Blogs from Rurrenabaque, Beni Department, Bolivia, South America - page 23

Thanks for all the comments and e mails, particularly regarding my apperance which were really welcome (eg, "it looks as though Suze is taking her terminally ill Grandad on one last trip before he croaks"). The Nivea anti-ageing wrinkle rifle has since been plucked from the bottom of my ruck sack and will have a key part to play in the coming weeks. We spent the best part of a week in Rurrenabaque, a jungle village on the banks of the River Beni, where we arrived via a 12-seat, military twin-prop plane which landed on a grass airstrip. From here we went on a 3-day Pampas tour which was incredible. Without any exaggeration, on the three-hour motorised canoe ride to our camp we didn´t go more than 5 seconds without seeing a crocodile, alligator, water rodent, ... read more

Stepping of a 17 hour bus journey in Rurrenabaque with our last meal and last shower a worryingly distant memory, we decided not to bother checking into a hotel and headed straight for a company which could take us up jungle. We found one run by a Bolivian who had lived in the States and were shocked by a return to occidental levels of service. In a bit of a rush we took it in turns to jump onto the back of his scooter with which he tore through to town and down to the “docks”, resembling a scene from apocalypse now with little boats plying up and down the river. We threw our bags in and jumped after as our pilot pushed the boat down the bank and jumped in after us. For about two ... read more

We'd decided that Bolivia (rather than Ecuador or Peru) would be the country where we'd visit the jungle. Rurrenabaque, a small town north of La Paz was the obvoius place to head for. There are 3 ways to get there. You can fly from La Paz (40 mins, 65 dollars), take the bus (super cheap but 18 hours of hell down the worlds most dangerous roads) or go by boat from Guanay, a gold mining town about 4 hours from Coroico. As we were already in Cocoico, after cycling down the worlds most dangerous road (WMDR), we decided to take the boat rather than bus back up WMDR to La Paz and fly. It was more expensive than flying (120 dollars each) but incorporated a 3 day jungle trip on the way (thus saving on food, ... read more

Pardon the dated material as we finished this trip the 8th of August and have since traveled into Argentina. The one hour flight from La Paz to Rurrenabaque was spectacular. Departing La Paz at altitude and flying by Mt. Illampu was impressive. Landing on the grass strip and opening the cabin door to the warmth of the jungle was a welcome relief. We were booked in a local hotel just off the square, so we were able to wander around the one horse river town until our ride up river was the following morning. Passing through the square after dinner I noticed some activity near a temporary stage. What we didn´t realize was that it was the national Independence day, and the band played all night long. I mean all night long. We were met at ... read more

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 ... read more