two more times before the day was over.
The stream then led us on an awesome journey of jumps, slides and swims. The highest fall we jumped from was 21 feet. Both Lauren and Alyssa jumped right off the ledge without hesitation. What brave girls! We continued down, sliding and jumping, until we reached the last pool. It was big, and surrounded by beautiful cliffs. Many local families were at this pool, as it's the only one that small children are allowed to go to, and is easily walked to.
When we got back to the boat, we reviewed the footage on Lauren's water camera together. It was really neat to see the falls and the beautiful landscape all over again. A day or so later, Lisa suggested to Alyssa that she create a Minecraft waterfall inspired by the 27 falls. My ears perked up, and I offered to help her.
While we were working on it, we had the idea to shoot a "video" of the Minecraft falls, similar to our own video of the falls. Alyssa was on top of all the details, including a ticket booth, and water shoes, life jackets, and helmets. "filmed" some some different angles and perspectives to make it more enjoyable. We had a great time creating the video, and hope you enjoy this one as well.
The entire trip up to the fall, and back down was absolutely gorgeous, and well worth the effort. If you ever make it to Dominican Republic, make sure the 27 Waterfalls are at the top of your list.
