Puerto Maldonado

PUERTO MALDONADO
Amazone survived

Thursday the 14th we took the bus to the Amazon Forest, a 12h bus trip which made us arriving the next day in the very early morning, around 2:00 AM in Puerto Maldonado.

Before leaving Puno, we went with a motorized tricycle taxi to the handicraft market to negotiate some souvenirs spotted the previous day (table cloth, Peruvian hat, and so on).

Investigations in Puno's nearby bus terminal learned us that there was no direct bus to Puerto Maldonado.

So we took a collectivo (shared taxi) to the nearby bigger town, Juliaca, and from there we experienced the very local 4 wheel drive bus. The bus agent promised us the bus was 'direct, no stops', but this was not true at all. All along the long road people hopped on and of. We were the only foreigners. Around midnight a fat woman traveling on our bus suddenly launched me (and also other passengers) a carton of cigarettes on the knees.  Police and customs stopped the bus.  Of course I quickly passed the box to somebody else (just like a hot potato). I don't know where it arrived.

The bus being loaded in Juliaca.

The customs didn't found anything, while the police was severe with two girls. After the inspections the woman got difficulties to collect her boxes (as could be expected), but she didn't end in jail.

Fortunately, despite the night time, a tricycle taxi was still available in Puerto Maldonado to bring us from the bus stop to the hostel.

The door to the hostel garden was closed and it was all dark, multiple wild dogs were observing us. Finally we found a cord connected to a primitive bell. After ringing for ten minutes the light switched on in one room, then another room, and finally in the lobby. The night guard arrived nude with a pillow hiding part of his body. He promised us to open the door as soon as possible, after having changed clothes and after having found the key... To make the story short: we were in bed one hour later, that was 3:30 AM.

After a short sleep we had breakfast. Discussing with an American family we decided to join them on a three days jungle tour with guide (two nights to spent in a lodge). So we quickly prepared a stripped-down backpack.

The boat landing on the Madre de Dios river near to the reserve.

The jungle tour started with a one hour descent of the large Madre de Dios river in a wooden boat. We were put on land and had to walk to the limit of the Tambopata reserve.

A ranger gave us instructions on how to behave. His main concern was on the litter we could leave, while the lake contains piranhas, stingrays, caymans, the forest houses big spiders and ants, aggressive monkeys (see later). One hour more walking through the mud brought us to a canal where we took a wooden canoo for the lake.

The canoe in the canal.

During these three days we used that canoe for explorations on the lake (sunrise, sunset, day). We also made multiple forest walks (day, night). The lake housed a seven members giant otter family (they are 2 meters long!). The lodge was nice and we were in good company.

Food in the lodge.

I took the risk to swim in the lake during free time: no piranha or cayman bite.
We tasted nut worms too.

Spider near to our lodge hut.

During one of the explorations we met an aggressive spider monkey. The guide protected us moving with his machete and talking loudly. We had to take a wooden stick and walk back to the canoe. The monkey could have jumped on the canoe. Fortunately he stayed on land.

The spider monkey, ready to jump in our canoe.

Sunday 19, after lunch, we left the jungle reserve, walked back through the mud, took the boat, quickly collected our luggage from the hostel and rushed to the bus terminal for the bus to Arequipa.

And that bus ride we had it very cold, it was freezing in the bus. more details later.

Me climbing in a giant tree.

Giant otter eating a piranha fish.

The dream team (our guide in the middle).

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