The Amazon—at last!
Months of planning led us on a flight from Lima to Iquitos, the largest city in the world that is only accessible by air or water. (This dubious title is due to its location in the Amazon.) We were immediately greeted by our guide from the Delfin I, Denis, who gave us sack lunches to eat on the van during our 1 ½ hour ride to Nauta. (You can access the Amazon from Iquitos, but the trip would be much longer.)
We were glad for a cautious driver who was able to manipulate his way through the maze of MotorKars (tuk-tuks) that seemingly drive helter-skelter across the parking lot and into nearby streets.
Lush scenery greeted us at every turn as the jungle crept up as close as possible to the road. In most of the areas, houses were built close to the road with their backyards quickly turning to the tangled mass of the rainforest.
Once in Nauta, we stopped at the open-air reception area for the Delfin ships. (Delfin has I, 2, and 3--each of a different size. The Delfin 1 holds 8 people, but there were only 6 passengers for our trip.)
From the relaxing open-air reception area, we caught our first glimpse of our home away from home for the next four nights, the Delfin 1, which reminded us somewhat scarily, of the Africa Queen. We climbed into the ten-person skiff and headed to our boat, which, once onboard was nothing like the African Queen.
Our rooms were huge and well-appointed with equally large porches complete with plunge pools for the bottom two cabins. After a few minutes to relax, we joined the group in the skiff for our first ride along the Marañón River to find some of the many animals that make the Amazon River Basin their home. (We spent most of our time on the Marañón and Ucayali Rivers, the headwaters of the Amazon. Both of these two rivers were amazingly wide! The Amazon carries multiple different names as it makes its way across the continent.)
Our fantastic guide, Denis, equipped us with binoculars and we set off on our first skiff adventure. We were quickly amazed at the things Denis and the other members of the crew could find. They found numerous birds and animals and made certain that we could all see what they identified—a task that they took on patiently for people like me who are binocular and optical challenged. (I’ve included a list at the bottom of the blog of many of the birds and animals we saw over the course of our trip.) An interesting part of this skiff tour was when they cut the motor so we could float at the mercy of the river while listening to the burgeoning cacophony of the native insects and animals. (Just a note here: We always had a medic and a security person with us, just in case. Thankfully, they weren’t needed!)
A few notes about the Amazon:
· Rivers in 9 South American countries feed into the Amazon.
· The official birthplace of the Amazon is in Peru where the Marañón and Ucayali Rivers join. The Amazon is so massive that there is still uncertainty about which of the rivers is the actual start and it has five names from its beginning to the point it is called the Amazon.
· The Amazon is home to over 3 million species.
When we returned to our boat, we were greeted by the first of many wonderful meals, each of which was presented beautifully on an artistically arranged table. (They even changed the curtains daily to match the table decorations.) The two chefs prepared excellent meals using local products and Jose served our meals with friendly, yet impeccable skill. After dinner, we usually retired to the top deck for drinks served by Isaac before calling it an evening. The top deck is the center of activities—and you can even visit the wheelhouse there. The captain was always available to greet our returning skiff and for any questions.
We started the first morning with another skiff ride to see more of the interesting flora and fauna in the National Paya Samiria Reserve followed by a fruit tasting which is much more complicated and wonderful than you might imagine since Peru has so many amazing types of fruit. Denis led us through the samples while explaining the varieties of each. One of the most amazing to me was finding out that Brazil Nuts are found inside a larger coconut-looking nut. Another lunch followed and then some relaxation time, which was greatly appreciated, especially given the heat and humidity.
The afternoon brought a fun surprise to our ship’s door—a visit from multiple pink dolphins! We watched them frolic and scamper as we enjoyed the beautiful sky and sparkling water.
Our next activities were equally wonderful as we jumped into the crystalline black water of the Marañón River. (Yes, the water is black because of its tannin content. Visibility is very limited, but the water is clean and does not stain. This water is also safe to drink, if you are used to it, and is fine for swimming.) After our refreshing plunge, we took on the task of kayaking peacefully down the river as we headed back to the Delfin I. No one is ever required to take part in activities, and everyone is encouraged to go at their own speed.
