Our Puerto Rico Vacation – Day6 – El Yunque

Only a short bus trip from San Juan is El Yunque, the sole tropical rain forest in the U.S. National Forest System.   It is a well used park….reminding me of Acadia Park in Maine with its many visitors and many trails.  The trails we took were probably some of the easier ones but it was as much as I could handle.   The hike included towers, flowers, waterfalls, and male models…   Fortunately there are photos because I could never describe it in words.

 




 


There was a Calvin Klein photo shoot happening while we were at the falls…

After all that hiking we didn’t worry about calories consumed dining on the beach at Pamela’s…the best meal of the trip.

Our Puerto Rico Vacation – Day 5

On our fifth day we left early so that it wouldn’t be too hot during our walk through the Caba Rojo salt flats…There an interpreter took us through the nature preserve and the salt flats where salt is still collected.



We were warned not to touch these:)
 


Barrel cactus were everywhere…

It is a very dry, desert like environment…


You really have to be there at dawn to see the most birds…it was too hot for birds to be out by the time we arrived…

The black widow spiders were out though…

…and there are some beautiful wild flowers among the cactus.

The salt flats are pink due to algae in the water…It a delightful contrast against the blue sky.


There is an observatory tower to take it all in…

After lunch we hiked to the Caba Rojo lighthouse…the lighthouse was closed but the view is what everyone seeks…and the wind was refreshing after hiking in the desert heat…






Yes, I had white ankle socks on…I was hiking!

This was growing wild up on the windy cliffs.

Looking back towards the salt flats and mountains you could see an idyllic beach… I would have stayed there all day but we had to get back on the bus and head towards San Juan and supper…

Some Egg Action…

I haven’t bothered with an egg tree every year but this year my Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick  died and its branches make the perfect egg tree…

 

I haven’t dyed eggs every year either but this year I needed an activity to do with my grandchildren during an overnight…

And finally…I rarely had an egg hunt here when my children were young because my parents always held one at their house.  Now I am the grandparent and the egg hunt was here…

And now to eat all those hard-boiled and chocolate eggs.