The Jungle Book - Day 3 - River Journey

Morning – The Perfect Storm

Right after breakfast we set out in the canoe for the three-hour journey down the Cuyabeno River to the Grand Lagoon. Along the way we would go fishing and see what wildlife we could see.

Both ventures proved very successful. Romulo caught a few big piranha for us to bring back to the lodge and eat, and we ended up seeing just about every animal we could have hoped to see – except the jaguar shark.

About an hour into the ride, we saw a colony of about two hundred squirrel monkeys in the trees along the river – jumping and eating and climbing. Later, on the ride back to the lodge, we saw a pair of big, hairy Parahuaco Negro monkeys. They were sitting high up in a tree and I don’t even know how Romulo spotted them. We sat and watched them for awhile and then they just jumped out of sight. Like, okay, I got to go. See you later. I wonder what they had to do?

Shortly after watching the squirrel monkeys, and right as Romulo mentioned that this is the part of the river where we might see river dolphins, two river dolphins began splashing around in the river.

We saw tons of birds, including a toucan and something called a stinky turkey. Apparently a stinky turkey gets its name from the smell it makes when it is cooked. That’s one way to protect yourself, I guess. Not sure how they taste.

Seeing a wild toucan was similar to when Rebecca and I saw parrots flying all over the Taj Mahal grounds in Agra, India a decade ago. We’ve all seen these birds before, but essentially, we’ve seen them behind bars. To see it flying around in the tree tops and then out of sight is a bit surreal.

We also saw a wild pigeon. It looked very similar to its city cousin. But not as fat.

The river changed as we got to nearer the Grand Lagoon. It flowed up over the banks and into the jungle so you couldn’t tell where the jungle began and the river ended. A few times, the driver aimed the canoe through these narrow channels between the trees and plants and we found ourselves, essentially, in the jungle instead of on the river.

As we finally came out into the Grand Lagoon, we headed to a camp the lodge has set up for overnight visits. We only docked to eat lunch, pee, and stretch out a bit (by this time it was nearly 2 p.m. and we’d left the lodge around 9.30 a.m.).

Just as we pulled into the camp, it began to rain. We could hear the rain coming over the palms and other trees and had just enough time to hustle under the covered area before the rain hit. Poor Maya had fallen asleep in the canoe and the rain in her face woke her. But that was okay, it was lunch time.

An hour later, as we piled back into the canoe to explore the lagoon, it stopped raining and the afternoon sun came out.

Afternoon – The Grand Lagoon

The Grand Lagoon is a deep lagoon connected to the Cuyabeno River. The Cuyabeno River eventually runs into the Napo River further east in Ecuador, which runs into the Amazon River in Brazil.

Because of the elevation and vegetation surrounding the Lagoon, the water is black. So when I opened my eyes underwater later when we were swimming, I saw nothing except a white haze above the surface. It was kind of spooky to look around and see nothing but dark.

In the middle of the lagoon, we all went swimming from the canoe, even Maya and Jonah.

Earlier, we had gone hunting for Caiman (which are small alligators) by splashing chicken parts here and there along the edges of the water. Before we jumped in we asked Romulo if Caiman came to the deep water and he said they did. We jumped in anyway, and even though the water was great and we all had fun, there was an undercurrent of nerves. I need both my legs.

While we were splashing about, Rebecca pointed out that all the things you are taught to do to scare fish away (splash) attract predators (piranha, caiman) in the jungle. It’s hard to swim quietly when Maya and Jonah are hanging on your neck trying to drown you.

Eventually we got back in the canoe and went to search out more caiman. We didn’t see any. That night some of the others in the group went out and did see some. Romulo picked it up, showed them how to hold it so it couldn’t nibble fingers, and they all got to take pictures holding a caiman. Rebecca and I and the kids were sleeping while all this was going on. Too bad.

The ride back to the lodge from the lagoon was in a perfect late afternoon sun. The way the light was cast on the trees and river was really idyllic. It made you feel like you were someplace special doing something that you would remember.