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Published: March 14th 2007
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Puerto Maldonado
The beginning of our trip into the jungle. A complete change of atmosphere, so tropical, loving the heat. Off to the jungle
After a rather confused morning and short flight to Puerto Maldonado we were greeted at the airport by Wilson our guide for the next three days in the jungle. Only four of us made the trip to the jungle (Kathryn. Sol, Ben and I). We were divided into cars to make the journey to where were to meet the boat. It was a fantastic car trip with different scenery and skillful driving, I have no idea how we didn´t get bogged in two wheel drive cars.
We met Carlos at the river and before driving off to the lodge in our boat we had to put on lifejackets, yes lifejackets! The cruise up the river was great, the scenery the packed lunch with treats, everything. It was completely different to anything else we had seen.
Upon arrival to the lodge we were all in shock. The place was unreal, we had our own bathroom and shower and a mosquito net to cover our bed. It was all very tropical with hammocks and boardwalks. The lodge even had its own pet monkey called Pepe, a red howler monkey.
We had some time to
Lunch
A delicious lunch was served to us on the boat wrapped in a banana leaf. refresh and look around before our first activity which was a walk through the jungle. Wilson took us for a guided tour showing us many of the plants, trees and fruits of the area, we didn´t really see many animals. It was a little wet but we got to see the walking palm and the errotic palm as well as a cool butterfly with transparent wings.
Before dinner we went tarantula hunting. Now this is something that I never thought I would do and thankfully there was no challenge to touch the things but find them we did. They are so huge and live in holes in the ground. Wilson would get them out of the ground by placing a stick down the hole and drawing them out when they bit at it. They are just as big as you think they are but are really a bit silly. If they get too far from their hole, like more than 30 centimetres, they can´t find their way back and have to go in search of a new one. We found a number of them but I kept my distance. I was glad to go back for dinner.
Dinner
The errotic palm
I´ll leave it to your own imagination as to why it is called that was fantastic, a real spread with dessert and everything, we felt like we were kings at the lodge. After a long day we went to bed with a cold shower covered in DEET.
The original plan for our second morning in the Amazon was to get up at 5am and go bird watching. However, being a tropical jungle it absolutely poured down all night and there was no bird watching so we got a sleep in. Although young Wilson woke us up a 5am to tell us we didn´t have to get up at 5am….probably needs to think that one through.
After a really nice breakfast we covered ourselves in DEET, took our malaria pills and headed out in our canoe for another outing. This time we headed for an oxbow lake (an old part of the Tambopata River) downstream. On the walk down we saw monkeys and a whole heap more including trees with fireants that virgins get tied to to check if they are pure. Of course I came out clean…phew.
On the lake we rode on a cool catamaran punt sort of thing with a cool rudder combined with a paddle for propulsion.
In the jungle
Walking through the jungle we were covered in a mixture of sweat and rain We fished for piranha and actually caught some this time! We also saw some cool birds and I worked up the courage to swim in the relatively cleaner water of the lake. This was before Wilson told us about these weird amazon parasites that take 6 months of injections to get out….they love that stuff. I get the impression that for these locals there really is nothing like the look on a gringo´s face when they realise they may die tomorrow.
Back to our lodge for a great lunch. Wilson insisted on a 2 hour siesta which was nice and after more torrential rain we headed to a local farm. It was really cool to check out how people get by on the river. This farm was for local produce only and was a small operation. Wilson felt one of us should have to wield their axe and chop some wood. I didn´t have the heart to tell him I chop wood all winter and he was giddy with joy when I cleanly split a piece of Amazonian rainforest timber in two. Had some truly divine papaya here that was straight off the tree.
A really good dinner
Tarantula
No comment needed and some card tricks from Wilson before another humid night in our mosquito net before 5am bird watching. Got to see Macaws and parrots in their hundreds licking clay (don´t knock it till you have tried it…I loved it). Macaws were really bright and big. Saw another type of toucan.
Back to camp for breakfast then in the boat for the return trip to Puerto Maldonado then flight to Cuzco. A really good few days.
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