It is hard to believe that it was only a short week ago that all of us came to the Amazon, all with different expectations and ideas about what the this adventure would hold for us. In the beginning every bird, every plant was new. The systems that are constantly at work here were things we had only heard about from magazines or movies on the National Geographic channel.
Now, as our skiff navigates through the muddy water of the Zapote River, guests call out the names of birds we are passing. Black colored hawk, ringed kingfisher, large billed tern, it is amazing how much we have learned in these few days. But even on this last full day of exploration, the jungle has surprises for us. As we slow our skiff to view a small community on the river's edge, our driver Primo calls to our guide with a new excitement in his voice. Pointing high on the top of a tree there is a silhouette of a large hawk-like bird. A harpy eagle says our guide Javier, and everyone quickly grabs binoculars and cameras. The harpy eagle is the holy grail of birds in the world of birders who come to the Amazon to add to their lists. It is the largest bird of prey in the world and there it is in plain sight. If the guests are not aware of how incredible a sight this is, they soon realize it from the sound of the voices of the guides on the radio as we inform the other skiffs of our find. In the Amazon there are the big three animals that in most cases, one could only dream of seeing. In the water it is the anaconda, on the land it is the jaguar, and in the air it is the harpy eagle. So far this trip we have seen both the anaconda and the harpy eagle. We cannot believe our luck.
This morning and for the past few days we have had overcast skies, but then during lunch the sun comes out and the sky above us is blue except for a few pure white clouds. Now, the idea that this would be the end of our adventure in the forest seems to permeate the group. After learning to search every treetop, every shadow, watching for any movement in the canopy, this skiff ride would be filled with quiet contemplation of the reflections in the backwater river. The jaguar would have to wait for another time, another adventure. It is good to have a reason to return to this forest we have come to love.
