439 - Grutas Tolantanga
We woke up outside Grutas Tolantanga around 7:30am, and were greeted by a line of cars at the entry. But it didn’t quite seem like the entry… It looked like some type of chaotic blockade. People were getting in and out of their cars, and smoke was blowing everywhere.
What the fuck…
I had absolutely no idea what was going on. Were we at the right place? Grutas Tolantanga, at least the place we had in mind, was supposed to be a world class hot springs destination. From the photos we’d seen, there were these clay tubs embedded on the side of a cliff with turquoise blue water. It quite literally looked like a fantasy novel.
As our van inched closer, a man suddenly appeared at our window and told us to get out of the car. He pointed us towards what looked like a metal detector, except it was spraying mist out. There was a line of people standing in front of it.
I think this place was supposed to be a COVID sanitization station we had to go through before we entered the hot springs. The dots started connecting. Then I saw a dude walking around with what looked like a leaf blower. Weird.
After I got sprayed down, I started walking back towards the van, only to find it literally smoking.
Apparently they had opened the van doors, took a fucking pressure sprayer, and torched the entire inside of the van with smoke. It was some type of anti-COVID spray.
Jesus Christ. I ran in to open a window in the back, and started coughing a lung out. Hopefully the shit wasn’t toxic. I had no idea what it was. And why in god’s name are they sanitizing the INSIDE of our vehicles?
We had only woken up minutes before this, and my half-asleep mind was questioning if we were in some type of cyber-futuristic reality or if this was real life.
The drive down to the hot springs was absolutely gorgeous. It’s on the side of a cliff in a canyon, so in order to get there, you descend down a windy road that overlooks a massive mountain range nearby.
It took about 15 minutes to get to the bottom.
Then we parked, packed our shit, and walked into the hot springs. It was basically completely empty. Here’s the overview shot I got:
“Blue Bubbles”
Taken on Sony a7rIII + Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8
[ISO 1000 ~ 17mm ~ f/8 ~ 1/250s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
That’s Haley who ran down to be the model for this scene. Hot girls, bikinis, and hot springs are simply meant for each other.
But it’s a good thing we got there early. Within three hours, those tubs got so full of people you couldn’t even fit in most of them. The place became a ZOO.
Sometimes I think the hardest part about adventure photography is balancing work/play. You’re constantly in exotic locations that (most) people go to for play, but you’re here to work and take photos. It’s a strange mindset to exist in because it’s a complete contradiction. I personally think the best way to balance it is to get solid photos first, THEN enjoy the scene. After that, take MORE photos if you feel you missed a certain aspect from the first glance.
This was the case for us when, after hanging out in the hot springs for a few hours, we learned there was another half of the park we hadn’t even known existed.
We just happened to be browsing the area on Google Maps, and saw some interesting waterfalls down the road in the park grounds. I wasn’t expecting much, but I brought my camera anyway.
And I’m glad I did. Look at this madness we found:
“Little House Under the Falls”
Taken on Sony a7rIII + Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8
[ISO 50 ~ 22mm ~ f/16 ~ .6s]
(Want a Print? Get one here.)
These weren’t no skimpy waterfalls. These things were ABSOLUTE BEHEMOTHS. How did we almost completely miss this? This might be my favorite waterfall shot of the YEAR.
And fun fact… That waterfall was warm from volcanic activity below it… It’s what fueled those hot springs in the first shot.
I also managed to cut the entire “tourist scene” out of this photo. Directly below the falls to the right is a hot springs cave with 100+ people in. You can go under the waterfall to get into it.
It’s crazy how a proper crop can make a scene go from “pure tourist destination” to “jungle bliss” in a couple seconds. I always like to say photography is about remembering the best parts of a scene, not the ENTIRE scene. Never underestimate the power of a crop.
I think that’s about all I got for this shoot. This place was absolutely breathtaking.
Oh wait, there’s one more cool part here I forgot to mention. To the left of the shack in that photo, there was a pitch black tunnel you could walk in. Within it, water is flowing on the ground, it’s about as hot as a sauna, and there’s water falling from the ceiling. At several points in the cave, you have to swim through neck deep water to continue. We got about 100 feet down the tunnel before we decided to turn back because we didn’t have a flashlight, and it was getting slightly sketchy.
Claustrophobia, darkness, steamy heat, and running water all around you can make the mind go to some weird places. But I’m always going to wonder what was at the end of that tunnel. Who would have thought I’d need a waterproof flashlight though?
Anyway, that’s it for this shoot.
Peaceeeeeee.
I’m on a mission to explore as much as humanely possible.
Want to see my progress? Check out the Adventure Map.
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