Fun, Flowers and Friends
Celebrating our friend Heidi’s Birthday by exploring Lares and a variety of Haciendas!
Hacienda Lealtad
Hacienda Los Eucaliptos
Hacienda Pons
Mirador Mariana Bracetti
Lares from above
Hacienda Pons
Festival de la China Dulce -Las Marias
Festival de la China
More around the farm and our area
February used to be my least favorite month of the year when we lived in Colorado. It was so cold and there were no real festivities to brighten spirits. On the other hand, here in Puerto Rico, it is one of my favorites. The humidity drops and it is so pleasant to be outside working in the gardens.
We also had a visit from Britton’s sister Torrie and her friend so we did some touristy things with them including going to one of our favorite spots in Aguadilla: Borinquen Beach and the area around there (Lighthouse Ruins, Wilderness, etc). We also ran into a wild pig that started out friendly but got pretty aggressive and actually attacked and hurt another tourist pretty bad later on. We also stopped by the drum circle that meets up each first Friday of the month.
We also took a boat trip to La Parguera in Lajas where we rented our own boat and went to some of the lesser known keys. It was a lot of fun until I had a freak accident climbing a mangrove tree. Of all the crazy things I do, I didn’t think I would break my arm climbing a tree 3 feet above water. My arm was wrapped around the back side of the branch and when I tried to catch myself midfall I heard a crack. I really hoped it was just the tree creaking and not me. We went on with the day and even though I was in pain, I just tried to convince myself it was a sprain. The next day we went to the emergency room in Rincon and with an Xray I found out it was indeed broken. I was bummed and had to be in a two different casts for a total of 6 weeks.
Because of my injury we couldn’t go out and do as many adventurous things, so we stayed a little closer to home for a while. We did visit the new trail they opened at Tres Palmas Reserve as well as the celebration at Almendros Beach where the pool was stopped from being built.
We took a fun trip to Hatillo and the Gran Parque del Norte! Lots of great photo ops!
Otherwise, during the month of February we enjoyed our time on the farm and with friends.
One of my favorite flowers! Carolina or Shaving Brush flower -Pseudobombax
We love Cabo Rojo and especially this area by the lighthouse. We spent a day at the pink salt flats and Playa Sucia dressed as Mama Shark and Baby Shark!
Later this month we took a trip to the deep mountains of Orocovis, one of the highest altitude cities in Puerto Rico. Here we stayed at a little house that had a waterfall in the backyard! We had a great time playing in the river even though it was super chilly water since it can get much colder high in the mountains especially in January. We also climbed a mountain called Cerro Mime which is named that because of all the gnat flies at the top. But what an incredible view!! We also took a looong hike in the rain through the Toro Negro forest to the tiny little tower at the top.
Closer to home we finished an adventure we had started back in August 2021. We returned to Charco Carmelas in San Sebastian with some friends to walk up the river and find the twin falls! This is quite an adventure as you have to swim through canyons and walk literally in the river to reach the end point where there are two waterfalls side by side. The river was a little dry compared to when we first found the river in August, but it was still super beautiful!
We spent some time at home at the farm planting and harvesting flowers and fruit, at the beach with friends and other spots in our daily life routine. We also went to a funeral of a good friend and neighbor which was heartbreaking.
We recently took our first family trip to Old San Juan and El Yunque. We stopped in Santurce/Condado area and had lunch at a Korean BBQ place. It had been a year or so since I’d been to Old San Juan and over 10 years for Britton! We went with our friends from Quebradillas, Heidi and her family. We walked around and saw most of the sights that were open. It’s such a cool and historic area! We stayed the night so that we wouldn’t be rushed to get back and so we could explore the next day!
We didn’t get to use the pool at the Airbnb we stayed at much, but we did hop in!
El Morro on our Honeymoon and Now -Same spot years later!
Not the same garita, but the same idea haha
We also got to visit El Yunque. They have a reservation system that’s pretty easy. It’s $2 per car, but they sell fast on the weekends so make sure to snag them up. If they don’t have any available, just visit the south side of El Yunque where there are no reservations required. We saw La Coca Falls, Yokahu tower, Mt Britton and Tower (we love the name haha), the Bano Grande and more. It is just so beautiful! Afterward we had a nice dinner at an amusement park style place called Carabail.
*A special thanks to Heidi Aviles and Tom and Ellen Schuble for many of the photos in this post
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