Submitted by Pat

Up early for breakfast served in the Cave: Eggs with cheese, chorizo, oatmeal, and fresh fruit. We packed our day packs with enough stuff for a night at the Tree House Camp - no rafting today - and carried them over to the rocks overlooking Zeta Rapid. The idea was to get across the river with gear and then hike up to the Tree House Camp, where we would have the afternoon to swim, sit in the hot tub, rest in our tree house, canoe on the lake, or hike up a hill for an incredible 360 degree view.

When I arrived at the transition area, Aaron and Peter were setting up a fairly complex system of ropes for the Tyrolean Traverse. I was fascinated watching him. Two ropes were connected to anchors embedded in the rock on both sides of the river, about thirty feet above the water, one as the primary and one as a backup if the primary failed. There were several redundant points of failure where the ropes were connected to rock anchors as well. We put on a climbing harness that was cinched really tight, kind of uncomfortable, but I certainly felt secure. Kate went across first and then I volunteered. I don't like to wait a long time before doing new and challenging physical activities. I'm much more of a let's-get-started kind of gal.

Wearing my helmet, life jacket, and hiking clothes, Aaron connected me to all the ropes, then spun me around so I was leaning backward out over the water and told me to grab the rope and push off. So I did. After bouncing a bit while my weight stabilized, I figured out the rhythm and coordination needed to hand over hand pull myself on my back with my head pointing to the opposite cliff. I wasn't really scared or anxious - I knew I couldn't fall - it was more of a thrill. Although I could have taken my time and looked around, I chose to move my body to the other side so I could use Nancy's camera to take pictures and videos of her and Don crossing.

Don went next and he made it look easy. Nancy looked a little apprehensive but she too went across without much fuss. Once everyone was across, we threw on our daypacks and began hiking. It started out as a flat walk next to the river, but after about a half an hour we started to climb. At least there was a clear and well-trodden trail and instead of using the old New England White Mountains method of designing trails that go straight up, they designed this trail using switchbacks so it was much easier on the legs. It felt good to walk and stretch my climbing muscles. The day was gorgeous and warm. It felt good to sweat. We gained about 1,200 feet in elevation climbing to the top of the ridge and it took us two and a half hours to make it to Tree Camp. On the way there were several incredible views of the river so we took lots of pictures.

Tree Camp was the brainchild of Roberto and Eric and consisted of a series of dwellings made of wood and bamboo with half the sides open and the only thing holding you in were a couple of wooden railings. We climbed up a central staircase to a large tree house where we picked up sleeping bags, mats, and pillows and Aaron pointed out our huts for the night. Each tree dwelling was built around the trunk of a tree about 20-30 feet off the ground. After everyone had settled in, we went down to the dining area - a large deck built over the marsh next to the lake. Embedded in the deck was another wood fired hot tub, hot and ready for us. We ate a lunch of bread, cheese, fruit, and three bean salad. Aaron called a 2 hour break and said he would lead a hike up to the ridge around 4 o'clock for those who were interested.

I puttered a bit but couldn't really relax so I took out one of the inflatable canoes and paddled around the lake. No fish in the pond, just insects and some steers grazing along the shore, clean clear water. Nancy sunbathed and Don went for a massage. So different from the stress of the first trip when there was no time for anything but survival and certainly no place to relax.

At 4pm Nancy, Aaron, Kate, Frank, Barry, Laura and I hiked 45 minutes up to Cerro Condor (Condor Ridge) where we were treated to incredible views. It felt great to lie down and soak in the sun for half an hour. We walked down at our own pace and headed straight for our bathing suits, a dip in the lake and a hot tub soak. Aaaahhhh... For Happy Hour the guides brought down tuna empanadas - delicious - and then we dressed and sat around the fire waiting for dinner.

We had spaghetti for dinner with apple cake for dessert and a chicken and vegetable soup for an appetizer. After dinner I hung around with the group for a while, but found my interest waning so I headed up to my tree house to write in my journal. Tomorrow we have the rock climbing and rappelling challenge back at Cave Camp. For me it is like reliving or confronting the fear I experienced when I was 16 years old and attending summer Outward Bound course in Minnesota. It was my first time rock climbing on belay and I was able to get half way up the cliff before I froze. I remember my muscles shaking as the minutes went by and I couldn't go up or down and could barely respond to the encouragement of the guides and my teammates. I don't remember how I finally got my butt up the cliff, but then I had to deal with a 200 foot free fall rappel. That was also a difficult experience because the equipment back then forced me to hold my weight on the line and the rope snuck up my back under my shirt and burned a stripe off my back as I let myself down. Nothing I could do but go.

The best part of the night was listening to the frogs doing their calls - two kinds of frogs. They were very loud when I went to bed around 9:30 pm, but quieted down through the night and would ebb and flow in swells of sound. Absolutely incredible.