It is our first day of exploration at the Upper Amazon in Peru. We are visiting Casual, which is a place where we found a wide biodiversity of animals and plants. To walk into the jungle is a unique experience for all our guests, with every step you find a little butterfly, or a tarantula, until you see a big anaconda! The trees are huge and tall and it is difficult to see the sky; each plant plays a very important role for the wildlife or even for the life of local people. You find some plants that are medicinal, others that are used to build houses or boats, there are fruits for animals and people and others are shelter and protection for some species. Each piece of this complex ecosystem is admirable and gives us a real understanding of the power of Mother Earth.
At 6:00 a.m. we went to explore the jungle, along the creeks, early in the morning onboard three skiffs with the leading of our fearless guides. At this time of the day the bird’s activity is very high and we were pleased to find a wide diversity of fauna. Afterwards, we came back onboard Delfin II to have breakfast and then to go out again to walk on “terra firme” to explore the area, with the help of some locals to find creatures that are hidden in the greenery of the jungle. Wearing rubber boots on our feet we walked on land, when suddenly from the vegetation came a local boy holding a big leaf, and on the top of it, a big tarantula! “They are not poisonous,” he said, with a big smile in his face. And it continued! They found frogs that are colorful and measure as the size of our fingernail, among other creatures; we were lucky that morning, we found a boa constrictor, an anaconda snake. Rubber trees are also interesting to see and to learn about the rubber boom few years at the amazon, when synthetic rubber was not yet invented and the real source of this material was Mother Nature.
In the afternoon we motored along the Marañon River for about three hours before arriving to Nauta Creek. Some of us came on ours skiffs to explore this river stream in which we spotted monkeys, several types of tanagers, king fishers, herons, and some members of the raptors found in the jungle such as kites, hawks and falcons. Other intrepid guests went to explore the same place, but on kayaks.
At the end of the day we returned to our ship safe and sound, with happy guests after having a great day in the jungle. And it is just the beginning of a great week. Every night our knowledgeable guides prepare a recap session of what we have seen during the day, then our expedition leader explains the next day activities, then we enjoy dinner made with local products. The food is just great!
