Here in the Joshua program, our form of communication is rather odd. Rather than talking with each other like any typical society we prefer the occasional holler or yell or even scream. So having the opportunity to do something as a community like white-water rafting was the perfect outlet for our class’ needs. Breakfast began at 8am and by 9 we were in the busses and off to the river. Five Dominican minutes later (20 minutes American minutes) we had arrived at our destination. After unloading the rafts and walking down to the river, we divided into groups and practiced our rowing techniques on land. Walking into the river gave us a new appreciation for the warm Dominican sun and was the start to our journey down the surprisingly cold river.
Our team consisted of Master Caleb, Caleb Junior, Kapri, Kelly, Tanner and Drew. We were the dream team, and to top that off we had the best guide of them all. The water was flowing strong due to all the heavy rain that had happened in days previous. Soon after starting our adventure I fell in. I fell in slow motion off the boat while watching my friends laughing. Luckily I wasn’t the only one who fell out of the boat that day. Our media commander Caleb Gaskins also took a dive under a waterfall. We went down Mike Tyson Falls, which is a five-foot plunge that on a boat is a lot more terrifying then you would imagine. It was sick though. At the same time as we were having our adventure in the river there was another group hiking to a waterfall.
The hiking group consisted of eight Joshua students and four SI staff. The hiking trip began with a short drive of thirty minutes through the city. As we began to drive up the mountain everything became more and more beautiful. We arrived at our destination and got out of our van to see the amazing beauty of God’s glorious creation. Everyone was extremely excited to go on this hike. The hike itself was a very short hike, and it was more beautiful than I could have ever imagined. On our way down the hike all of our expectations were crushed by the unimaginable vastness of the creation around us. When we got to the bottom of the trail we saw an amazing view of a wonderful waterfall.
Looking at this powerful waterfall we were reminded of the glory of God and how we only get a small glimpse of His true glory. Imagine the waterfall is all of God’s glory, and the mist and ripples in the water are affects of this. We got to feel and see what that was like in all of our lives. After spending a while contemplating these thoughts, we went around and started exploring the area. The cliffs on every side of the area we were standing were amazing. If you could imagine the movie Tarzan that was basically what it looked like. The water was very cold and the mist coming from the waterfall was even colder. Aside from the cold, it was one of the most amazing parts of this Dominican Republic trip. Not to take away from the mission aspect of why we are here in any way.
Later that afternoon, we traveled into town. We were grateful to witness the richness of Dominican culture in the city of Jarabacoa. Around six, the class regrouped and was treated to dinner and dessert at an excellent restaurant. Needless to say, our Saturday was quite the adventure.
DR – Day 6 from Joshua Wilderness Institute on Vimeo.