The town of Tamanique is just a 30 minute drive from El Tunco (Surf City, El Salvador) visiting the waterfalls is almost a full-day endeavor, thanks to the long hike between the town and the falls. I'm not complaining— the views were unbelievable (and the weather even better...it was hot and that's the way I like my hikes!) My aunt parked in town and from there we all headed to the trailhead.
The trail is not well marked so its best to hire a guide, while not required, however its recommended as you will pass through private property. It's only $5 to enter the park and hiring a guide helps the local economy ( I believe we paid $10/pp to enter & for the guide). There are 4 waterfalls in total and we decided to go to the highest one (basically the longest hike).
I didn't really keep track of my time but the hike took about an hour (one way) passing through really beautiful rainforest-like areas. There were eight of us in our group, but in the end only 6 of us made it to the falls. The hike was too steep for my mom & aunt and they didn't have the proper shoes. There are sections of the hike where its very rocky, steep and it got slippery as you get closer towards the falls. This hike was the perfect way to spend the late morning/early afternoon for me. It was so peaceful and I just loved seeing and smelling the scenery around us. As we started to get closer towards the falls, I was awestruck at how much the views reminded me of The Narrows at Zion national park. We had reached Waterfall #4 and it was absolutely stunning! The water felt amazing, there was a larger group of people chilling and swimming. My cousin and her friends decided to go in for a swim while Scott and I decided to go check out the other falls in the area. Oh my goodness where they amazing. The water was so clean and refreshing and I was so happy to see that the people are doing a great job at keeping this amazing place clean and litter-free. The hike back was very steep but when we met up with my mom & aunt, they had ordered us lunch at this little restaurant right by the entrance of the trailhead. Despite the heat, we had chicken soap, which really hit the spot. It was fresh and tasted simply amazing...I'm looking forward to going back to El Salvador and hiking more amazing places. Growing up there, the war dominated the news for years, and when that ended, it was the gang violence that was tearing the country apart. Now, thanks to a new progressive president that is making radical changes in the country (in a good way) tourism is finally making a comeback. It is safe to walk the streets in these small towns and the locals are happy to show foreigners what they have to offer. I have a long list of hikes that I plan to do in El Salvador in the coming years. I cannot wait to finally be able to explore the country where I was born and grew up in and share it with friends and family who aren't from there so they can also see just how beautiful it is. So in retrospect, Tamanique Falls was the perfect hike to spend with my family and that was the most memorable part of this hike aside from the amazing scenery.
The park that is on the way towards the falls.
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