Welcome to the jungle 6/7/11
Up at 630 to catch a cab to the airport. How is it a damn city in Ecuador can have free wi-fi at the airport and we can’t get it in Silicon Valley? After a 25 min flight to Lago Agrio (yeah I know we’re roughing it) and listening to three valley girls discuss world issues (not really- and they all had matching purses and Tom’s shoes), we boarded the Land Rover for the two hour drive to the next destination. It’s amazing how much the temperature can change. Quito was a bit cool and just a 25 min flight away it’s so hot and muggy. The drive over the windy Amazon Basin roads was beautiful. We stopped to take a picture of a tall tree that’s very common in the Amazon. It had roots hanging down from it to capture all the moisture in the air. About 1.5 hours in we drove over a hill atop where we could see above all the trees- so beautiful!
We made it to Cuyabeno to eat a sandwich with fruit. We paid our $2 entrance fee and waited an hour plus for others to arrive. We got on a canoe (with a motor) for our 3 hour boat ride through the Amazon Basin down the Rio Aguarico. Along the way we saw Squirrel Monkeys, Pink Dolphins (they weren’t pink though because they were young), Vultures, and many other birds. The Captain was going through these breakoffs from the main river, if we needed to get out of The Oriente we would never know how. They dropped us off where we are staying, a little clearing with four huts that were all on stilts (so all the snakes won’t come in) and a high tower for watching birds. This place was perfect! Out in The Oriente, in the Amazon Basin, at Laguna Grande 3 hours via boat from the closest road. Just what we were looking for!
The other tourists weren’t here so we had some cervesas and relaxed. When they arrived we went swimming in the lagoon nearby trying not to think about all the creatures that are in the murky water. There were many thermoclines in the water which really surprised me. The sunset on the lagoon might have been the most beautiful sunset I’ve seen. Colors all over the sky, reflecting off the water. Before we left Neiser (the guide- totally Rambo style with camo and a machete) jumped in a tree to try to get some cell phone reception, but it didn’t work.
As soon as it was dark we headed on our night hike in the deep jungle. It was amazing! We saw Scorpion Spiders (Andy held one), Wolf Spiders (Neiser gave one a fish to eat- caught it with his hands), Leftcutter Ants, Poison Dart Frog, a Glass Frog, and the largest Cricket I’ve seen. This thing had the largest mandibles on a bug- it could do major damage. At one point we all turned off our lights to listen to the jungle and a bat flew near Andy’s face. The hike was amazing! I only felt comfortable because Rambo was guiding us.
On the boat ride back he spotted a juvenile green Boa Constrictor in the trees- very beautiful. He also found a Caiman (like a crocadile) down a tributary by seeing its glowing eye in the dark. The boat made it through the narrow water and stopped right beside it. Everything was going smoothly until it freaked out and splashed around to get away. Erin, the backpacker Kiwi, freaked out and thought it was jumping in the boat. The Austrian girl in front of her also yelled and freaked, Andy moved to the side “so he wouldn’t get wet” but I think it freaked him out too. I yelled ‘oh god!’ because I thought the boat was going to capsize. Chaos. Neiser wasn’t impressed with the female reaction because we were so close to the Caiman and it’s rare to get so close. We finally ate dinner at 830 and I was exhausted from the day of travelling and heat. Off to our hut with no electricity and a mosquito net. Very excited about our stay here!