When thinking about the Amazon many words come to mind - humid, colorful, bugs, sunsets, monkeys, piranhas , wonder, mud, terror and spirituality. The jungle is not for everyone and if you are looking for a relaxing vacation, skip it all together. However, if you are looking for an adventure, enjoy viewing exotic wildlife in its natural habitat, don’t mind sweating for a few days straight, and love serene views like the one below, then make the trek out to the jungle.
We spent two nights at Posadas Amazonas, an eco lodge on the Tambopata river which is part of the Amazon region. To get here you must take a plane to Puerto Maldonado, Peru which is about a one hour flight from Cusco. In order to explore the Amazon, you need to book through an authorized tour group (in our case, a company called Rainforest Expeditions). They picked us up at the airport and brought us to their “office” which was basically an open air hut with a few computers, a bar and a storage closet. We were the first in our group to arrive so we waited for about an hour, sipping passion fruit juice while the other group members showed up. From this point, you have to take a small boat to your final destination, so passengers are only allowed to bring small bags. Upon arrival at the office, most people pack up small bags with enough supplies for the next couple of days and then lock up their larger bags at the office. We didn’t have to do this since we were already carrying backpacks.
At the office we met our guides - Willian (yes, it's spelled with an n) and Robin. They are both 20 something guys from the Tambopata region and grew up in the jungle. Willian was definitely the class clown and regularly made us laugh throughout the trip (often times unintentionally). Robin was more serious, super nice and very knowledgable about the jungle.
From the office we took a bus for about an hour across dirt roads and rickety wooden bridges (not kidding – sometimes they were just wooden planks that went over a five foot ditch) until you get to the boats. As we found out later, if it were raining, we would not have been able to use these roads.
At the office we met our guides - Willian (yes, it's spelled with an n) and Robin. They are both 20 something guys from the Tambopata region and grew up in the jungle. Willian was definitely the class clown and regularly made us laugh throughout the trip (often times unintentionally). Robin was more serious, super nice and very knowledgable about the jungle.
From the office we took a bus for about an hour across dirt roads and rickety wooden bridges (not kidding – sometimes they were just wooden planks that went over a five foot ditch) until you get to the boats. As we found out later, if it were raining, we would not have been able to use these roads.
Loading up the bus that brought us to our boat!
During our bus ride, one of the guides explained a bit about the region. Althought the land is protected by the government, they have a problem with squatters, or people claiming the land as their own. In Peru, if the government doesn't kick out squatters within seventy two hours, they can stay and make a case for ownership that they have to take to a special court. Therefore we passed by many tents and shanties that serve as shelters for the squatters.
They also gave us an overview of the agreement that Rainforest Expeditions has with the local community called El Infierno. The company has a 20 year contract with the local people of the Infierno where they split profits from tourism 60/40 (60% goes to the locals). Rainforest Expeditions also employs the people from the local community to work at their lodges as tour guides and staff. The only other jobs in this area are mining or collecting Brazil nuts, so this is a pretty coveted job for the locals. It works out great for the company because nobody knows the jungle better than the people the people that grew up there. Also, Rainforest Expeditions runs 'eco-lodges' and therefore do little damage to the jungle, something that is very important to the people of El Infierno.
As we approached the boats, one of the guides explained that Rainforest Expeditions owns three lodges – Posadas Amazonas, which is a one hour boat ride up the river, Refugio Amazonas which is about a three hour boat ride up the river, and Tambopata Research Center which is an eight hour boat ride. Eight hours on a small boat is a really long ride so the last one is for those folks who are really into wildlife, birdwatching and nature photography. I would not recommend such a long boat ride for first time adventurers!
We then boarded our boat, which is basically a long, thin covered canoe with a motor. When boarding the boat, the first thing you notice are hundreds of butterflies fluttering around. I’ve never seen so many in one place in my life. I attempted to film them but put the camera away when the boat almost tipped. Since the boats are so thin, weight must be evenly distributed on each side of the boat or it starts to tip. It's a little un-nerving at first, but you get used it. The boat ride turned out to be quite pleasant. The breeze felt amazing in the humidity and we managed to cool off for a bit. They served an amazing lunch on the boat– fried rice in a plantain leaf. Luckily for me, we had a family from India on our boat and they were vegetarians. Therefore I didn’t have to worry about the staff serving birds for lunch. I think the fried rice was my favorite meal during our stay!
They also gave us an overview of the agreement that Rainforest Expeditions has with the local community called El Infierno. The company has a 20 year contract with the local people of the Infierno where they split profits from tourism 60/40 (60% goes to the locals). Rainforest Expeditions also employs the people from the local community to work at their lodges as tour guides and staff. The only other jobs in this area are mining or collecting Brazil nuts, so this is a pretty coveted job for the locals. It works out great for the company because nobody knows the jungle better than the people the people that grew up there. Also, Rainforest Expeditions runs 'eco-lodges' and therefore do little damage to the jungle, something that is very important to the people of El Infierno.
As we approached the boats, one of the guides explained that Rainforest Expeditions owns three lodges – Posadas Amazonas, which is a one hour boat ride up the river, Refugio Amazonas which is about a three hour boat ride up the river, and Tambopata Research Center which is an eight hour boat ride. Eight hours on a small boat is a really long ride so the last one is for those folks who are really into wildlife, birdwatching and nature photography. I would not recommend such a long boat ride for first time adventurers!
