Sapuena Village and Yanallpa Caño
One of the surprising joys of exploring the upper Amazon of Peru is encountering the locals living along the rivers. Whether it be the volunteer park guards protecting the wildlife we look at, the random fisherman we meet to discuss his catch, or the friendly children, we are always amazed by the happiness of the people here. Today we encountered people while on our skiffs, and we also visited a community to explore their ecosystem a bit.
The village of Sapuena is a lovely community on a bend in the Ucayali River. With a paved “main street” of a single sidewalk, it is a great place for an introduction to the people who live along the rivers here. Whether it be the recent rice harvest, the abundant fish, a bunch of bananas, or the staple product of yuca, food is plentiful here. With a secondary school, the children have opportunities for an education here, and we experienced a bit about this. I’m not sure our singing of “Take me out to the ball game” helped them too much, but we did all benefit from our overall experience today.
To add to our knowledge, a couple of onboard presentations further complimented our experience. The making of Juanes is a tradition here, and we helped create lunch. Wrapping rice, chicken, veggies, and spices in the leaves of a Marantaceae plant, we enjoyed the delicious flavors of some local creations. One of our guides, Jesus, thrilled us with a presentation on native cultures. With amazing stories and some wonderful images, he helped complete the picture of the local people.
In the late afternoon we explored the tiny stream of Yanallpa Caño. A new ranger station is being built at the mouth, and the protection provided by the local community park guards was evident with the abundant wildlife we encountered from the skiffs. More importantly though, was the opportunity to enjoy the tranquility of this place. This narrow, blackwater stream with massive, tangled trees was why we come to places like this. And, as we exited the Caño and returned to the ship, a spectacular sunset greeted us. A monstrous thunderhead was ringed by crimson, while the crescent moon loomed to the high above.
