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Published: August 28th 2006
Welcome to the jungle
Madidi, Bolivia. Big trees, tiny creatures, permanent sweating and regular itchiness.We took the decision to spend more time in Bolivia than we originally planned. With our travels in South America coming to an end, it seemed a big shame not to see something of the rainforests and wetlands that cover a large portion of this continent. After several weeks of dry high altitude living, the thought of mosquitos, creepy crawlies and drowning in our own sweat somehow seemed rather appealing all of a sudden.
We booked three days in the Madidi rainforest national park, followed by three days in the Pampas, through America Tours in La Paz, who were a slick and super-professional organisation. We had to fly to the small jungle town of Rurrenabaque, which would be our base for the trip. The flight on the little 12 seater plane was all part of the adventure. The alternative involved a 20 hour bus ride incorporating the world´s most dangerous road (see previous blog). No thanks. We were there in less than an hour from La Paz.
The flight over the mountains was spectacular, then the ground below changed to reveal heavy green canopy as far as they eye could see. Thick clouds were gathering as we landed on
Feeling a bit Attenborough
Arriving at ´Rurrenabaque International´ - a grass landing strip shaved into the jungle. the bumpy grass strip and the humidity hit us immediately. Rapidly stripping layers and applying insect repellent, we headed for the town of Rurrenabaque for a night´s rest before our long journey up-river the following morning.
We left our hostal early, setting out at about 7.30a.m. It was going to be a long and painful trip upstream. With the river so low, the trip took over 5 hours. One guy sat at the front of the canoe poking the river bed with a marker stick. When it got too low and we were at risk of grounding, the guides got out and pushed or dragged the vessel over the rocky bed. A fair bit of water came over the sides too en route, but it was all part of the fun.
After 3 hours or so, we pulled in at a landing point and sat under the trees for a picnic. We were instantly covered in ants and surrounded by flying nasties. I got bitten straight away and really started to worry about what we had let ourselves in for. Some of the girls disappeared into the trees for a sneaky pee. I looked at the ground, crawling
Alternative employment
Camila´s cafe in Rurrenabaque. Nice ice cream milkshakes. with insect life, and decided I didn´t need to go all that much.
We were booked in at the Chalalan Eco-lodge for 2 nights. Chalalan is billed as Bolivia´s premier environmentally- and community-friendly tourism project. It certainly wasn´t the cheapest trip we´ve done here, but turned out to be worth every penny. After another couple of hours in the canoe we arrived at the landing stage and hiked through the rainforest for half an hour. The insects were nowhere near as bad as at the picnic spot and we started to relax and take in the brand new sights and sounds and sweet rotting vegetable smells of the rainforest.
The lodges were set on the shore of a large, placid lake surrounded by pristine rainforest. They were all made from local, natural building materials and furnished to a simple, but high quality spec. We quickly settled in. Fresh white linen and crisp mosquito nets, polished mahogany floors and furniture. Very nice! The lake was good for swimming (as long as you washed off all the DEET and other evil wildlife-unfriendly chemicals first). Each lodge had its own hammocks, perfect for unwinding after the long trip.
We were
Heading for the jungle
5 hours up-river in a motorised canoe through dramatic gorges and thick forest. split into small groups - Graham and I were matched with three lovely people from the US, Karen, Amy and Dana. Our guide introduced himself after a smashing three-course lunch, and told us to get ready for our first walk in the rainforest. About 100 yards from the main lodge, he stopped by an unassuming tree. He explained that a black tarantula lived at its base and if we were quiet he´d get it to come out. He carefully spat on the end of a long stalk then tentatively poked the opening of the tarantula´s nest. The big spider, sniffing potential prey, darted out in an instant and lunged for the spitty stalk. I tried not to puke on the spot. Jesus. It was massive and evil looking and moved faster than was natural. It took all my strength not to run screaming back to the clearing.
I spent the next half an hour, as we continued our walk, in full-on adrenaline rush. Hyper aware of the rustling and buzzing all around us. We stopped by another arachnophobe´s nightmare spot - a gigantic mass of cobwebs suspended from trees right next to the path, full of thousands of tiny
This tree walks
Our guide explains how this type of tree puts down massive new roots starting above ground, and can ´walk´ over time to where the moisture is. Freaky. ´social´ spiders living together in a massive colony. Not sure which was worse, the thought of getting wrapped up in the web or meeting the black tarantula again. The tarantula. Definitely. No amount of deep breathing or thinking about kittens could blank out the hideous hairy memory.
Our guide, Jhovani, was born and raised in the rainforest. He knew everything about the plants and animals here and spoke fantastic english. He showed us amazing trees and plants, tiny poisonous frogs, orchids, butterflies and birds. After half an hour or so walking through the forsest we diverted back to the lakeside and hopped in a canoe. Excellent. No spiders on the water. Jhovani paddled us quietly to the far side of the lake where we sat in the twilight as he started making mysterious animal and bird calls. Before long, a family of squirrel monkeys appeared in the trees by the shore and played and fed in the low branches over our heads. It was a magical experience. Hushed and bewitched we made our way back to the lodges.
