Our first morning in the Amazon dawned beautiful and clear. We were up with the sun, and excited to open our curtains and get our first look at the Amazon in the daylight. Some of us looked straight into the lush green of the rain forest and others had the wide Marañon River right outside our windows. On the river, up well before us, were local people using dugout canoes (the local vehicle of choice) to go about their daily activities. Some canoes built for just one person with a paddle, others, bigger with a small motor and carrying a family of six.
After breakfast we went for our first hike in the forest. It was a chance to see this lush paradise up close, learn about the rain forest and also learn the local uses for many of these plants. We learned which plants to grow around the house to keep bad energy away, which ones to build with, what to drink to get rid of parasites, how to use termites as insect repellent, and what sap to use to heal scars. We also, with the help of a guide from the nearby community, got to see some of the harder to find forest inhabitants—poison dart frogs, matamata turtles, a bird-killing tarantula, yellow-footed tortoise, and a seven-foot long red-tailed boa. Quite an impressive collection from such a small area.
In the late afternoon we boarded our skiffs again for another excursion, this time into the the Yanayacu (which means black water) and the Pucate Rivers. Each group saw something different, but one highlight for us all was many close sightings of the pink river dolphins—hard to photograph (they come up with no warning), but exciting to watch. Other highlights included black-collared hawks, great black hawks, flocks of parrots flying overhead, a group of over 300 great egrets on the shore of a lake and interacting with a local fisherman who let us look at an armored catfish he had caught.
We ended our day with another delicious meal of local foods and then a surprise treat of amazing music played by several of the crew aboard. What a delightful way to end a fun and full day.
