Cuyabeno (Jungle Adventure)

Day 1 – Pink Dolphins and flooded forrest

After a lousy freezing cold and sleep deprived overnight bus journey, we were deposited at a café in the town of Lago Agrio at 6am, giving us 3 ½ hours until we were due to be picked up for our transfer to the national park.  All we could do was drink a lot of coffee in the café whilst we chatted to Sebastian until our mini-bus turned up. Plus keep an eye on our bags as the town is pretty notorious for theft.

Our mini-bus promptly arrived at 9.30 and then we had a two-hour drive to the entrance of Cuyabeno river.  The countryside and scenery seemed nice but it was hard to keep our eyes open, both of us having little dozes along the way.

We were then dropped off at the staging post for our river trip to take us to our lodge.  First, we were introduced to our guide, Pedro, and then we sat down to a boxed lunch (not very appetizing, cold chicken, chips and veg).  Whilst attempting to eat our lunch we got chatting to what would be our companions for most of this trip, Juan & Carla (Argentinians) and Dana (Israeli/Ecuadorian).  While we were eating, we were entertained by quite a lot of pretty yellow weaver birds that were flying in and out of their hanging nests in the adjacent tree.

 

It was then time to get on our narrow motor boat to take us for a 2-3 hour trip, deep into the Ecuadorian Amazon Basin.  Soon we were motoring down a stretch of river which was quite low due to it being the dry season and it hadn’t rained for weeks, however the surrounding vegetation was very thick and junglely!!

 

About half an hour into the trip the guide noticed some movement in the branches overhead and he was soon pointing to Squirrel monkeys high up in the canopy.  We stopped there and watched them for about ten minutes and tried to get a few photo’s of them, but they were too quick and very small, hence no photo of them so you will have to take our word for it.

 

We travelled a bit further then stopped when Pedro spotted small black monkeys in the trees, but once again it was very hard to get a clear shot of them, so you will just have to be content with a nice jungle/river shot instead.

As we continued down the river it really started to seem special and you realised that you were in a proper jungle with large electric blue butterflies flitting around (once again too quick for me) and blue and yellow Macaw’s flying high overhead, screeching as they went.

In the final stretch of river before we reached the lodge we saw plenty of birdlife including what was locally known as a ‘Stinky Turkey’ and lots of terrapins that were sunbathing on logs along the way.  At around 4pm we pulled into Jamu Lodge which was going to be our base for the next three nights.

We were pointed in the direction of our room and were pleasantly surprised at how nice it was, a palm thatched room that was very comfortable and fairly big, even boasting a hot shower.  After unpacking we then had an hour or so to relax in the common area of the lodge before heading out for our first activity.

Around five we were taken back to the boat as we were going to travel back up river to the large lagoon, hopefully spotting more wildlife along the way and an option of a swim.

The agency that we booked this trip with told us that as it was the dry season the Lagoon would be almost dry and the river would be very low so we would not see the legendary pink dolphins.  So it came as a very pleasant surprise when we saw a couple of other boats loitering around 10 minutes away from our lodge and Pedro suddenly announced that there were some pink dolphins there.

 

We edged our way forwards in the boat and soon we saw the dolphins breach the surface, but unlike their cousins they have very small dorsal fins (to help navigate in the sunken forests they inhabit) and they are at the surface for about a second (so yet again no decent shots).  We were told by Pedro that they are the largest of the dolphin species and also practically blind due to the muddiness of the river making very poor visibility.  Another fact we were told was that their heads are not connected to their bodies with a spine, as this gives them more manoeuvrability through the flooded forest.  Even though two came up right alongside the boat it was so fleeting it’s hard to really see how pink they actually are, however it was great bonus to see them.

Leaving the dolphins, we continued to the large lagoon which as promised, was fairly dry with large dry islands all over the place.  We pulled up at the bankside and got out, where we were supposed to go swimming, but neither Shell or I fancied getting wet this early into the trip and the colour of the muddy water and bank were not inspiring either.  Instead we opted just to have a walk around and take some pictures and watch the impromptu game of football all the guides and locals seemed to take part in (I resisted the urge to join in).

 

After staying here for an hour or so whilst people had their swims and watching the sunset it was time to head back to the lodge for dinner, but along the way we were going to be Caiman spotting.

It was now dark so Pedro had his torch out searching the riverbank for the tell-tail reflective eyes shining back at us.  It took some time and we were beginning to give up on them, but just before getting back to the lodge some eyes were spotted under some branches of the riverbank.  Our driver carefully negotiated his way so close to the caiman that you could practically touch it.  You could only see its head poking out of the water but Pedro told us it was a Black Caiman and he reckoned it was around 2-3 metres in length.  Surprisingly it did not move a muscle and just waited it out until we had to leave.

