We have become comfortable with a variety of hikes in Puerto Vallarta. Between the river scramble / waterfall that is Nogalito, the horses in Quimixto, the beaches to Playa Animas, the relaxed environment of the Botanical Gardens, the charm of Yelapa, and the swimming holes in El Eden, there are many options to experience hiking in Puerto Vallarta. We have done each of those hikes in a variety of seasons.
This past August, we decided to push the limits and hike to Mismaloya Falls. In fairness, numerous people warned us that August is not a good time to go to Mismaloya Falls due to the potential for afternoon rainstorms. However, we decided to leave very early and go for it. It turned out to be more of an adventure than I expected. But, if the goal was to create memories, we certainly accomplished that. I plan on trying it again sometime in the dry season and have certainly learned a few lessons on how to make it go smoother.
As this is a long post, I will jump straight to the things I would do different next time:
Get someone to drive us as close as possible to the "real trail head." The extra 3.5 miles to start made for a long day and made it so we had less time at the waterfalls.
Do not go during the rainy season. This could have ended up very badly for us. There could have been flash floods.
Hike in hiking shoes until the first water crossing. Change into water shoes for the hike to the waterfall. Stash the hiking shoes by the first water crossing. Change back into the hiking shoes for the hike out. The blisters were brutal from hiking in water shoes the entire time.
Pack good trail food.
Be careful about packing unnecessary weight. No one thought much about the weight of the day packs to begin, but after crossing through the river and scampering up the boulders, the weight became a bother. (Oh, and don't get my kids started about the fact we had 3 large containers of sunscreen in one pack. I may never live that down.).
Make sure people know which trail head you are starting at in case there is an emergency.
As for the things we did right:
Went with a local guide. I have not used a guide for any of the other hikes we have done, but this one was important.
Brought plenty of water.
Believed (kind of) that we were really just "ocho minutos" from almost being there.
Made it back safely with stories to tell....
Getting to the trail head.
There are two different entry points to the hike. The first is near El Eden. The second is near the town of Los Veranos. Although El Eden is a closer launching point, we have been told that it is a much more strenuous hike. We took a bus to Los Veranos, which is about 4 miles southeast of Boca de Tomatlan. Los Veranos is a small village with a couple of very small stores if you need to pick up any snacks or water bottles
Getting to the real trail head.
Once we arrived at Los Veranos, we walked 3.5 miles through the small town and past the the outlying farm houses. The first mile and a half of the dirt road is passable in car, but then the road gets rougher and you would need a pick-up truck or a good 4x4. The 3.5 miles is not particularly steep, but it is uphill (approximately 700 feet of elevation gain). Some portions of the road are through ranches and require going through their gates. So, I would not go without the assistance of a local guide. At the end of the rough dirt road, the trail begins.
Going to the jungle floor.
Once you get to the "real trail head," you pretty quickly begin descending down to the jungle floor on a narrow trail. Our guides brought machetes to help cut through some of the overgrowth on the trail. The trail drops about 400 feet in a little over a mile to get you to the river running along the jungle floor.
Getting to the first waterfall.
After reaching the jungle floor, there is not much of a trail. Instead, we followed along the river, climbing steadily up. Some parts require scrambling over the boulders. It is about 2 miles and approximately 600 feet of elevation gain. There are too many river crossings to count.
"Ocho Minutos" to the second water fall.
The entire hike is beautiful. As we hiked up the river, we could see more and more of the jungle valley below us. When we reached the first waterfall, I was willing to call it good and stop there. Having hiked over 6 miles -- much of it through the river, I was feeling pretty exhausted. However, our guides insisted that it was just "ocho minutos" to the second waterfall and they assured me it would be worth it. When I asked them to show me the trail to the next waterfall, I knew that they were fibbing a bit. But I am glad they pushed us to go forward.
Ropes to the second waterfall.
Getting to the second waterfall is not easy. The guides helped us with the ropes that were necessary to pull ourselves up along the side of the first waterfall to reach the base of the second waterfall. I did not take pictures of the trickiest spots along here because it is the type of climbing where we had to pay close attention to what we were doing. It is not for the faint of heart.
Reaching the second waterfall.
The second waterfall is much larger than the first. There is a natural pool suitable for swimming. It was a truly beautiful place to enjoy lunch. The guides told us that there are two more waterfalls, but the trail / ropes are much trickier than what we had just done.
The hike back out.
Our stay at the second waterfall was cut short as we saw storm clouds rolling in. Heading down stream is much easier, but it is still a tricky hike. While bracing himself at one water crossing, my son grabbed a hornet's nest and was stung multiple times. So, that was not fun. Also, the hike from the jungle floor to the top of the ridge seemed a lot steeper on the way back up then it did going down. Having hiked about 9 miles already -- much of that in the river -- the mile or so hike back up the ridge seemed to never end. It was more uncomfortable hiking that in water shoes and I wished that I had stashed some hiking shoes along the way for this part of the trek.
Refuge
After we made it off the trail and were headed down the dirt road past the ranchos, it started pouring rain. Fortunately, our guides had friends in the town and we took refuge in their house for a while. One of their friends bailed us out by driving us down to the bus stop.
After the storm passed, we were very happy to get back to the villa in time to watch the sunset!
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