This is our first full day in the Upper Amazon surrounded by the tallest trees and the sounds of insects and birds. We started our day early with the first sun rays shed on the forest and its creatures. At 0600 we were ready to board our fleet of skiffs and head out looking for wildlife. We started exploring the riverbank along the forest edge; it didn’t take long before we spotted different types of birds. We saw some raptors like the plumbeous kite, yellow-headed caracaras, swallows, yellow-rumped caciques, and finally the best of all: a colony of thousands of large-billed terns covering an entire beach!
This day started with sunshine and a cool breeze that allowed us to explore the Amazon Natural Park. We walked among giant trees; this place is pristine, and no tree here has ever been cut. Yesterday Mother Nature gave us and the forest the most precious gift — lots of rain, from evening until midnight or so. We loved hearing the forest with its sounds of water drops and birds all around. Here, we found palm trees that are good for almost everything among the native communities. Fronds are used to make roofs, and the fruits are used to make meals, ice cream, and oil! Some trees are seen as a special gift to the local people.
In the afternoon we navigated to another location on the Maranon River. Here we boarded the fleet of skiffs to explore Yanayacu River for the afternoon until sunset. This river is made of black water that flows through the forest and eventually reaches the larger Maranon; a few miles down this meets the Ucayali, to create the mighty Amazon River. This eventually reaches Brazil to finally discharge its whole volume into the Atlantic Ocean. The mouth of the Amazon River is 240 kilometers wide and pushes into the ocean water for miles on end!
As we explored we had many interesting sightings such as herons, egrets, baby capybaras, and many other birds. We enjoyed especially close views of some capped herons and a great egret.
Another amazing day in the vast jungle!
