I slept well and received our 5am wake-up call with enthusiasm. The jungle group was reduced to five on this morning as the walk required wellington boots and sadly they didn't have any big enough for Ian. After a short boat ride up the Madre De Dios we arrived at Tambopata National Park to begin our hike. When they said it was a level 2 activity that required wellie boots to make it through the mud, they weren't kidding. It was heavy going and the 3km path through terra firma forest took 1.5 hours. The young newly-weds were pretty light-footed and nimble. Richard was hopping around like twinkle-toes, ever hopeful of seeing an anaconda and Louise's strength and agility stood her in good stead. Meanwhile I was losing my nerve and wasn't convinced I could manage this one. Louise and Richard, gung-ho and showing off, both took a tumble with no more damage than muddy clothes and dented pride. I couldn't afford to fall, dislocating my hip would be disastrous. Indira soon caught on that I needed her help and we devised a technique that made for better progress - she let me pick my way through the dryer bits whilst she waded through the mud so that I could hold her hand for that extra bit of balance and confidence that I needed. Although it was warm and steamy, it wasn't baking hot like the day before and I was grateful about that. I put one foot in front of the other and set my mind to the drama around me rather than the angst within. I saw a tarantula in its nest, the furry legs flexing slowly and menacingly. I heard a pandemonium of macaw parrots and looked up just in time to catch a blur of vibrant blue, red and green smeared across the sky. I watched a trail of leaf cutter ants, each carrying a package at least twice their body size and all working in perfect harmony. I was enraptured by the fact that I was in the jungle, seeing nature in the raw, hearing the squeaks, squawks, rattles and calls. At the end of the trail I crawled on board the dugout canoe, thankful for a respite to the schlep through the mud. Indira paddled us through a stream so engulfed in vegetation that hardly any sky was visible. We emerged into Lake Sandovar, a composition of green forest and brown water crafted into an exotic wonderland. Indira paused her commentary, the gentle splash of paddle on water the perfect soundtrack to the serenity before us. It was an earthy scene of heavenly proportions. An oxbow lake is a backwater lagoon, a bend in the Amazonian river that gets cut off from the main channel and offers a home to much wildlife. I saw Hoatzin, an odd, prehistoric- looking bird that we laughingly renamed the pterodactyl. There was a growl from a family of red howler monkeys in the trees, a loud and deep holler that penetrates 3 miles into the jungle and vibrated my internal organs. A dapper heron, dressed in lemon, pearl and baby blue posed for a photo. The time came to return and yes, the walk back along mud alley. I don't know how I did it, but I guess there was no choice! Mobility test 3 passed, with flying colours.
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Something caught their eye |
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Indira describes the massive termite mound |
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The Jungle Group |
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Deepest, darkest Peru |
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Palm trees bordering Lake Sandoval |
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Hoatzin Birds |
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Cocoi Heron |
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Tarantula in its nest |
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Not flattering but I'm happy |
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What adventurers! |
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Red Howler Monkeys |
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Capped Heron |
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