We then boarded our boat, which is basically a long, thin covered canoe with a motor. When boarding the boat, the first thing you notice are hundreds of butterflies fluttering around. I’ve never seen so many in one place in my life. I attempted to film them but put the camera away when the boat almost tipped. Since the boats are so thin, weight must be evenly distributed on each side of the boat or it starts to tip. It's a little un-nerving at first, but you get used it. The boat ride turned out to be quite pleasant. The breeze felt amazing in the humidity and we managed to cool off for a bit. They served an amazing lunch on the boat– fried rice in a plantain leaf. Luckily for me, we had a family from India on our boat and they were vegetarians. Therefore I didn’t have to worry about the staff serving birds for lunch. I think the fried rice was my favorite meal during our stay!
On the boat, ready to go to our lodge.
These are the boats they use to travel along the river.
About an hour later, we arrived at our lodge, climbed out of the boat and then hikeed about ten mins to the lodge. Thankfully, porters carry your large bags so you don’t have to navigate these stairs with your luggage!
They welcome you to the lodge with a seat in their open air lobby and a glass of fresh juice or water. Since it's an eco lodge, they must explain how everything works:
- All rooms have three walls – one is open to the jungle
- Electricity is only available from 5pm to 9pm. Flashlights/headlamps are a must after 9pm.
- They serve breakfast, snacks, lunch and dinner at set times and you eat with your tour group. We really enjoyed eating with our group as we had the chance to get to know some of the other travelers.
We then went to our rooms which were pretty cool at first glance. I'd consider this glamping, but we certainly were anything but glamorous at this point.
- All rooms have three walls – one is open to the jungle
- Electricity is only available from 5pm to 9pm. Flashlights/headlamps are a must after 9pm.
- They serve breakfast, snacks, lunch and dinner at set times and you eat with your tour group. We really enjoyed eating with our group as we had the chance to get to know some of the other travelers.
We then went to our rooms which were pretty cool at first glance. I'd consider this glamping, but we certainly were anything but glamorous at this point.
Our room - Room 4
Bathroom - those bamboo sticks are the only thing between you and your neighbor's bathroom.
You pretty much wanted to shower 3x a day.
The room was pristine and we later discovered that it takes a lot of work to keep the rooms this way every day.
After unpacking, we met up with our group for an afternoon hike out to the look-out tower. The groups are intentionally small - our group consisted of five other people - two girls from Canada who were a few years younger than us, and an older woman accompanied by her grown son and daughter, who were treating her to a Peruvian vacation! On our way our guide, Robin, pointed out some interesting trees like the Walking Palm Tree and the Brazil Nut tree. The Brazil nut is really important to the people of the Infierno. During rainy season, when tourism is slower, they gather and sell brazil nuts. It’s another way they make money.
After unpacking, we met up with our group for an afternoon hike out to the look-out tower. The groups are intentionally small - our group consisted of five other people - two girls from Canada who were a few years younger than us, and an older woman accompanied by her grown son and daughter, who were treating her to a Peruvian vacation! On our way our guide, Robin, pointed out some interesting trees like the Walking Palm Tree and the Brazil Nut tree. The Brazil nut is really important to the people of the Infierno. During rainy season, when tourism is slower, they gather and sell brazil nuts. It’s another way they make money.
Walking Palm Tree trunk. It moves or "walks" a few inches per year in order to get more sun.
Brazil nut tree
We arrived at the tower which was essentially a scaffolding tower with wooden landings connected by stairs and supported by cables tied to nearby trees. It was rickety and really high up (150 feet) and Chris is afraid of heights so he had a hard time enjoying the view. The tower platform was about 4' x 8' and there were nine of us up there at once. At one point, Robin was sitting on the handrail on the top level without holding on! The view was fantastic and from up here we were able to spot many birds.
The tower we climbed
Birdwatching from the tower
Sunset view from the tower
After our hike we were in desperate need of a shower. Our shower didn’t have warm water at first but we didn’t care- we just wanted to cool off. Before dinner, we had a couple of beers at the bar, played a destructive game of jenga (glasses were broken) and got to know some of the olther folks in our tour group.
Dinner was served at seven pm and we ate at long wooden tables complete with candelabras and large wooden chairs. It conjured up images of Hogwarts, and Chris quickly claimed our table the Gryffendor table. Unfortunately, no one else in our group got the joke.
We were so tired after dinner that we went to bed. Chris fell asleep under the mosquito net rather quickly but I barely slept because giant bugs kept flying into my net – including a rhinocerous beetle. I heard bats and birds in the room and animals rooting around outside. Eventually I dozed off but we had a four am wake up call so my slumber didn’t last long.
The next day were in store for many more treats and a little more terror ...
Dinner was served at seven pm and we ate at long wooden tables complete with candelabras and large wooden chairs. It conjured up images of Hogwarts, and Chris quickly claimed our table the Gryffendor table. Unfortunately, no one else in our group got the joke.
We were so tired after dinner that we went to bed. Chris fell asleep under the mosquito net rather quickly but I barely slept because giant bugs kept flying into my net – including a rhinocerous beetle. I heard bats and birds in the room and animals rooting around outside. Eventually I dozed off but we had a four am wake up call so my slumber didn’t last long.
The next day were in store for many more treats and a little more terror ...
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