There is a lot to do in La Cumbrecita, but we are only passing through for the day. My Kiwi travel partner, Sarah, is a very perky blond and she insists that we take an early bus to get in all the activities we can. But the first bus leaves at 7am and I am absolutely not interested. There is another bus at 10am and we are on vacaaaaation, I plead using my best whiny voice. Sarah is sympathetic but undeterred, and she continues to think up hypothetical situations in which it would be better if we were to arrive early. All in all, she has been an extremely good travel partner and considering that she has saved me from traveling on my own, I should probably show a little bit of flexibility. Plus her accent is sort of convincing. Damn.
So then we find ourselves walking to the bus station in the dark under the Southern Cross and it’s many star companions. We run the last 100 meters to catch our bus just as it is leaving the station. Whew. On board are locals going to work and elementary school children wearing white lab coats blasting reggaeton on their cellphones. I manage to sleep through it and wake up in a daze when we arrive at 8:30 am in La Cumbrecita.
“It’s beautiful isn’t it!” Sarah exclaims. I try not to give her too much of a scowl. I’m not sure if she is trying to convince me or herself, but it doesn’t take me long to realize that she is genuinely enthusiastic. It is freezing cold but she’s right, the air is crisp, clear and silent. Nice.
Nothing opens until 9am but we give the local coffee shop owner our best pathetic gringa faces and she lets us in. We huddle around our cafe con leches while we dreamily eye the delicious German pastries that are outside of our price range. The coffee shop owner gives us some recommendations for walks and sites to see around the town. We manage to do a fair bit:
La Casacada
Our first destination is a peaceful waterfall about 20 minutes outside of the center of town. We are the only ones on the trail and we watch the sun quietly spread its rays out over the hills. We sit and enjoy the waterfall, respecting the rule that it’s still too early to speak.
Olla
We meander around to the Olla which is really just a stream but I can imagine in the summer time that it's the perfect swimming hole. In fall, it's a great photo op.
Cerro Wank (1715 meters)
Highlight of the day. Pretty cool hike, only about 1 hour to 1.5 hr each way with great views of the town and dry mountains once you reach the top. The trail is not marked and we kind of get lost on the way back. This is mainly my fault. I see a large rock with a distinctive hole that I swear I would have recognized, therefor we must be on the wrong trail! Makes sense, right? So we double back and end up right where we started. Huh. (Needless to say, I have a pretty bad sense of direction.) Sarah is a very good sport and she rightly earns herself the position of trail leader. I follow her down and around the loose rock path, taking horse droppings as a sign that we are on the right track. We meander a bit off the trail but end up right where we want to be.
After a morning of wandering, we grab some cheesy empanadas and sit by the el Rio del Medio to watch the local horse traffic and nap in the sun.
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