Yanallpa Caño & Rio Dorado
Once again by 6:30 am we were in our skiffs and on our way. There had been some fog during the night, so after leaving the ship by skiff we cruised the shoreline of the Ucayali River for about a mile before reaching the entrance to the small, narrow waterway known as “Yanallpa” for the community located nearby.
Earlier, I had come up on deck for my early morning coffee and some quiet time at the ship's railing (in a comfortable chair) to see the Amazon wake up. Just when some other folk joined me we had passed a flock of over two dozen hoatzins! These are normally birds that like the calm banks of lagoons, so to see them unexpected along the big Ucayali was a treat!
The entire morning turned out to be a treat, as it turned out. Still on the Ucayali we spotted a flock of gorgeous blue-and-yellow macaws that stayed in their tree long enough for absolutely everyone to get a good look. Noisy, they flashed their colors as the moved from branch to branch. Then within minutes of entering the narrow stream we came upon a flock of Scarlett macaws! Wow! Soon a troop of saddle-backed tamarins were heard first, then seen. They have a high-pitched, piercing call, and this morning everyone had something to say. Overhead, they moved around searching out insects, nectar and fruits until our necks told us to move on. But then on the other side of the creek someone spotted a pair of the elusive Monk Saki – monkeys with thick, brushy tails, gray hands and feet, and the face of an ancient wise man. For a while they were on their way to localized extinction because of that wonderful tail – hunted to make household dusters! Now inside the reserve they seem to be doing well, but still difficult to see.
Araçaris, kingfishers, hawks – our familiar friends were also there, surrounded by the sounds of cicadas buzzing, frogs croaking, and mysterious birds calling back inside the dim forest beyond.
After breakfast and before lunch we had several things going on up on the top deck: I gave a talk on Amazonian geology, our executive chef, Isaac, gave a demonstration on how to make “juanes,” a typical and traditional Amazonian dish using bijao leaves, rice, chicken, olives and various spices. We also fit in another run-down of our wildlife checklist, because if we don't do it daily, we'll loose track of all the sightings when and where!
The afternoon started late because we intended to return late. Our travels were up the Rio Dorado, a waterway which comes from deep inside the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve. With the cloud cover, the temperature was just about perfect and the water was high – possibly as high as it will get this year, but we can only wait to find out if true. Blue-and-yellow macaws were flying overhead fairly frequently, but sloths were our goal, and we saw them well. In fact one young individual was found in a low tree and soaking wet. It was obvious he had just swam over from another tree, so by the time our skiff arrived, he was just hanging there looking bedraggled, perhaps considering his options at this point.
Saddle-backed tamarins were heard, and another sighting, though brief, was had of the densely-furred Monk saki. On the return we searched for caimans, and were successful in finding spectacled caimans. The Pacaya-Samiria Reserve was originally formed for the protection of specific endangered species, and the black caiman is one. Perhaps tomorrow night!
Back for showers, dinner and a bit of music before retiring for the night!
