VISITING PUERTO RICO PT. 4

This is the last installment of our Puerto Rican adventures. Where much of the first half of our trip was dedicated to relaxation and letting go of that city grit, the last half was all about adventure. When we first started looking into Puerto Rico two attractions immediately stood out to us- the rainforst and the bioluminescent bays. 

First up the El Yunque National Forest (the only rainforest on US soil). The day we decided to head into El Yunque was less than ideal, unlike all the days leading up to the trek we woke up to an overcast sky threatening to rain. Fittingly it did rain on us in the rainforest, in fact it poured buckets. We embraced it and headed deep into the green mass of tree in search of the La Mina Falls. 

At first I was a little disappointed with the trail, I mean the trail was paved for crying out loud! But, by the time we made it to the falls the rain had started to let up a little and I was smitten. We decided to go ahead and continue on to the Big Tree Trail where I took a bazillion pictures which I'll spare you. At times I felt like I was in a scene from Jurassic Park, and at others Fern Gully. It was a magical playground of plants unlike anything I've ever seen.  

Note: My brilliant husband not only remembered to bring a waterproof camera for this trip, but also a dry bag so my precious DSLR could come along too!

Our other adventurous excursion took place the following evening in the Laguna Grande bioluminescent bay (aka bio bays). The bio bays are basically warm pockets of water that attract phosphorescent plankton. At night these plankton glow in the dark when disturbed or moved creating fireworks in the water. There are only 5 of these bays in the enitre world, and Puerto Rico is home to 3 of them.

We opted to take the sunset trip to the bay so we could see the gorgeous Mangrove trees and wildlife as we made our way into the lagoon. It was straight out of Indiana Jones. As the sun set our tour guides explained what was happening in the water and the types of fish we were about to see. I was a ball of excitement waiting for the water to glow and it felt like it took forever to see anything happen. And then it did.

There are no pictures of what we experienced when the plankton woke up for the evening and part of that is on purpose. There are just some things in life you have to experience for yourself, no picture will ever do it justice. All I can say is get out there and travel- you never know what you'll walk away with. - b.

Read more about our Puerto Rican adventures no. 1  |  no. 2  |  no. 3