That night our skiff ride took us out later so that we were returning to our boat after dark. Our intrepid driver sped his way toward our ship lit only by the light held by our guide. We zipped through the small tributary, during which our guide was bombarded by zooming bats, on our way to the main river where our driver somehow avoided huge logs to arrive safely—and on time—to the welcoming lights of our waiting boat.
The second morning brought even more exciting adventures. We started the day with another skiff ride, this time on smaller tributaries that matched my imaginary pictures of the Amazon with low-hanging trees, hanging vines, floating water lilies all within reach. We quickly arrived at our first stop, a beautiful and fantastic breakfast that was prepared and waiting for us under a shelter constructed next to the peaceful lake.
Thankfully, we had time after the luscious breakfast to hike through the area with the best part, for me, being a canopy walk through the trees. We were given gloves to protect our hands from possible ants on the rope rails and off we went on the swinging bridges that linked magnificent trees and provided us views with the forest below.
But our morning of surprises wasn’t over yet. We next visited Carola, the shaman, in the ceremonial house. She explained how she became a shaman and the strenuous process that it involves. Through her herbal medicinal skills, she serves 9 communities. Amazingly, although many of the people in the communities got Covid, none of them died under her watchful eye. (I hope that more is learned about these natural medicines before this knowledge is lost forever.)
Then, back to the boat for lunch and rest before our afternoon skiff ride which took us to a lake of water lettuce that was so thick it seemed as though we were skimming over land.
Day three started before the crack of dawn with a boat ride to the river’s banks for a fishing expedition of a very different sort. (A leaping dolphin kept us company on much of this journey.) Instead of sitting quietly or casting your fly as far as possible, each person beat the water with the cane pole before dropping the beef-tenderloin-baited hook into the water. Our goal? To catch piranha! And catch them we did! Though none were over 6 inches long, we felt a sense of accomplishment. Thankfully, the crew took the sharp-toothed adversaries off the hook for us, so no one was injured.
This day our hike was on private property, not the National Paya Samiria Reserve. We were led by a resident who carried a massive machete. (Obviously the machete was for protection against wayward beasts not us since we returned safely to our boat afterwards.)
This hike provided close-up views of a walking tree, within 1 foot, a sloth, within 2 feet, frogs, within 1 foot, and an anaconda, within 4 feet but still too close! On this final full day of sailing, we reached the confluence of the Marañón and Ucayali Rivers where Amazon is officially born as the river of that name.
Day three brought ceviche-making and pisco sour demonstrations before our final skiff ride of our trip, this time to visit a local community, Puerto Miguel. The town is amazing.
We were able to visit with the women who were cooking their own Mother’s Day meal of fish and plantains, help squeeze juice from sugar cane, and watch a heated game of sand volleyball. We heard songs from children, talked with vendors about their handmade crafts, and simply enjoyed the well-planned town. By the way, it doesn’t matter where you are, teenagers are the same. Near the dock many teenagers were lined up on their phones. It was where they have Internet connectivity.
And then, after more wonderful meals along with great service and with very enjoyable entertainment, it was time to return to reality. Thankfully, on our way from the reception area to the Iquitos airport, we stopped at the Amazon Rescue Center.
Imagine our surprise when the first sign we saw was for the Dallas World Aquarium, the sponsor for the center. (Way to go DWA!) It was here we were able to see, up close, Amazon manatees, macaws, and paiche, a local fish.
A quick visit to a bee farm and then back on the plane for our flight to Lima and home.
Only 24 hours in Lima, Peru! For info, click here.
For info about Quito and our short trip there, click here.
To read about our stay in Bogota, click here.
In the meantime, please click here for info on Cartagena.
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A recommendation: If you want excellent pictures, take a great camera. My iPhone did well, but I can imagine the pictures that some of my photographer friends would have taken. Some of the many animals we saw:
Goliath tarantula
Sloths—Two and three toed
Wooly Monkey
Squirrel Monkey
Poison Dart Frog
Walking Palm Tree
Anaconda—Only a 9-footer
Horned Screamer—Donkey Bird
Termites
Nocturnal Noisy Owl Squirrels
Great Patou bird
Kingfisher
Blue and Yellow Macaw
Cocoi Heron
Titi Monkeys
Ring-tailed Coati
White-Throated Toucans
Leaf Ant
Fire Ant
Great Green Iguanas
Bats
Black-Collared Hawk
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