Today was our rest day, with no early wake-up knock, a plan intended to save our energies for a later night walk. After our delightful breakfast, we disembarked at a fish farm whose owner has dedicated himself to protecting an area of primary forest and offering it as a visiting area featuring broad trails and a series of canopy hanging bridges. There was pouring rain when we started our visit, and it continued for the rest of the morning. This is why they call this the “rain forest.”
We boarded small wooden local catamarans with no other engines but our guests’ rowing force, so it was us who crossed a small lagoon. We hiked for two-and-a-half miles along a terra firma area. Our local naturalist guides made several stops to explain the relationships of plants and animals, as well as the many medicinal plants that can be found in the forest. Most species of animals are found to live exclusively in the top layer of the forest, or canopy, and never visit the floor. The rest inhabit the floor where only five percent of the sun’s light reaches the plants. After, we walked along the swinging liana bridges and enjoyed the spiders and other creatures that live there, we learned about the rubber tree, the walking tree, and the monkey ladder liana, all of them just along the trail.
After a delicious lunch, with a typical Amazonas ice cream as dessert, we explored a small river branch by skiffs and kayak. We enjoyed the rich biodiversity, including squirrel monkeys, hawks, turtles, herons, white-winged swallows, green iguanas, sloths, parakeets, and many other creatures. The kayaks were taken by a strong current, and little paddling was needed to enjoy nature and the lights of the afternoon. Our final activity, after dinner, was a challenging night walk, with flashlights and millions of jungle creatures, including spiders, bats, and leafcutter ants. A friendly reminder that the jungle never sleeps…
