Selva Negra is the perfect place to do some hiking as me and my friends found without really trying. We were enjoying a nice pleasant afternoon hiking in the woods, with a fairly large group. We had decided to wander around a bit, enjoying the rain forest and the beautiful flora and fauna.
The Indiana Jones/Romantic Passage was a nice trail that everyone enjoyed. We were told that it has its two names for its two different sides; it is an adventurous trail, hence the Indiana Jones name, and when it rains, it gets quite slippery, causing you to have to lean on someone for help. (We were there when it was dry, so I guess we enjoyed the adventurous side. I think had it been slippery there would have been a lot more falling than leaning though!)
When we arrived at Las Pilas some of us sat down and slid down the sharp incline. The rest of us half slide and half walked down, which was quite difficult. 
This trail takes you to the water tanks by the lake. We ended up finding our way back to the Indiana Jones trail. That is when our real adventures began.
The group broke off into two sections and we went down the Peter and Helen trail… little did we know what we were getting into. The trail is beautiful, but it is a strenuous, one way trail, that at some points I doubted was even a real trail! After we finally found our way back and at the base of the mountain we were told the story of the infamous Peter and Helen Trail. I looked it up on the web-site and here is what they had to say:
This trail got its name from a British couple who one afternoon overheard Eddy and Mausi discussing the new trail they had just made into the mountain. Eddy and Mausi were talking about the beautiful flora and fauna that they had discovered, and what an unforgettable experience they had had. Peter and Helen, invigorated after overhearing the stories of this trail, felt they had to experience it for themselves. Now here I must explain that the trail can take easily 3 to 4 hours from start to finish, and that at the sun normally sets at about 7:00. In the rain forest it gets dark significantly earlier due to the thick cover of the canopy of the trees. So, late one afternoon, they set off for their hike. Not equipped with any preparations, including a flashlight, nighttime set in and they were left in the dark. One of the staff noticed them entering the hiking trails, unaware of their intentions to go on this specific trail, they weren’t stopped, but the staff did notice by late evening that they had not returned. So, a group set off to the mountain to locate the lost guest. They were found, and safely guided back to the lodge. So, in their honor, the yet unnamed trail took their name. When the Eddy and Mausi decided to name the trail after them, Peter and Helen had already departed the hotel, and they are unaware that the trail bears their name!
Apparently we weren’t the first ones to have stumbled our way around this area of Selva Negra. We didn’t have flashlights either, so as it started to get dark we had to pull our our cell phones to use the light from them to illuminate the trail. Lesson learned: always bring a flashlight, even a little one will do.
Also, don’t forget the bug spray! This is the rain forest after all. And it is a good idea to read up on all the trails and then plan your hiking route. That way you will make informed decisions that match your group. The Selva Negra web-site has a trail map, trail statistics and descriptions of each trail.
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Very good explanation, thank you
Regards.
great little article, thanks!