That night we were persuaded to do a night walk through the forest. We saw a night hawk, a massive
Tiny poisonous frog
Our guide amazed us with his eagle eyes by spotting this tiny critter in the undergrowth. scorpion spider, a young cayman and a tiny tree frog who let us watch him for ages. Jhovani made us switch off our torches and adjust our eyes and ears to the forest night. I could hardly breathe. But we made it back without any close encounters in the dark.
The rest of our stay at Chalalan involved more walks and canoe rides which were always different and always thrilling. We saw a fire ant tree, leaf cutter ants and finally had to cross a 20 yard stretch of path covered in spider ants. We hopped over it as quickly as we could but were instantly covered in the blighters. Dana got them down his boots and I got some up my trousers and suffered a few nasty bites. We saw enormous trees and vines and learned from Jhovani about the many medicinal uses his community found for the plants of the forest. He told us tales of close escapes from vicious pecarries - a ruthless species of wild pig - and how his community survives in the forest. Thrilling stuff. The Madidi forest is a national park on paper, but there is no enforcement or protection on the
ground. The park is permanently under threat from exploitation. The new Bolivian president may well change policies and allow logging and a new road to be built, but Jhovani and his community are working to protect Madidi as hard as they can.
Our final night gave us chance to meet more people from the nearby village. They played their instruments and paired us up for dancing. We drank something called ´baby puma milk´ (warm milk, alcohol and cinnamon - quite soothing) and chewed coca leaves wrapped around ash and a shred of dried vine for flavour. The locals found us hilarious as we tried to dance with them and not gag on the coca parcels. We all laughed at ourselves. Graham got on particularly well with one of the chefs, who wouldn´t let any of the other ladies dance with him. Lots of giggling. Nobody really wanted to leave the next day. The whole thing was a magical experience, if heart-stopping at times.
The Pampas was a totally different environment, but just as thrilling. We headed out from Rurrenabaque the day after returning from Madidi and endured a three hour jeep ride over bumpy tracks and through clouds
Chillin´ in a hammock
Checked it for tarantulas first, mind you. of choking dust. We went with Bala Tours, who again proved to be excellent in their non-invasive wildlife-friendly approach to tourism in the area. The lodges were nowhere near Chalalan standards, but were comfortable enough, and the chef was excellent (but no dancing this time).
The Pampas is really well protected because the river, which was only a couple of feet deep in places while we were there, rises and floods the surrounding area for miles in the wet season. We were amazed at the quantity of wildlife gathered on the shores. After the rainforest, where everything is so well hidden, we couldn´t believe the hoardes of cayman, turtles and capybara on the shores of the river as we chugged along in our motorised canoe. We saw countless species of birds, including large kingfishers, pink spoonbills, black hawks, storks, lots of cranes and loads of brightly feathered pretty ones.
Towards the end of the first river trip, our guide gestured excitedly up ahead and we just caught a glimpse of a pink freshwater dolphin breaking the surface of the muddy water. A school of four or five were frolicking in the afternoon sun and we clearly saw their
Waiting for another close encounter
We only found out on the second day that a huge pink-toed tarantula lived in this tree outside the main lodge. This is the agressive type that will jump. Oh joy. pink underbellies before they got nervous and decided to stay just beneath the surface. Every now and again they would surface for air, blowing out noisily, then retreating under the surface.
We headed out early on the second day, before the heat became unbearable, to look for anaconda basking in the morning sun. We walked through the long grass with trousers carefully tucked in socks. It was hot and dangerous work. We uncovered several cobra anacondas and caught a glimpse of a couple of the constricting kind, but these are very shy. It was quite a spectacle watching a male cobra anaconda chase a female around a small muddy pond. After ten minutes or so we left them to it.
Our afternoon trip up the river was a real treat. The pink dolphins eluded us, but just as we were giving up hope, we glimpsed an otter scampering along the bank. Otters are my favourite animal and I know they are native to the UK too, but it was such a thrill to see this rare creature living wild in the pampas. Apparently you are more likely to see a jaguar than an otter, because the cayman eat
View over Madidi
Pristine rainforest for miles, but permanently under threat of exploitation. them all. We didn´t see a jaguar, but the otter was a big hit.
That night our guide called us outside to see some nocturnal monkeys running amok in the papaya trees. Half eaten fruit littered the ground and we just caught sight of some big eyes blinking back at us in the torchlight.
For our final trip up the river, we went looking for pink dolphins and monkeys and weren´t disappointed. We got up close and personal with some more squirrel monkeys and found a large group of dolphins in a wide bend of the river. Again, it was hard to leave such a magical place.
Only one thing happened to break the spell. Amy found a tick between her toes on the first night in the pampas. Our guide told us it must have come with us from the rainforest because they don´t get them by the water. Even as a qualified medical professional, Amy completely freaked out. We all checked ourselves, particularly our crevices, and Graham had a small tick too on his hip. Dana had managed to scratch off a couple at the top of his leg and had some nicely infected red
Lake Chalalan
Lovely for swimming if you don´t mind the cayman. bumps. I just had my nasty ant bites to deal with. Amy did tell me they could have been spider bites... Nope. No way. Definitely not.
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JohnMel
non-member comment
Graham Shaves!
About time you scruff bag, you are representing the Empire remember! Another great blog, but spiders....no, my skin is crawling 1000s of miles away. Are you sure that guy at the back is looking for snakes!? Keep them coming...John