Casual and Yanayacu-Pucate Rivers
Last night we arrived in Nauta to find that the Marañon River is higher right now than it has been in many years! Our adventure in the Amazon basin began immediately; we were welcomed with a hastily made boardwalk rather than in the elegant, riverside reception hall which is under about 4 meters of water! We were delighted with our large, airy and beautifully decorated cabins and soon gathered on the top deck for the welcome aboard briefing. During dinner we travelled an hour and a half—about 10 miles upstream—before tying up on the northern bank of the river for the night. We slept peacefully, comfortable and cool in our cabins, and woke refreshed to a sunny, humid day.
After an abundant breakfast buffet we boarded the skiffs for our first rain forest outing. Most of our group went for a walk with naturalists Reny and Luis on a muddy trail under the large shady forest trees. Our naturalists pointed out many plants: fruits, liana vines, bromeliads, palms and ficus trees. The vegetation was exuberant and our guides shared their knowledge of plant identification and food/medicinal value. Local guides who accompanied us found brightly colored poison arrow frogs, and caught a small, well-camouflaged lizard. Noisy oropendulas and caciques flitted overhead in the canopy, but were hard to see from so far below. The naturalists assured us we would see plenty of bird species easily from the skiffs later on this week.
When we reached an enormous strangler fig that dwarfs the pair of palm trees it has wrapped with its killing embrace, we took turns swinging on a liana vine, for a moment enjoying the breeze and the childhood thrill of a swing. Strangler figs start in the canopy as a tiny seed left behind by a bird. They send roots to the ground and once fastened there and able to obtain nutrients from the soil, they grow quickly into huge trees that smoother the host tree that originally supported them.
A highlight this morning was seeing a kinkajou high up in a tree. A sharp-eyed guest spotted the movement and Luis identified this rarely seen, mostly nocturnal mammal for us. When we returned to the skiffs we found a small handicrafts market had been set up by the inhabitants of a small nearby town. We admired their handicrafts and bought a few pretty and unique items.
Half a dozen of our group enjoyed a skiff ride this morning rather than the walk. Naturalist Reny and skiff driver supreme Primo took them up a narrow caño (creek) in search of wildlife. They spotted many species and liked the scenery and lush vegetation, and a good view of a laughing falcon and a group of saddle-backed tamarin monkeys made those who did not see these species a bit jealous. We have the entire week ahead of us, however and much, much more yet to see!
We had a mandatory safety drill, a talk about the Amazon Basin and an introduction to the Pacaya-Samiri Reserve before lunch and siesta. As the afternoon began to cool we headed out in the skiffs to explore the Yanayacu-Pucate Rivers. We were excited to observe a variety of wildlife on this outing, including monk sakis, gorgeous scarlet macaws, a well-camouflaged sloth high in a tree, a large wren called a black-capped donacobious and a black collared hawk that carried off a dead fish. Our successful day ended with spirited music and singing performed by our talented crew!
