From Rail Skate to Slip and Slide

December 26, 2008: It was raining very hard Friday morning, but we weren't about to let that stop us from the adventures we had planned. From day one President and Sister Smith talked about the "Rail Skate." They would say, "We've got to go ride the Rail Skate!" Do you know what a Rail Skate is? Neither did we!!!

This is a Rail Skate!

The Rail Skate rides the rails (rail road tracks) and is powered by a motor. I'm not sure how the contraption stays on the rails or how it works, but we were about to find out.

Amy, Sister Smith, and I took the front seat on the Rail Skate. There were no seat belts, no lap bars, and nothing to hang on to. Would we need such things?

And what happens when another Rail Skate is coming from the other direction?

I think most people who ride the Rail Skate do so to get from one place to another. Us crazy Americans were just going along for the ride. Want to join us?

The Rail Skate was a lot of fun. Have you ever ridden Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland where the train runs crazy out of control? Well, besides the ups and downs, that's kind of what the Rail Skate was like, only there was nothing to keep us in our seats!

Friday afternoon we went to Consocep Falls to see a waterfall. It was raining pretty hard! We needed our umbrellas and I even put on my jacket.

The steps were covered with moss and VERY "slippery when wet!"

The hike was beautiful, but treacherous! We were slipping and sliding all over the place. It's a good thing there were hand rails, and I'm glad I had my hand on one. Otherwise, when I slid off this step, I may have ended up at the bottom of the stairs. Ouch!

This is where I slipped!

My leg all scrathed up! Ouch!

See the small waterfall in the background? Amy decided to take a swim! What was she thinking?!?

And it was COLD!!! Don't you love that face?

We found a cool tree house where we ate lunch. It was nice and relaxing and we had a beautiful view of the rain forest. It's amazing how many different kinds of plants we could see.

It stopped raining and warmed up a little, but since the steps were still so slick, we didn't hike all the way to the falls. Better safe than sorry! The decision to not go all the way to the falls was made after President Smith slipped and fell and sprained his wrist. Like I said, it was slick!!!


We then found another beach! More beautiful scenery!

With the stormy weather, the waves were roaring in! Can you see Amy's head in the middle of the picture? Since she was already in her swimsuit, she's the only one that fought the waves.

President Smith sporting his new ace bandage.