Creatures of the Jungle

In the morning, began the second leg of our journey to the Kapawi Eco Lodge and Reserve built and managed by the Achuar people.  This consisted of a one hour flight in a small, six person plane and a thirty minute canoe ride.  In the end, this proved to be one of the best days on the world trip, and this is why.

I could hear the loud sound of the small propeller and feel the air turbulence under the airplane.  With the three of us on the plane, was a pilot and an Ecuadorean guide who would teach us the ways of the jungle once we had arrived.  Below the small plane was vast jungle as far as the eye could see.   We seldom saw any villages and the few we did see consisted of about eight huts made with only materials of the jungle.  Occasionally, we saw rivers or streams, vast, twisting and beautiful.   “Are we in the Amazon yet?” I asked Monica, our guide.  An “Oh yeah” could be faintly heard under the sound of the plane.





Soon, the plane was coming in for a smooth landing on a dirt runway in a small Achuar village.  Once we got off the plane, we were greeted by a group of natives.   One, with traditional face painting, was apparently the manager of the lodge.  Around the runway, there were about five huts out of which came children playing and smiling.  The hut's roofs were made out of the Turujii plant, grown and hand cut from the surrounding jungle.  The huts had no walls, only a ceiling for protection from rain.  This fascinated me, but soon I was pulled away from my thoughts.  The trip was not over and the final step lay before us:  The canoe ride.

Two Achaur men, Monica, and the three of us were loaded onto a small and narrow motorized canoe.  This reminded me much of the longtail boats in Thailand, but these were better made and simpler.  Soon we were propelled through the water and were taken on a long boat ride through the jungle.  After about thirty minutes on the boat, we came to a small boardwalk leading up into the jungle.  Here the canoe was tied up and the luggage unloaded.  We had reached the Kapawi Lodge. 



After following the boardwalk for about five minutes, we came to the lodge.  Here the boardwalk divided into several smaller paths leading to numerous cabins.  Straight past all the cabins,  we came to a dining hut and a lounge hut.  All the buildings were made by the Achuar, following the same design and style that they use to build their own huts.   The boardwalk and all the cabins overlook a small lagoon and vast forest.  My dad and I took a walk through the forest this afternoon and it was sick!  We saw ants carrying leaves to their nests.  We saw many butterflies, moths, and some cool trees.  We had made it to the Amazon! 



I love the Amazon and this lodge.  Did you know that this lodge actually has wifi and outlets powered by solar panels?  It is so cool.  Tonight we are going out to see some nocturnal animals!  I am so excited!  

Two Walking Stick Bugs Mating

Thank you for reading Rohan Geographic!