We docked at Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil at noon and were leaving at 7:00pm, and my excursion is scheduled to last over six hours. We needed to hurry.

I’ve complained about bus travel time in this blog, and it’s an hour ride to Taim Ecological Reserve. But I understand why, you can’t have a wildlife reserve right next to a commercial port. Our bus guide explained how the area was very dry due to a drought of several months. So, you what happened when we arrived, right? Boom, thunderstorm. It rained so hard all the buildings lost power, so no lights or A/C. We were supposed to take a nature hike to the reserve center, but this messed things up.

We drove to the center instead and had snacks. When the weather cleared we hiked a bit down the road and found capybara in the fields. They are the largest rodent in the world and look like giant 150-pound (75 kg) guinea pigs. Then we walked another few meters and found many in the river, much closer to us. The mother and baby got the kind of attention you’d expect.

We drove about 10 minutes for a deeper hike. I knew to be worried when they forced us to wear some kind of lower leg guards. I felt like an ice hockey goalie.

I understood one we got into the bush, as there were many plants with stickers and barbs. It was a mix of desert and rain forest. I have never seen cactus covered in moss before.

The goal of our hike was a fig tree. An 800-YEAR-OLD fig tree. It was gigantic. Other trees surrounded it, and we weren’t allowed off the path, so I can’t get a full picture. But here is a merged panorama shot from the ground to as high as my back could bend.

Here is a view thru the branches. This tree is right out of a movie.