No extended trip to South America is complete without a trip to the Amazon rainforest right? I explored the rainforest by staying in a jungle lodge a few hours away from Manaus, Brazil. I did it during the time when the water level in the Amazon River is at its highest & the surrounding jungle is flooded. Quietly gliding in your canoe through the flooded forest is pretty great & the reason to go when the Amazon is high is it increases the likelihood you get to see super cool land-based animals as flooded forests mean less places for those super cool animals to hangout. The river rises & falls by 12-15m annually so when it’s flooded, it puts you that much closer to the jungle canopy where monkeys & cats hang out & birds like to roost. It can make it more difficult to see water-based animals but that clearly wasn’t my experience.
I was able to tick off the following amazing creepy creatures, among others:
Amazon river dolphin
Caiman (alligator)
Piranha
Howler monkey
Boa constrictor
Tarantula
Giant otherworldly MF mosquito
It was because of the mosquitos mentioned above that will most likely make the Amazon a one-and-done destination for me. You see, I’ve always known mosquitos liked me. Now I know I react to bites a little more extreme than the normal person. Of 20 people staying at the lodge, I was 1 of 2 whose bites swelled up to ½ to 1-inch & itched like a MF. I looked diseased as I was covered head-to-toe in massive bites. This was despite dousing myself with deet, wearing long socks & hiking boots, hiking pants, long sleeves, neck gaiter, etc. in 90 degree heat & crazy humidity, then dousing myself again once fully clothed. I had 30-40 bites just on one knee. Bites on the bottom of my feet despite socks & boots. It didn’t matter what you did to prevent them from eating you alive. You couldn’t deter those MFs. It was really something. But while everyone else was also getting bitten, no one was reacting as I was. So sleeping was difficult as I spent all night either itching or trying not to itch or shooing away other mosquitos that had somehow found their way into my mosquito net. So 3 nights was enough. Am I glad I went? Yes, absolutely. Will I return? Not a chance. But I’ll have permanent bite scars to remind me forever of my Amazon experience.
The “meeting of the waters” at the junction of the Amazon River (whitewater which is really pale sandy-colored) & the Rio Negro (blackwater). The wild phenomenon is due to the differences in temperature, speed and water density of the two rivers.Arriving to the jungle lodge via boat #2. Traveling from Manaus, we took a van to the port, a small boat, a van & a 2nd boat. All in, it was probably 4-5hrs of travel time.This was my crew of 5 guests & our guide (in rear). Not pictured was our amazing 18yo boatman. Because rainy season had just ended, I visited during high water which means we did most of the exploring via boat. Yes, we had a motor that was used to cover long distances. Oars were used when we were trying to be quiet sneaking up on something good. Like when we went caiman spotting at night. Supposedly caimans sleep during the day & hunt at night. It’s quite easy to spot them if equipped with a powerful flashlight as their eyes, barely above the water’s surface, glow an eerie red in the light. We came in hot after spotting one & our guide scooped up a little caiman, held closed its snout & steady its tail as he schooled us on the species & then released it when he thought he heard mama making some noise.Goin in. It was during one of these jungle explorations via boat that we saw (& camped out underneath) a giant boa constrictor wrapped around a tree.
LOVED our multiple daily boat trips exploring the river & jungle. We lucked out & on our first outing, we came upon a massive family of fresh water dolphins. While most were swimming along with our boat, doing simple dives, one decided to show off & came completely out of the water in a dramatic jump & our guide informed us it was a very rare occurrence. Duh.Swimming off the dock in piranha-infested waters with a nearby sleeping giant caiman. It was hot & humid & apparently (1) piranhas only bite if there’s fresh blood/meat so before jumping in, I did a quick once over to ensure no bites were currently bleeding & (2) caimans sleep during the day so I was assured the giant black caiman I saw the night before immediately in front of our dock while hunting wasn’t going to bother us even while sleeping 10yds away underwater in its “home”. And now I get to say I swam with piranhas & caimans. I didn’t even know that was on my bucket list.We did do a couple jungle hikes which were great but I was literally eaten alive by massive mosquitos.Acai tree
Spoils of piranha fishing. Bait was raw red meat. And they loved it.They are small little fuckers but wow are their teeth sharp. No, I didn’t hold one.I don’t think I need to eat piranhas again. Lots of bones & lots of work for very little reward.
amusemusings 
Oh my. It was fun reading but I don’t know how you did those things.
LikeLike
Incredible!! Not sure how she does it, Barb, but hard to believe one does this stuff for pleasure! How I admire her!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Question: you actually camped under the boa constrictor? How did you know it wasn’t hungry?
LikeLike
You described it so vividly- I’m now certain I’d like to go…but for 1-2 days ;). Loved seeing the pics after your stories! What an experience.
LikeLike