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I was up early for my flight to Puerto Maldonado which all went smoothly. The flight was a bit bumpy due to the rain which there has been lots of since I arrived. I was greeted at the airport by one of the guides and another couple and I were taken to the office to go over last minute details before we set out for the lodge. We went down to the river and travelled in a small boat to our destination. The city itself is already in the jungle but the lodge is definitely in the heart of it. The trip down was so beautiful and the river is just stunning. It started raining half way so we got a little damp but were welcomed by the staff with fresh passion fruit juice and a really yummy lunch. There are six other guests here at the moment so it's pretty quiet really! The accommodation is much larger than I thought it would be but my lodge is very quaint and homey. There is no power here other than a couple of hours in the evening and no hot water either. But it's quite nice to be away from all the technology and 'get back to nature'. After an hour or so settling in I headed to reception to meet my group, when a baby monkey took a shining to me. He climbed right up on to my shoulders and curled himself around my neck - he was called 'Miguel'. A tame one that lives around the lodges. It was such a magical moment! After a group of us were taken over to Monkey Island, my first outing into the wild. We took one of the small boats over and hopped out on to a random muddy bank. I liked that there wasn't a boardwalk or really a path as its so much more natural. Our guide lead us in to the rainforest in search of monkeys and any other animals, insects, birds we may find. And he definitely didn't disappoint. We saw two species of 'monos': the spider monkey and the cappuccino monkey. Both were amazing but very different. Our guide told us that the spider monkey has been known to attack and kill humans when they feel threatened in groups. He fed them some bananas which meant we were able to see them in action a bit jumping and swinging in the trees and vines. It was so amazing to see them in their natural habitat and they are incredible creatures. We continued our walk through the forest before reaching the river again and hopping back into the boat to be taken back to the lodges. Once back we had some time to relax so I headed to the hammocks that are on the water edge to do some reading and start my blog. After dinner we went out on a night cruise down the river looking for caimans. Alex gave us lots of information about the creatures and the river in general which was very interesting. We only spotted one caiman but it was cool to see the eyes in the dark. Apparently in the wet season it's harder to spot them because the water levels in the river are so high.
The next day we were up early and took the boat out to start our trek to Lago Apuvictor. Our guide Alex was great and gave us lots of information about the wildlife and plants in the jungle. It was amazing to trek through the jungle and experience the surroundings: the noise, the colours, the smells. We saw more monkeys, except this time they were howler ones, we also saw a tarantula and many species of birds including the blue macaw. Half way through the route we reached the lake where there was a look out. The views from the top were gorgeous, and you could see that the rainforest just went on and on. There was a row boat on the lake so we got to explore on the water as well. It was so peaceful and unlike anything else. After a while we started our walk back to the lodge where we had lunch waiting. After lunch we set out on another trek but only a short one this time: to Caiman Cocha. We were very lucky to see quite a few caiman when we arrived there, they were only small ones but still impressive. They made a very strange almost clicking sound which I wasn't expecting. It was only a small lagoon but I think it was even more breathtaking than the one from the morning. We saw lots of monkeys and birds on the other side of the lagoon who were swigging and flying between the trees. We saw a wild deer as well. It was incredibly hot and humid on the walk back so when we arrived to the lodge I headed straight for the swimming pool to cool off. It was heavenly. We had a nice dinner and glass of wine in the evening and the couple there were leaving in the morning so I would be the only one at the lodge! Talk about private treatment.
The next morning Alex and I went fishing!! My first ever experience and it was the Madre de Dios river in the Amazon! We headed down a small tributary off the side of the main river and parked the boat. We set up our rods and Alex told me we were hoping to catch piranhas! I had a bite on my rod but when I pulled it out there was no hook on the end anymore, that's how sharp their teeth are, they cut straight through the line. A little while later and a new hook, Ibadan another pull and this time I'd managed to catch a catfish! It was very funny looking but I was proud of myself. Obviously we put it back in the water even though Alex joked about how we wouldn't have any dinner cause we'd thrown it back. We decided to try another spot just along the bank of the main river to see if we could catch any more and guess what!? I caught a piranha! I was so unbelievably excited. Alex showed me its teeth and I couldn't get over how sharp they were, he told me they would easily go through my finger if I put it in its mouth. Yikes! After all the excitement we headed back to the lodge for lunch. It was a really chilled afternoon and I had a tour of the botanical gardens with Alex. He was telling me about all the trees and their medical purposes, natural remedies that the locals use. It was incredible how many things they could cure with just the trees and plants of the rainforest. The weather wasn't great and I had been feeling very poorly with a stomach upset so I relaxed in the hammocks for the remainder of the day.
My last full day in the Amazon and unfortunately I was feeling very ill. I'm not sure if it was the water or the food or what. We had our earliest start of 5am and our longest trek too. But it was definitely the best. The track we took through the jungle was really interesting and had some stunning views. A lot of it was flooded which made it more interesting, wading through the trees when the water was up to our knees. We had a different guide for this one, and another couple had arrived so I wasn't alone. Eliot and I talked a lot in Spanish which was good as I was able to keep practicing but when I didn't know certain words his english was very good so he could translate. The couple was French and their english wasn't great, and they didn't talk Spanish either so I think they struggled a bit. Our trek was to the Perdida Cocha (the Lost Lagoon) where there was another look out, even higher than the last one. We'd been walking for hours and it was a welcome sight when we could sit down and take in the views from the top. The humidity was so high! We were a bit confused as to where the lagoon was but it was hidden amongst the trees. Again we had a boat to explore, but it was literally in the trees. There wasn't really a big opening of water but instead it spread out in the rainforest. It was so magical, rowing quietly through the beautiful setting. We saw a few small caiman as well. Once we got back to our start point we had a short walk before we reached a small river where we took a boat most of the way back. It started to rain quite heavily but even that was quite a magical experience. We saw turtles and fish, and more birds. We even saw a large caiman that made a huge splash and thrashed it's body around as a warning which startled the other lady! Once off the boat we had maybe another km before we reached the main river and caught a lift back to the lodge. We were all exhausted and hungry so lunch was even better. After showering and freshening up I took to the hammocks again where my monkey friends showed up and I had lots of cuddles. I was going to really miss them! They were so adorable and cuddly, and the baby one Miguel really acted like a baby, clinging on to you. I still wasn't feeling great but the walk and fresh air was definitely good for me.
The next morning we set off around 7am down the river back to Puerto Maldonado to catch our planes. It was such a fantastic experience that I was sad to leave and I couldn't believe how fast the time had gone!
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