We then returned to the lodge where we just had time for a quick shower before sitting down to our evening meal.  The food there was pretty decent, a three course affair with soup, a chicken dish and a desert, not bad considering we were in the middle of the jungle!!

 

Dinner done we then went to the bar area where we got a couple of beers and relaxed chatting to the other guests, around that time the heavens opened and it started to pour down. So much for the dry season!

As we had a very early start, lack of sleep the night before and a busy day we were soon heading to our room for an early night.  However, the rain had brought out the local frog/toad population so we were going to have to go to sleep to Ecuador’s version of Paul McCartney’s frog song (and someone snoring next door!).

Day 2 – Rain! Forest

After possibly one of the best night’s sleep we have had for a long time we awoke refreshed and went for breakfast.  Once again, the food on offer was really good with cereals, bread and eggs and a fresh fruit salad, the only thing spoiling it was that it had started to rain again.

Nether the less we were heading out in the boat again on another expedition, however we had been kitted out in rain poncho’s and wellington boots.  At 9ish resplendent in our new fashion accessories we jumped in the boat and motored back up to the lagoon. Just before we got to our destination the driver moored the spare canoe we would use to paddle back to the lodge (we all agreed to do this before seeing the weather).  We then motored a little further and spotted a reasonable sized white caiman just entering the water from a mud bank, before pulling into the side of a bank and getting out of the canoe.

 

We were already fairly wet at this point but the rain had eased off a bit as we started our hike into the primary forest, passing some nice lush grassy area’s with Pedro pointing out various plants along the way.

It was then time to enter the jungle proper on foot and one of the first things Pedro pointed out was a termites nest attached to a tree, apparently they do this and then set about eating the inside of the tree.  Pedro then scratched the bark of the tree and some termites started coming out, at which point he told us that termites were high in protein and offered us a munch on them.  Shell was very keen and was first up, after pinching a termite and putting it in her mouth she agreed with Pedro about the taste – not bad!  It was then my turn, picking out my termite I put it in my mouth and to my surprise termites taste strongly of carrots…who knew!!

The next surprise was when Pedro took us to another tree and he gathered the sap on a stick and then he lit it, the sap acted pretty much like kerosene and stayed alight for ages.  Pedro then plucked a thin stick like plant from the ground and told us we could smoke this, he lit it up took a couple of drags and then handed it around to the smokers in the party, it was a pretty smooth smoke!!

 

 

By this point it had started (and continued for the rest of the hike) to lash it down, which meant any wildlife we were hoping to see had taken cover and were not to be spotted apart from the odd spider and bird.

So we were having to concentrate on the flora and for Pedro’s next trick he found a plant that looked quite stick like and when he shook it the plant opened up/fell apart into strands.  Once open he took some of the strands and stripped it so it was like a cord/string (the local women use it to make necklaces) and once folded, proved unbreakable.

Before we finished the trek, Pedro had also folded and decorated a leaf using his teeth for imprints/patterns (now our guidebook book-mark) and fashioned a crown out of weaved palm leaves, to make Carla queen of the forest.

Now completely soaked we made our way out of the jungle and back to the lagoon where we picked up our canoe to paddle back in the lashing rain…nice!!

As we started to paddle back Pedro spotted a Caiman on one of the lagoon islands so we paddled over to have a closer look, as we got closer we noticed a couple more of them.  By the time we got within 20 metres of them we noticed more and more sets of little eyes poking out of the water all around us, we were really in croc infested water.

 

 

We then turned around and started on the long paddle back to the lodge doing some paddling followed by a bit of bailing out so we didn’t sink (it was raining that hard).  Apart from stinky turkeys I don’t think we saw much else or we were so wet we didn’t notice.  Along the way we actually past Sebastian who was staying at another lodge, so we had a quick chat with him as we paddled along.  Poor Sebastian only had the guide and a woman for company, so with our 5 man paddling crew we were soon leaving him behind (we also learned the following day that his lodge was a lot further away than ours).

 

 

Just before we arrived back at the lodge the sun decided to make an appearance and we all agreed the canoe journey would have been fabulous if we had this weather from the start.  Once back at the lodge we then sat down for lunch, which again was really good.

We were not due for another activity until later in the afternoon so Shell and I decided to take advantage of the hammocks in the loft of the communal area.  The afternoon was spent reading and dozing until it was time to venture out again.

 

 

Back in the boat we were supposed to go back to the lagoon for a swim, but as it was tipping it down yet again I think Pedro got the feeling that we would prefer just to do some wildlife spotting instead.  We headed down a few branches of the river where apart from a few stinky turkeys the only things of note were flycatchers and our first sighting of Toucans, although these were right at the top of the canopy so getting a decent picture was difficult.

