For many visitors, Puerto Rico is a great place to go sedentary. Ensconce yourself in a luxury resort, lie on a beach all day, generate enough energy to toss the dice at the craps table or do a little disco boogie at night and then slip into some crisp, cool linens to sleep. Repeat seven days in a row.
Not for me. I'm in search of adventure -- the more macho, the better. I want to push the envelope, feel the burn, push out new chest hairs like the vines growing in El Yunque. To hell with creature comforts; give me excitement!
BIRD MAN -- We wind our way up routes 185 and 186 near Cubuy, in the foothills of the Sierra De Luquillo mountains just on the southwest side of El Yunque. Our destination: a launch point at 1,740 feet/522 meters above sea level.
Bob Hastings and Keishya (KEE-sha) Salko, two New England transplants with some 18 years of flying experience between them, launched Team Spirit Hang Gliding in 1997 and have maintained a "soaring" business ever since.
Bob gives the call, and off we go. It's been about 15 years since I last flew or parachuted, and I have forgotten the rush of flight. I keep looking at Bob with a huge grin, shaking my head and yelling, "Ohhhh, man, this is far out!"
Our landing? Well, Bob said it was his fault we were less than graceful on touchdown, but I know better. But, like they always say, any walk-away is a good one.
CAVE MAN -- At the top of a cliff and not even breathing hard, our guide, Roberto Miranda sets up a rappel line down a 50-foot/15-meter cliff. Hooked and harnessed, I step off and make my way slowly down the cliff face, finally dropping into the icy waters of the Rio Grande de Cumuy River. After unhooking, I yell, "Clear!" and swim to a small ledge to await my companions.
Once at the cave entrance, we scramble up a natural thick-mud dam and turn on our helmet lights as we wind deeper into the cave. It pinches down to crawling-on-your-belly height -- "You aren't claustrophobic?" asks Roberto -- before opening up into a huge room with a domed ceiling. Roberto tells us the name of the room, but we dub it the Cathedral.
We explore some more, getting into some really tight passages in a section called Swiss Cheese before calling it a day. We climb back down to the river and float out to the cave's entrance.
It's a day that ranks pretty high on the manly scale.
AQUA MAN -- For some reason, Puerto Rico has been largely overlooked as a major dive destination. Considering the incredible diversity of its dive sites, that's a pity. We head southwest out of San Juan to the town of Guanica to our destination, the Copamarina Resort, home to Dive Copamarina.
In short order, Capt. Jim Harmon and instructor Chuck Rew have us on a boat riding out to the Parguera Wall and a site called Hole-in-the-Wall. A beautiful slot canyon starts at a depth of about 50 feet/15 meters, and we drop in and cruise to the face of the wall, holding a 90-foot/27-meter depth limit. The reef drops to about 130 feet/39 meters, then slopes to about 150 feet/45 meters before sinking into the drop-off which descends to 300 feet/90 meters.
While big fish aren't a normal feature in Puerto Rican diving, the smaller fish biomass is plentiful, and there are some seriously large green morays in the wall. And the wall itself is one of the healthiest and most beautiful I've seen in the Caribbean. It's also one of the Caribbean's longest, extending some 75 miles/120 kilometers to 100 miles/ 160 kilometers.
Night diving is also popular here, both because of the wall's wildlife and the natural phosphorescent phenomenon. But I missed the chance in favor of a wonderful meal at the resort's restaurant, Wilo's Place. This macho stuff only goes so far.
MOUNTAIN MAN -- In the mountains hiking is a way of life for many locals, so they may not understand the "sport" aspect of hiking. But if you'd like a taste, one of the best areas to do some leg stretching is in the Caribbean National Forest, more commonly referred to as El Yunque.
The only tropical rain forest in the U.S. national forest system, Puerto Rico's mountainous park is home to the indigenous Puerto Rican parrot (there are thought to be only about four dozen left), more than 240 tree species and over 1,000 plant species, including more than 50 types of orchids. The park's 28,000 acres/11,200 hectares contain elevations ranging from 100 feet/30 meters to over 3,500 feet/1,050 meters. And it really is a rain forest: Some areas receive more than 200 inches/508 centimeters of rainfall annually, producing an estimated billion gallons of water.
There are 13 maintained trails, some paved, in the park, providing approximately 13 miles/21 kilometers of hiking. But there are primitive trails as well, some with wet and slippery rocks and steep ascents. Total trail mileage is around 27 miles/43.2 kilometers.
SURFER DUDE -- Finally, I get to hit surfing's Hawaii East. Unfortunately, the rainy front that hung over the island the week I was playing macho-man flattened out the waves. Bummer.
While you can hit the surf almost anywhere, given the proper swell direction, Surf Central is the northwestern and northern coasts.
There's certainly no lack of surf beaches on Puerto Rico: Rincsn, Jobos and the whole coast near Aguadilla. Check out the Borinquin golf course and the Spanish ruins, then head east back to San Juan. Surf, surf and more surf. There's even a secret big-wave spot called Chatarra out behind the airport, claimed by the locals to be definite helmet territory similar to Hawaii's famed Banzai Pipeline. They say there's a triple wave called LaSelva on the northeast coast that requires a long walk and a place called Inches on the south coast that has ... ah, never mind. It's the usual lament: We shoulda been there yesterday.
So I didn't get to hang 10 -- only a minor disappointment, though, in a week when I burned some calories, placed myself in a few out-of-the-ordinary situations and came face to face with Puerto Rico's natural beauty and perhaps just a bit of danger.
All in all, a muy relaxing and macho way to spend a week.
Posted online 08/01/98.
