The Jungle Book - Day 4 - Back to Quito

Morning – A Second Jungle Walk

After breakfast, Jonah and I hit the river for a swim and Maya and Rebecca slipped into their boots for a walk in the jungle.

They saw some cool stuff. One of the things they did was leave the piranha jaws to be cleaned by ants.

They also learned about a walking palm tree. The tree sets roots down a meter closer to the river each year, drawing itself closer and closer. Eventually, it falls right into the river. Nobody said it was smart. This one still had a long way to go.

Here we are right before we board the canoe to leave. That's Maya giving Melissa a hug goodbye.

Afternoon – A New Driver

Rebecca had requested a different driver than the one who brought us to the lodge. Having survived the first trip, we didn’t want to push our luck.

The driver we got was good enough not to hit any animals. Along the way, we picked up six more adults and some kids who hopped right into the bed of the pick-up and shouted when they needed to get out. I felt kind of elitist to be the one sitting inside the truck when women and children sat in the bed, but at least it didn’t rain on them.

We got to the airport with nothing of consequence happening. Maya and Jonah at the airport waiting for our plane to arrive. When it landed, it turned around and headed back to Quito (with us in it). Lago Agrio does not have a very busy airport.

One annoying thing that happened on the drive was that the driver’s daughter, who was sitting in the passenger seat, kept throwing all their garbage (a liter coke bottle, a few plastic bags) out the window of the truck while all our garbage went into my pocket. Rebecca asked her why she did it, but she didn’t answer. We don’t think she heard the question. You would think these people would have a little more respect for their own home.