Day 21, April 23, 2015
… Oh my goodness … what a fantastic adventure this morning! We boarded the skiffs at 6:30 a.m. and
navigated up the Purinahua Canal, then some shortcuts through the trees and
little waterways that have been created by chopping through the carpet of water
hyacinths onto yet another river. On the way we stop to watch the red howler
and squirrel monkeys eat the tree fruits and do their acrobats from limb to
limb across the tree canopy. We also saw several black collared hawks, and at
one point one was enticed to swoop down to grab the piranha our guide threw
into the water. Amazing to watch!
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| Rainforest giant lily pads |
We saw
the giant lily pads and a few of their beautiful purple flowers which originally comes from India. Blue and green and chestnut fronted macaws, a
pygmy owl, festive parrots, donkey birds, kingfishers, a black capped donacobius (mockingbird), jacana
birds with their babies, an olive whip snake and a sloth were a few of today’s
visual delight!
However, the most fantastic find was a 13-foot long
anaconda! The guides and other crew
spent some time coaxing it out of the water hyacinth carpet … and there it was,
with all its glorious markings. Most of us had pictures taken with it around
our shoulders … yes, even me!! It was all very exciting, even watching it return
to its habitat. Simply amazing.
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| Frightened Marcie and the Anaconda! |
After a short while, all three skiffs were tied together as
we gently floated on the canal … time for
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Breakfast in the on the skiffs
in the rainforest! |
breakfast! Carlos, one of the kitchen staff and waiters,
served us a delicious meal of fruit, juices, egg-salad or ham and cheese
croissant sandwich, chocolate cupcakes, coffee … all served in the normal white
dishware of the ship’s kitchen! How many
people get to enjoy breakfast hundreds of miles from civilization, away from
the noises of people, cars, planes, etc., basking in the lovely rain forest
serenaded by the choir of birds and other animals? Simply amazing.
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| The Ranger Station |
The next stop was at the ranger station to use the
bathroom. So, this area is entirely, I
mean entirely, under water at this time of the year. The station is on stilts, just two open
buildings with thatched roofs where the rangers live. There are 13 ranger stations in the Reserve
with about 51 rangers to patrol the large area, mostly for poachers. These rangers are given a month’s supply of
necessities at the beginning of the year but are not paid a regular wage. They
are allowed to fish and to sell their fish in the cities, which is how they
make their money. Most work two months
on, one month off. The whole idea of
conservation is still new to the locals, so the government and companies like
Aqua are working hard with the natives to understand and to practice
conservation to protect this valuable resource.
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| "Gallery forest" |
On the way back to the boat we experienced heavy rain in
this rain forest! So we were quite soaked by time we got back despite the rain
ponchos. At yet another most delicious lunch,
everyone was all abuzz recalling the very exciting morning we all experienced!
At 3:30 this afternoon we once again boarded the skiffs for
yet another venture down the black rivers and canals of the rain forest. Because of its narrow vegetation and the
tunnel created by the tall leafy trees, scientists call this a “gallery forest”
.There are three naturalist guides on board, and they rotate being on one of
the skiffs each trip. All of them …
Daniel, Ricardo, Roland, plus the boat
drivers, the medic and the wait staff … are all extremely knowledgeable about
the birds and animals, the trees and plants, the entire ecosystem and the
history of the area and of Peru. We are
not in the Reserve proper this afternoon, so we saw about half a dozen fishing
boats plus a little village on the side of Carocurahuayre Lake. This is the only green lake in this rain
forest because of the algae. The locals sell the shrimp they get from the
lake.
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| Red-and-green-Macaw |
One incredible sight was that of 22 macaws sitting on and
then flying from a tall tree … Holy Macaw!! (to quote a fellow guest on our
skiff!). While we saw many of the same
birds and monkeys as before, we also added to the list the collared forest
falcon, the blue headed parrot, the jacamar bird, the red throated caracara, a
beautiful toucan, the white-eared jacamar and Muscovy ducks. It is especially fun listening to the guides
mimic the sounds of these birds or monkeys to coax them into better view, and
often they respond to that call. So
fun. We jetted
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| White-throated toucan |
straight back from the
lake, about a 45-minute ride twisting and turning along the creeks and canals
enveloped by a multitude of trees and greenery, the wind blowing at my face …
it’s like a twisty rollercoaster ride … exciting and refreshing!
Back aboard the Aqua, we enjoyed another outstanding
6-course meal with many new tastes and great conversations with our new
acquaintances. Another incredible day!
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