 

We returned to the lodge in the pouring rain so weren’t so keen to do our night walk before dinner, so Pedro said we would consider doing it later if the rain subsided.  As we had our dinner the rain had calmed down a bit so Pedro told us to don our poncho’s and wellies and follow him out of the lodge to do our creepy crawly expedition.

Just walking along the gang plank Pedro had already found some nasties to check out.  Shining his  torch up the nearby trees he showed us a few Tarantula spiders and a couple of scorpions.  We then headed off into the nearby jungle to see what else we could spot.

 

It was very wet and I think the animals had the better idea of staying at home as we did not see a huge amount.  We saw some more scorpions and small spiders, most probably the best thing we saw was a small yellow/gold poisonous frog.  It is quite incredible how Pedro manages to spot some of these things.

 

Just before we left the jungle we saw another type of spider which was quite large and had long front legs with pinchers like a scorpion.  Amazingly there was a small make-shift shelter behind this and Pedro told us that sometimes when the lodge is full the boat drivers camp out here, rather them than me!!

Returning once again to the lodge we went to the bar area where we had a couple of beers and chatted to some of the new arrivals at the lodge before making our way to bed for another fairly early night.

Day 3 – I thought this was supposed to be the dry season!!

After another night of the frog chorus and another good breakfast, this mornings activity was motoring down the river to go to a village of the Siona Community of Puerto Bolivar.  Once again it was raining so the poncho’s and wellies were required.

About an hour or so motoring deeper into the jungle we were soon pulling up at the river bank next to a village settlement.  We walked up to the village where we met the village elder who welcomed us to the village and in fact thought he recognised Shelley!!

The ‘native’ village as it seems where ever you go now had more mod-con’s than expected, with TV satellite dishes and even a football pitch with rudimentary flood lights!!

We were then taken to a kitchen hut where we introduced to the bread maker for the village and she was going to show us how to make Yucca bread from scratch.  Firstly we followed her to the vegetable field where she proceeded to dig up the Yucca root vegetables.  She then handed these to us so we could assist her in peeling off the hard outer skin.

 

The first job done we then followed her back to the kitchen area in which we were joined by various dogs and chickens running around the place.  Here the lady flipped over a hollowed out log work bench and got out two very basic hand made graters and proceeded to turn the Yucca into pulp and again we took turns in assisting her, I wish I hadn’t picked out a large Yucca as it was hard work.

The pulp mixture was then sieved out to get rid of any lumps and then the lady spread this in a long material sling and took it to a post where she proceeded to twist it to remove all of the liquid (which is collected in a bucket to make the local hooch) from the Yucca.  The mixture is then taken to an open fire and spread out in a shallow round pan and carefully rolled into shape.

 

After a lot of hard work the bread that is created comes out pretty much like a bread wrap but without that much flavour and is pretty dry.  We were given some of these straight from the fire to eat with a rice dish, a tuna mix or Jam by way of our lunch.

Bread making done and eaten we waited around for a while (this was the guides village and I think he was taking time to say hello to his family), but as we waited we were told we could buy beer from the beer hut!!  So, as it was gone midday we took them up on their offer.

Leaving the village, we were then heading further down river to visit the villages local shamen.  Along the way our guide got the driver to pull up to the bank so we could take a close up view of one of the largest trees in the forest that had roots like walls.

 

Walking around the tree and taking photo’s our guide scraped some bark/pulp off a nearby tree and mixed it with water.  He explained that it was like garlic and people take it when they have colds, so he offered it to us to try.  The method to take it is to snort the solution up your nose (it’s not what it looks like!!) and it was very garlicy and not very pleasant as you spend the next hour just tasting garlic through your nose.

 

 

Back in the boat we headed along the river but after a few attempts to dock to visit the shamen we couldn’t, the river was too shallow here so we had to motor on for another 15 minutes to find a suitable place to pull in.  From the river bank (still raining) we then had a 10 minute trek to the shamens hut/house deep into the forest. At this point, god decided to really let loose on the bucketing rain!... We discovered that Poncho’s aren’t torrential rain proof!

 

Once at the hut we were introduced to the shamen beguiled in all his ceremonial costume and he proceeded to tell us about his work and the natural methods and plants he used for remedies. We listened whilst swotting the many mosquitos which were taking refuge with us from the rain.

After finding out about his life and work and a quick translated Q&A, he then asked for a volunteer so he could demonstrate a healing ceremony/warding off bad spirits.   Carla volunteered as none of us were jumping forward and she did very well to keep a straight face as the shamen wafted a bunch of leaves around her whilst doing an incantation which included lots of blowing noises.

