After many days of lounging on beaches and strolling through historical sites and wildlife reserves, the time had come for some adventure! For our second stop in Aruba, we decided to explore the island’s rugged north coast by ATV.
We met our taxi driver just outside the pier, and soon we found ourselves at Rancho Notorious, an outfit specializing in horseback riding tours, that apparently also offers the mechanical variety. It was a funky place, with creepy taxidermy on the walls.
I expected we would be part of a large group of ATV riders, but it was just the 4 of us and our guide, Jason. After getting our helmets and signing our waivers, we were ready to go – Danielle & I each taking one of the kids on the back of our machines, with Jason leading the way.
Jason noticed that one of the front tires on Danielle’s ATV was a little low, so he said we’d need to make a little detour to get it filled. He then proceeded to lead us on a high-speed trip back to town (in traffic), to a gas station that must’ve been about 5 miles away. Not exactly what we signed up for. To top it off, when we arrived at the gas station, the air hose was broken. We decided the tire was manageable & continued anyway.
When we finally got off-road, the trip got much better. Aruba’s north coast is pretty spectacular, with waves pounding the rocky coast and a landscape reminiscent of old westerns.
Almost everywhere, people have stacked the rocks into little piles – surreal.
Our first stop was the natural bridge, which was mostly collapsed by a hurricane a few years ago. Still scenic, though.
At this point, Danielle & I decided to switch ATVs, so I could drive the one with the low tire.
Then we headed up the coast, with Hannah & I doing our best to keep up with Jason and Danielle & Ray bringing up the rear. There are no roads, just a series of rocky paths and trails. We occasionally came across other groups of ATVers or horseback riders, along with some people in rented jeeps, but mostly it was deserted.
We stopped at an abandoned gold mine – apparently the only ruins this island has to offer.
And we visited one of the oldest churches in the Caribbean (ca. 1503), all restored and painted to look like it had just been built. The kids seemed to enjoy the peace labyrinth.
The real fun was the ride itself, though – speeding through the badlands as lizards dart across the trail in front of us, navigating tricky slopes, marveling at the scenery. Sure, there were some scary moments, but the risk of death or severe injury definitely keeps things exciting. 
I could tell Hannah was beginning to enjoy it when she stopped saying “Ow!” every time we hit a bump, but I’m not sure Danielle was having that much fun – sometimes we had to wait for her to catch up. (and I’m pretty sure she fell off at one point) She never complained, though – such a trooper!
Our last stop was the California Lighthouse at the western tip of the island, where we grabbed a drink at the bar and rested our rattled bones.
We were all dusty, bruised and tired at this point, so it was a relief to hear that the remaining trip back to the ranch would be on paved roads.
I’m sure I’ll never be able to convince Danielle & the kids to go on another ATV ride, but it was fun to do something more adventurous for a change. We all got to enjoy the thrill of surviving the trip relatively unscathed.
{ 3 comments }
Ok, THAT was fun!. I wish I could see more travel shows about that kind of thing. Better yet I wish I could be there!
That did look like fun. The pictures were great. The girls will forget the bad part and look forward to it again eventually.
I’ll be there tomorrow!
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