Ua lilo ka wailele nui he 120 mau mika, kahi nani kupaianaha a me ka hihiʻo o loko o ke kahawai i kahaha maoli.
Me he mea lā aia mākou i kahi ʻanuʻu ma waena o ka pākū o ke awāwa, a i lalo mākou ʻike i ka hāʻule ʻana i kahi wai nui.
Ma waena o nā pailaka o ka Sierra Madre i lohe ʻia e pili ana i ka loaʻa ʻana o kahi wailele nui ma Durango. Ua loaʻa koke kuʻu hoaaloha ʻo Walther Bishop i kekahi o lākou, ʻo Javier Betancourt, ka mea i hāʻawi ʻole iā mākou i kahi, akā ua hāʻawi ʻia e ʻae mākou e lele ma luna o laila. Loaʻa iā mākou ka manawa kūpono i Iulai 2000. Ma lalo o hoʻokahi hola aia mākou ma ka Quebrada de Piaxtla. He mea kupaianaha ka ʻike ʻana i ke kahawai. Mai kahi pā nui i uhi ʻia e ka ululāʻau, puka mai kahi kahawai hohonu. Ua komo ka muliwai i loko o ke awawa pōhaku. Kupaianaha ka pae kiʻekiʻe. I hoʻokahi manawa ua kuhikuhi ʻo Javier i kahi kiko iā mākou ma ka muliwai a ʻike mākou i ʻelua mau wailele nui he mau haneli mau mika ke kaʻawale. Ua pōʻai mākou i nā wailele i nā manawa he nui a hoʻi mākou.
I kekahi lā aʻe haʻalele mākou i ka ʻāina i ke awāwa. Makemake mākou e ʻimi i nā wailele. Ma Miravalles, kahi e hoʻomaka ai ke kahawai, hoʻokumu mākou i kā mākou kumu. He kūlanakauhale ʻuhane kokoke ia i ka muliwai ʻo Piaxtla i pau i ka make me ka wili. Ua puni ka wahi i kahi ululāʻau coniferous pālahalaha e hoʻonohonoho i nā wahi kupaianaha kahi e holo ai ka muliwai.
ʻO Don Esteban Quintero wale nō ke alakaʻi i loaʻa iā mākou, ʻoiai ʻaʻohe mea e makemake e komo i ke awāwa ma muli o ka hiki ʻole ke hele. I ka lā aʻe ua wehe mākou i ke āpau iā Potrero de Vacas. Hele mākou i loko o nā auwai, nā alahaka, nā pōhaku a me nā kumulāʻau hāʻule no ʻelua mau hola a kū ma kahi mahi holoholona i haʻalele ʻia i ka lihi o ke awāwa. Aia ʻo Potrero de Vacas i ka hapalua o ke awāwa a hiki wale aku i ka wāwae. Ke hoʻokau nei ke awāwa, maliʻa paha ma kēia ʻāpana e ʻoi aku ia ma mua o hoʻokahi kaukani mika ka hohonu, a kū pono i luna. Nānā aku mākou ma luna o kekahi mau wahi kuanaʻike a iho iki i lalo, a ʻike mākou i ka muliwai canyoned.
"Aia nā wailele," i haʻi mai ai ʻo Don Esteban iā mākou, e kuhikuhi ana i kahi kiko ma lalo. Eia naʻe, ʻaʻole i ʻike ʻia nā wailele, no laila pono e hoʻomau. Ua hoʻomau ʻo Walther lāua ʻo Don Esteban, ua noho wau ma nā wahi kuanaʻike e kiʻi ai i nā kiʻi o ka ʻāina. I ka hola ʻekolu a me ka hapalua ua hoʻi lāua. ʻOiai ʻaʻole hiki iā lākou ke kiʻi i nā wailele, ua ʻike lākou iā lākou mai kahi mamao. ʻO ka mea a lākou e nānā pono ai ka wailele ma luna, ua ukali ʻo Walther iā ia e helu ana i kahi kulu 100 m. ʻO ka lua, ka nui nui, ʻike wale lākou i ka ʻaoʻao luna. E hoʻi mākou me ka poʻe a me nā pono hana e hoʻoiho a ana iā lākou.
MAKAHIKI MAKAHI MAKAHIKI
Ma Malaki 18, 2001, ua hoʻi mākou. ʻO Don Esteban ke alakaʻi hou no mākou, ua loaʻa iā ia he mau hoki ʻelua e hali i nā pono āpau. E komo pū lākou i ka huakaʻi; ʻO Manu Casanova lāua ʻo Javier Vargas, mai ka UNAM Mountaineering Group; ʻO Denisse Carpinteiro, ʻo Walther Bishop Jr., ʻo José Luis González, ʻo Miguel Ángel Flores, ʻo José Carrillo, ʻo Dan Koeppel, ʻo Steve Casimiro (ʻelua mai National Geographic) a ʻo ia nō hoʻi, ʻo Walther me aʻu iho.
