Iguazu Falls- Argentina and Brazil

Breath-taking, magnificent, spectacular! These waterfalls have unbelievable settings within two National Parks along the Iguazu River, one on the Brazilian side, the other on the Argentine side. We spent two days touring and trekking these parks and had some of the best times on our trip so far. (Editorial note: I really like hiking, just not death-defying ones). Also, the weather was gorgeous which added to the beauty and awe-inspiring vistas that we saw.

First the waterfalls- there are over 300 of them. In size, some are a third taller than Niagara Falls and the double and triple-decker falls are breath-taking. As well, they go on for about 3 kilometres. Take a look:

I wanted to also highlight the parks themselves. They are both quite large and meticulously maintained although Argentina has the advantage of bigger size and layout. The trails are well-engineered and give you easy access to several kilometres of pathway into the jungle/ rainforest which is geographically where we are. On the Argentine side, when you enter the park, you have a 15 minute train ride to get to the base of the falls. Then, there are several kilometres of walks/ treks along dozens of beautiful falls. Most of the walkways are on steel walkways which go on for kilometres. On the Brazil side, on entering their national park, you take a double decker bus for 11 kilometres to the base of their falls, then options on several treks to see their falls. Some pictures of waterfalls on the Brazil side:

A little tidbit of information, combining these two parks, there are over 300 species of butterflies. Their season is normally June and July but for some reason, they were very bountiful in April, which is considered the fall season. There were so many butterflies that you'd be walking along and several would be jumping on and off you. Here are some that we saw:

The parks are also home to hundreds of bird species but you have to be up early to see most of them. Cathy and I are not 'early' people so we can't boast that we saw a lot. That said, we were able to see several Plush-crested Jays:

This bird is very people-friendly and can land on your hand if you have some food. 

Speaking of food, Argentina and Brazil have a bad-ass animal called a Quatis, which I would compare to our racoons:

They appear human friendly and are seen around restaurants begging for food. But you're warned- and there are signs- not to feed them because they don't differentiate between food on the ground and a hand that might have food attached to it.