Winter can be Wonderful

Winter has been going full-blast ever since we've returned from Aruba.   There aren't that many days below zero each winter in south-central Wisconsin, but we've had several of them in the past ten days.  There's also been snow, ice and wind.

None of those weather conditions bother Callie-dog.  She managed to get an upper respiratory infection at the kennel.  I think she just wasn't getting enough outdoor time.

This morning, hiking conditions were perfect.  We took advantage of the soft snow and temperatures into the 30's and drove over to Devil's Lake State Park.   I've hiked the Roznos Meadows Trail during the summer, but this is the first time that I've ever hiked it in the winter.

The first half of the trail is flat, yet provides a gorgeous view of the bluffs that I'm usually hiking up from the lake.  It's always fun to get a different perspective on things.

Julia was off to the races.

This is an in-and-out trail, connecting up with the Uplands Trail at the top of that ridge in the back.  The trail was lightly traveled.  Just a few people and no dogs.

Callie is completely recovered from her illness and ready for whatever comes her way.  We're already planning a spring trip west.

Aruba: Final Days

As I'm writing this post, we have returned to Wisconsin's frozen tundra. The change has been shocking.  Temperatures for us have dropped from 88F in Oranjestad to an expected -12F tonight.

During our last week in Aruba, Julia spent a lot of time sunning on the beach and snorkeling in the water.  I put in over ten miles a day walking, reading books, and relaxing in the shade.  We had some great meals at the apartment and one really good meal at an Italian restaurant in Eagle Beach.

Prawns over black ink pasta

Octopus, pasta, and Chianti

On our last night, we were total tourists.  We went on a pirate ship booze cruise.  For $30, the two hour sunset cruise included an open bar and encouragement to jump off the ship (after signing waivers).

Julia getting ready to jump

The average age on the boat was over 50, so there weren't a lot of volunteers to swing off the rope swing into the ocean.  I have previously mentioned that Julia is a strong swimmer, so she was all in.

I can swim if my life depended upon it, but it didn't. I did momentarily set my cocktail aside to take photos.

The trip home was uneventful.

Aruba is a very interesting place.  On the positive side, the weather is amazingly consistent.  It rarely rains.  The temperature was always in the mid to upper 80's during the day, and cooled off only into the upper 70's at night.  It never rained for more than a few minutes.  There seems to be very little crime. In general, the island is very clean. 

No mosquitoes were seen during our two weeks.  The water, which is obtained through desalination plants, is outstanding.  The dollar is freely accepted.  Almost everyone speaks English, although Spanish and Papiamento (Creole) are spoken also.  

Some tourists absolutely love Aruba for these reasons.  We met people who've been coming to Aruba every year for over fifteen years.   While we liked Aruba and are glad we visited, we would probably not return for the following reasons.

It's very expensive.  Very little is grown or made on the island, so almost everything has to be imported.  Super Foods, the grocery store near our second apartment, was easily one of the top three stores I've ever been in.  They had almost everything you could imagine, and it was very high quality.  There were meats and cheeses that I've only seen in Europe.  Again, it was very expensive.

Some of the resorts and hotel properties in Eagle Beach are just amazing and priced that way too. 

One of Julia's favorite properties was the RIO resort that we walked through often.  It's an all-inclusive with rates that start near $600/night.  

Aruba is hot and humid.  This is a desert island, but the humidity is pretty intense, being surrounded by ocean.  During the day, I was sweating without even moving very much.  We noticed locals would get out and walk right before sunrise or right after sunset.  There isn't much exercising going on during the day.   I'm good with hot and dry, but humidity is not my thing.

Unless you are eating or drinking, there isn't a ton to do besides lay on the beach.  For some folks, that's a perfect vacation.  A week wouldn't have been enough to experience Aruba.  By the end of two weeks, we felt like we had pretty much done the island. We will always remember the sunsets.

Aruba: Eagle Beach and Beyond

During our second week in Aruba, our home base has been a lovely but economical Airbnb that is much larger than our first one. It’s a true one bedroom apartment with full kitchen and is about a fifteen minute walk to the beach. It’s also a five minute walk to Super Foods, the best supermarket on the island.