 

Next, the shamen asked if any of us had any pains and as my shoulder had been giving me a lot of jip recently I told him about this (may as well give it a go!).  I then had to strip my top off and sit with my back to him, he then produced a plant that was a cross between a stinging nettle and a cactus and proceeded to thrash me around the shoulder with it whilst doing his blowing noises (much to the amusement of Shell).  After a while it did start to hurt and when he finished I had a very red shoulder with lots of small spines in it.  I think it did stop the pain in my shoulder as it had gone numb a bit like tiger balm, but it did not last and I spent the rest of the day removing small spines from my shoulder.  I am still not a believer in alternative medicine!!

 

 

From the shamens house  we trekked back to the boat, almost getting lost as the guide had stayed back to get his own treatment, then we rode the boat back in the rain to the lodge where we had an hour or so to relax before our next activity.

Next up we were going back up river to visit the big lagoon again, but as we travelled along we spotted another tourist boat alongside the riverbank and found that they had spotted an Anaconda. We pulled alongside them to have a look,  it wasn’t the biggest of specimens (a baby at about 3 foot)  but we were lucky to see it as during the dry season it is very rare to see them.

We then headed to the great lagoon and we were surprised to see how it had changed after two days of torrential rain, it was now pretty much filled up.   The whole vista had changed and the lake had come back and claimed some of the trees back, which made for a much prettier scene than two days previously.

 

As it was dusk we headed into the lake and motored around and as it got dark and we were weaving around the trees the guide picked up another caiman submerged next to one of the trees.  So we went over and had a closer look at it, the guide was considering trying to grab it to get us a better look at it but he judged that maybe it was too big to risk it.

 

Heading back to the lodge along the river we continued to spot caiman eyes everywhere and went for another close up.  As we motored on incredibly the guide picked up some snake eyes in the forest next to us, but after trying to point it out and us failing to see it, he pulled into the bank.  He headed up the bank and then pulled some branches away and bought it back to the boat so we could get a close up view of the Boa snake he had brought back on the branch.  Again it was only a small snake but still nice to see and we appreciated our guides extra efforts to show it to us.

 

Returning to the lodge we then had another pretty decent meal before heading to the bar area where we had some drinks.  As we relaxed we started speaking to a couple of French guys who had been travelling for two years and so we had lots of stories to tell and advice to share with each other.

As we had enjoyed it so much we tried to see if we could extend our stay for another day, the guide told us it would be possible and was told that it would cost $100 for both of us.  However when we went to pay the people that ran the lodge they said it would be $100 per person, which was a bit of a rip-off considering what we had paid for the three night, so sadly we had to decline.

As we had an early activity the next morning before we left the jungle we said our goodnights and headed to bed and left the guys as it seemed they were set for a bit of a session.

Day 4 – Goodbye Amazon Basin!

Up bright and early for 6am this morning to go on our final bird spotting expedition and remarkably the sun had come out and it was dry for once.

Back in the boat we headed back up stream and spotted some more stinky turkeys, macaws and various other birds.  We then stopped as the guide had spotted some black monkeys in the canopy overhead, so we sat and watched them for a while.

 

Motoring along again the guide suddenly spotted the pink dolphins again (of David Attenborough fame) so we stopped and pulled into the bank where we sat and watched them for around 15 minutes.  We were very pleased to get a last chance to see them again.  After numerous attempts to get a photo, the below is Shell’s best shot (it’s a pink dolphin, honestly!).

 

 

A bit more bird spotting and then we returned to the lodge to have our breakfast before heading back to the room for showers and to pack our damp clothes (nothing dries as it is so humid here).  We then headed back to the jetty to get the motor boat to take us out of the park.

The ride back was very pleasant in the sunshine and you sort of go into a trance as you watch the jungle scenery go past, but there was little in the way of animal spotting as our guide had remained at the lodge.

 

We arrived back at the entrance to the park around 11am and then were given box lunches whilst we waited for our mini-bus to take us back to Lago Agrio.  After eating we waited around for the mini-bus that didn’t seem to be arriving, so some local taxi’s were rounded up for us and we then had a two hour drive in which we tried to doze.

Arriving at the bus terminal we were lucky enough to find that a bus was leaving for Quito in 20 minutes so we purchased some tickets and waited.  Boarding the public bus we were surprised to discover it was more comfortable than the tourist bus we had caught here a few days earlier.

Again, it was a long 8 hour drive back to Quito but we filled it watching the scenery, reading and sleeping.  Finally arriving back in Quito around 8ish we got off the bus and went in search of a taxi, moments later we realised that we had left a bag with our rain jackets and toiletries on the bus, but it was too late the bus had left (hope it’s hot in Columbia and we don’t need rain jackets!!).

We found a nearby café and bought some filled rolls to take back to the hostel and then we found a taxi and caught it back to our hostel.  We collected our main luggage from reception and checked back into one of their rooms.

We fell asleep quite quickly, I think we were actually knocked out by the stench of our now very smelly and amazon soaked sandals.