Ua maikaʻi ʻole ke ala mai Miravalles a hana mākou i ʻekolu mau hola i ka mahiʻai i haʻalele ʻia, ma ka lihi o ka Quebrada de Piaxtla. Hoʻomākaukau mākou i nā pono hana a me nā meaʻai, a hoʻouka i nā hoki. Ma ka hora 4:30 p. ua hoʻomaka mākou i ka iho, ke ʻike mau nei i nā ʻike kupanaha o ke awāwa. I ka hola 6 o ke ahiahi. ua hōʻea mākou i lalo, a i ke kapakai ponoʻī o ka muliwai ʻo Piaxtla, kahi i hoʻokumu ai i ko mākou wahi hoʻomoana ma waenakonu o kahi one. Maikaʻi loa ka pūnaewele no ka hoʻomoana. Ma kahi o 500 m ka kahawai ka wailele mua. Ma kēia ʻāpana o ka huakaʻi, ua hoʻopaʻa ʻia ka muliwai iā ia iho, e hana ana i ʻelua mau wailele liʻiliʻi, ʻo ka nui loa ma kahi o ʻumi mau mika, me ka hoʻohui ʻia i nā luawai a me nā ipu i kālai maikaʻi ʻia i ka pōhaku o ka muliwai.
Ma Malaki 19 ua ala mākou i kakahiaka nui a hoʻomākaukau i nā kaula no ka hoʻouka kaua. ʻAʻole hiki i nā hoki ke hele i ke ala i nā wailele, hāpai mākou āpau i nā kaula uila a hele wāwae ma kahi ala, e wehe ana i ke ala me kahi machete. Ma o ʻaneʻi hiki iā ʻoe ke hele wāwae a i ka piko o ka lele mua wale nō, a laila kiko loa ka muliwai a hiki wale i ka rappel ke hoʻomau. I koʻu hōʻea ʻana aku, ua loaʻa mua ʻo Javier i kahi kiko e iho ai a mākaʻikaʻi iki i ka panorama ma lalo o ka wailele. Mai laila ua ʻike mākou i ka luawai wailele liʻiliʻi a ʻaʻole ʻoi aku kona hāʻule ma mua o 60 m, ʻoi aku ka liʻiliʻi ma mua o kā mākou helu ʻana. I ke kū pololei ʻana o ke kaula uea i kahi kiʻo wai nui, ua nānā mākou i kahi kiko ʻē aʻe. Loaʻa mākou i kahi mea maʻalahi kahi i hoʻopā ʻole ai mākou i ka wai. ʻO ka iho ʻana ma kahi o 70 m o ka hāʻule. Mai lalo mai o ka wailele liʻiliʻi e nānā kupanaha a me kāna loko wai nui. Hele mākou i 150 m ma hope o ka lele a hiki mākou i ka wailele nui. I kēia huakaʻi, ua holomua lākou i ka lele ʻana ma waena o nā pōhaku nui, nā loko wai a me nā mea kanu, puni ʻia e nā paia o ke awāwa e piʻi aʻe ana i ka pau ʻole.
I ko mākou hiki ʻana i ka wailele nui ua hōʻike ʻia mākou i kahi hanana kū hoʻokahi. ʻOiai ʻaʻole nui ka lele e like me kā mākou i manaʻo ai, ʻoiai ua like ia me 120 m wale nō, me he mea lā aia mākou i kahi ʻanuʻu ma waena o ka pākī o ke awāwa, a i lalo ua ʻike mākou i ka lele ʻana i kahi wai nui a mai laila aku ua hoʻomau ka muliwai e ukali ana i kāna papa ma waena o nā wailele ʻē aʻe, nā wailele a me nā loko. I mua o mākou ua loaʻa nā paia pōhaku o ke awāwa a hāʻawi ʻia i kahi moʻo o nā māwae i ka manaʻo o ka ukali ʻana i ke kaʻina o nā gorges.
Aia mākou i loko o ka pahu hanohano, me ka hoʻohui, ʻo mākou nā kānaka mua i hehi i kēia pūnaewele. Ua pūliki mākou a hoʻomaikaʻi pū kekahi i kekahi, hoʻomanaʻo mākou i ka nui o nā poʻe i kākoʻo iā mākou i kēia moeʻuhane, a he nui paha ka poʻe i ʻike he pupule, akā naʻe hāʻawi lākou i ko lākou hilinaʻi iā mākou. Ua hoʻokau mākou i ʻelua 50 m kaula i lalo a mākou i iho ai a hana i kahi kaʻina kiʻi o kēia wailele. Kūleʻa mākou no ka manawa lōʻihi, leʻaleʻa i ka hiʻona. ʻAʻole mākou i iho i lalo akā lawa e ana i ka wailele. Ua hoʻopaʻa mākou i ʻelua mau wailele hou ʻike ʻole ʻia no kā mākou hōʻiliʻili o nā mea kupaianaha i ʻike ʻia.
I ka lā aʻe, ma hope o ka hōʻiliʻili ʻana i nā kaula mai nā wailele ʻelua, hoʻonohonoho mākou i kahi hoʻomoana a hoʻomaka i ka piʻi lohi i Potrero de Vacas. He ʻelua hola ia o ka piʻina, me nā ʻike nani o ke awāwa ma hope o mākou.
Puna: Un Mexico Mexico # 302 / ʻApelila 2002
