Pacaya River
Our journey continued today with the exploration of the Pacaya River, which winds its way deep into the Pacaya-Samiria Reserve. At sunrise and sunset today, we were on the river, with barely a cloud in the sky. From the cool morning temperatures, to the warmer tones of the afternoon, we not only had a wildlife extravaganza but a visual one as well.
Parrots, parakeets, and macaws were abundant all day long. For quite a while in the morning, nearly every tree had some of these noisy birds in them. Like many other places we have visited this week, water levels are dropping fast and fish are being concentrated. A few fish jumped into our skiffs, but many more were eaten by the thousands of cormorants that filled the trees like a mosaic. Joining the cormorants once again were lots of egrets, wood storks, jabirus, hawks, and kingfishers.
With the heat of the day, turtles were out basking. This time of year they crawl onto the recently exposed banks to lay their eggs, and we witnessed a few of these near sunset. Also near sunset, many monkeys became active such as squirrel monkeys, capuchin, and the monk saki. The howler monkeys we saw, take another approach. Towards sunset they typically climb high into a tree and lay sprawled along some of the highest branches around. Their russet red color in the fading light was a beautiful sight.
Add to this a spectacular lake called Yanayacu, with pink river dolphins swimming nearby, and you have a gorgeous swimming pool. Most of us elected to go for a dip, and the warm waters did not disappoint. A cold cerveza while floating in the middle of the Amazon basin is an incredible way to spend an afternoon.
We returned back to the Delfin II with yet again another spectacular sunset. The massive Ceiba trees that lined the bank made for some gorgeous silhouettes against the fiery sky. And as we got ready for dinner, a brilliant orange nearly full moon rose over the river as we headed towards tomorrow's destination.
