This and the next post are just a 'tasting plate' of what we saw on this exotic journey. It would take me many pages to describe those exotic eight days on two of which we tramped through the jungle and what an experience that was! Instead I will give you some broad brush-strokes, a few postcards, of our experiences on the headwaters of the mighty Amazon in the heart of Peru’s rainforest - it promised to be an epic experience and it turned out to be just that.
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| The Pacaya-Samiria Reserve bordered by two tributaries of Amazon River |
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| We were exploring in the Pacaya-Samiria Reserve |
After the dizzying altitudes of Bolivia, we made it back to sea level in Lima still suffering the after-effects of altitude sickness, and Lindsay still had‘Bali belly', but it was heavenly to be able to breathe ‘normally’. The next morning we had another early departure, this time to steaming Iquitos situated on the Amazon River and gateway to the tribal villages of the northern Amazon. From Iquitos we drove south to Nauta on the banks of the Maranon River, one of the main tributaries of the Amazon. Here we boarded our river boat - the Delfin II - which would be our home for the next 8 days, but not before a bumpy ride to the 'port' on the local transport. A bit of fun.
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| Our very comfortable cabin complete with a wide-screen TV window |
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| Delfin II - our floating home |
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| Happy hours were very happy with a constant flow of Pisco Sours! |
Over the next week or so, we were to sail the Maranon and the Pacaya rivers as well as some of the channels and creeks in the
Pacaya-Samiria Reserve which is cared for by the village people who live along the rivers and creeks. We were there in the high-water season which gave us great access to the jungle and to great stretches of dense rainforest. In the low-water season, the banks of the rivers are very high so disembarking is more difficult. The whole area was lush and beautiful and we saw oodles of exotic wildlife and eye-popping vegetation.  |
| Eric our favourite guide. He grew up on the river and was very knowledgeable |
Every day was wonder-filled as we glided, sometimes slashed our way, through a maze of jungle waterways. It was astonishing, amazing, exciting, hot and wet - but wow! what an adventure. And to give a true note of authenticity, our first day out we got well and truly drenched in a tropical downfall of thunderous proportions. The rain was so heavy we could barely see past our hands - we had raincoats and heavy water-proof ponchos but we got soaked to the skin nonetheless. Unsurprisingly, it rained like this on a number of days - we were in the rainforest! To top off that morning, a Pink Dolphin swan beside our skiff. They are truly pink, their head and undersides a beautiful baby pink. Wet, schmet? I didn't care, I'd seen one of these beautiful creatures!
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| This beautiful Pink Dolphin porpoised beside our skiffs for quite a while |
I have to tell you that one experience I had hoped for on this trip was to see, and hopefully to swim with, the Pink Amazon Dolphins. And that first day I realised half of that dream! Then a few days later we took the skiffs to a huge dark lake, Yanayacu Lagoon, deep in the Reserve and there I, and others, slid into the cool black water. It was delicious. And Callooh Callay! a couple of Pink Dophins were cavorting close-by so I got to swim with these gorgeous creatures! Not side by side but close enough to make me extremely happy. And the other huge plus was that I had actually swum in the waters of the Amazonian jungle! This just a few months after I had taken a plunge into the frigid waters off Antactica, 1000s of Km and a continent away! Life doesn't get much more mind-blowing than that. But back to the present .... the Pink Dolphins remained close to us and for the rest of the day those and small Grey Dolphins hung around us even after we got back to the mothership where they frolicked around for what seemed like hours. It was a very special day.
My other wish was to see the giant, brilliantly-coloured Hyacinth Macaws. And indeed we saw and heard them on many excursions perched high in the tree tops or swooping overhead as we explored the waterways. Such glorious birds but there was a menagery of other exotic birds too - brightly coloured and strange in their behaviour compared to our birds at home. So exotic, the stuff of wildlife documentaries - we were afterall travelling with National Geographic!
We explored wide river stretches and quiet tributaries and sometimes ducked through the dense growth with monkeys chattering above our heads only to pop out of the trees into vast swampy green and silent mini-paradises.
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| We cut our way through a world of mirrors. The reflections were magical |
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| At times the waterways were a thick green soup |
We ploughed through floating islands and past the stark stumps of a downed terrestrial forest. Each day something different - a new species or experience, a different vista. What a jaw-dropping place!
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| Our skiffs were great at getting into small spaces so we kept our arms in! |
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| We snuck through lush channels looking for 'interesting' flora and fauna |
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| I found these beauties while the others were looking high into the trees at an anteater |
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| A whole micro-environment in each of these flowers |
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These are the nests of 'Wema' - Yellow Rump Cacique, weaver birds
that build their nests close to lakes and rivers |
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| A brilliant Rainbow cricket |
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| Tiny Proboscis Bats clinging to the underside of a dead branch |
Out in the skiffs on the water we saw so many iconic rainforest creatures. Bright butterflies, brilliantly coloured insects, tiny bats curled up along twigs, many species of monkeys, sloths, anteaters, a miriad of birds - Lindsay identified over 100 different species including 3 different species of Toucans but the majority were species he hadn't seen before. Glorious flowers nestled in the lush green of the river-side vegetation. Each day we ventured out morning and afternoon and sometimes we also went out after dark and then we discovered a different world - a giant glowing white waterlily, a tiny caiman - and heard many different sounds. A whole different fascinating world.
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That's a sloth high in that tree; we saw well over a dozen
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We slipped noiselessly through this mirror-world of tranquility
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| The local rangers' post - these are manned by villagers |
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| A giant Kapok tree |
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| Reflections |
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| The dark descended as well as the mozzies and other creatures |
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| A night flowering water lily; the pads were huge |
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| A tiny caiman dozing on the surface |
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