We have been taking advantage by preparing breakfasts and dinners in the apartment: The local eggs are amazing with deep orange yolks: For local fish, we have prepared grouper, red snapper and amber jack. I cook, and Julia does dishes. No complaints here.

Most mornings and evenings, we take long walks from Eagle Beach to Palm Beach—about a five mile round trip. Mornings heat up fast into the mid eighties with fairly high humidity. Evenings are delicious with cooling breezes and beautiful sunsets.

One day, we took the bus to the north tip of the island. Walking on the east side, we experienced more of the “Wild Coast” with big waves and rocky shores.

This is our favorite rooftop bar to hide from the heat and enjoy generous happy hours.

We are winding down our trip. I will do a final wrap-up after we have returned to the frozen tundra.

Aruba: Two Hikes

I would not call Aruba a hiking destination. Outdoor activities focus on beaches and water sports. There are plenty of good places to walk. We are usually above 20,000 steps each day just walking along the downtown streets and the coastal walking paved paths. Finding wild places is another matter.

But there are a couple of hiking trails I can recommend.  One of the destinations is accessible by local bus (Arubabus—$5/round trip). We worked to get the photo below. Multiple ladders get you to the highest point in the historic Fort.

Mount Hooiberg: view from top of the Fort’s Bell Tower 

Our bus driver was kind to let us know where to get off and general directions, which involved about a mile walk alongside roads to the base of the small mountain.

It doesn’t look like much of a mountain. In truth, the hike is short—less than twenty minutes up and even faster down, However, what it lacks in length, the hike makes up in steepness. There are about 600 steps to the top

Going up is a great workout. Going down is a good test for 59 year old knees.

Mount Hooiberg was the warm-up for our seven mile hike at Arikok National Park. Unfortunately, accessing the National Park isn’t practical to do by local bus or taxi. We rented a small Toyota with a 1.1L engine for $55 for a day. It featured roll-up windows and manual locks. The drive was only about eight miles, but it took about a half hour to make the drive. The road required slowing down nearly to a stop to cross rocky drainage paths.

Admission is $11/person which goes towards conservation efforts. Most of the users of the park were using ATV’s to access the park’s features. The four wheeler trails are separate from the hiking trails, and there’s enough distance that noise wasn’t really an issue. We saw only two other hikers that day.

The trail we chose went to a natural Pool known locally as “Conchi.”  It’s about three miles each way with numerous side trail options to beaches and overlooks. There is no water available on the trail. I would recommend at least one liter. I would have drank two if available.  The conditions are hot, humid and dusty, along with lots of ups and downs on trails with loose rock.

The trail starts up along cactus and short thorny trees which one must duck to avoid.

After a long climb, the trail becomes fully exposed. The cactus and trees vanish, leaving sparse vegetation at ankle height.  The trail goes up and down the hills. Finally, we reach a view above the ocean. This area is known as the Wild Coast of Aruba.

When we crest another hill, we can see a herd of goats hanging out on the rocks at the edge of the sea.

There were goats all over both sides of the rock. I liked the perch of the goat below.

As we hiked below the goats’ hangout, a strong smell became unpleasantly stronger. Julia said it was the goat herd, but then we discovered a kind of goat graveyard with a couple of skeletons and at least one recent death. We’re not quite sure what was going on here, but we quickly left the area. This was a side hike, and we got back on the main trail.

From here, it was about another mile of ups and downs to the natural pool. When we first arrived, a bunch of atv riders were just getting out. After that, Julia had the pool to herself. Not being a strong swimmer, I enjoyed scrambling around the cliffs and cooled off with the ocean spray.

Eventually, more atv riders arrived, and we started the return hike. It seemed a lot hotter. The goats crossed our path once more.

Our water lasted until about a 1/2 mile before the end. After rehydrating at the Visitors Center, we drove back to town for a celebratory sunset dinner on our last night in Orangestad.

We are headed north on the island to another Airbnb near Eagle Beach. Let Julia’s sun-bathing begin in earnest. I’m sure I can find something to do.