Picos National Park

July 3, 2018: Today we set an alarm and woke up early to go hiking. The window for good weather was small so we wanted to take advantage of it. We left our hotel around 7:20 and we were out of the car looking for the trailhead in the town of Poncebos by 7:45am. We wandered around a little bit as there was no one around. We hiked up the street and found the trailhead for the "Ruta del Cares". This is an out and back hike on a narrow path carved into the side of a cliff going along a gorge. There is an aquaduct that runs from the town of Cain to Poncebos. In the early 1900's the workers made this path to be able to work on the aquaduct. We commented that this would never be allowed in a US National Park as there are no railings or anything to keep you from falling to your death. It started out with a big climb but was then flat. We walked for about 2 1/2 hours before turning around. Once we turned around and got half way back it was jam packed with hikers. We were so glad we set out early. We ran into mountain goats, enjoyed the views and tunnels carved into the rock and threw stones way down into the river. We loved figuring out the aquaduct and wished we could get in a tube and float down the mountain in it. The water was crystal clear and very cold. Weirdly, it reminded me of a ride at Disney. It was so perfect I expected the next empty log flume cart to come by so we could hop in. We hiked for about 5 1/2 hours total including snack breaks. After the hike we got in the car and headed East. We stopped in the town of Laredo to give the kids a break, just on a whim. We found a beach and it was amazing. The beach was huge and totally deserted. The kids and James swam and we played around for at least an hour. Everyone got a little sunburned. We got some food at the supermarket. The kids finally tried churros and chocolate (like a very thick and rich hot chocolate you dip the churro in). We pushed on and into France. The kids are exhausted and so are we. It was a great day, but we are pooped!