Jungle, Jags and Jhendy

March 25-30:

We spent 5 days in the Amazon and are now quite sure of the meaning of the word amazing! Our tour was through Inka Natura and we were lucky to have Jhendy Manzillo as our guide. We flew from Cusco to Puerto Maldonado, transferred to a long motorized canoe-shaped boat and headed down the Rio Madre de Dios, then up the Heath River to the Heath River Wildlife Centre. The lodge is slightly inside the Bolivian border adjacent to two large, unmanaged national parks. Along the river, we saw many turtles and several capybras (just picture a 200 pound guinea pig), and a toucan perched on an easily viewed branch at the Centre as we arrived ...

Luckily, the lodge generator had broken earlier that day, so we enjoyed our delicious dinner by candlelight in the largely open-air, screened dining area. We had our own lovely cabin at the Heath River Wildlife Centre, also lit with candles. After dinner on our first night, Ian headed out with our group and guide to a mammal lick where they saw a night monkey, tarantula and frogs. However, the tapirs were elusive, likely due to the large moon making it riskier for them to come out.

On our first morning, we rose at 5 am and were in the blind at the upriver macaw clay lick by 6 am. We stayed, mesmerized, until almost 10:30. Different species came in at different times, with the respendent red and green macaws providing the finale with over 50 congregating on the lick and trees in front of us at once. Birds, mammals and other critters come to special clay deposits to eat the clay in order to help detoxify the chemicals found in their vegetable diets. We then went for a walk in the selva (woods), a primary forest, with some interesting smaller trees and huge canopy trees, including the sacred ceiba tree, which people come to hug if they are sad. To wrap arms around the tree, you would likely need about 20 people, so it´s an open arm hug!

The second morning, we walked to the new tower being constructed for entering the canopy, 30 metres in the air. We didn´t see much there (except a few jaguar tracks), but the tower will be great for spotting monkeys, macaws and other birds. We then took the boat downstream to the nearby native village where we learned about their community and lifestyle (complete with a solar panel), and bought a small tapestry made from weaving the bark fibres of a rainforest tree. On the way there, the group was thrilled to have a rare, but brief, view of a jaguar. Sue was disappointed to have missed seeing it. On the way back to the lodge from the village, we were rewarded with the viewing of another jaguar close to where the first one was spotted. This time, we were awestruck. The young jaguar was not afraid of the boat and we had a full 7 minutes to stare and soak in the sight of a wild jaguar some 15 metres away, stretching, lounging, and rambling about. Being in the boat, we felt safe, which is a real bonus when jaguar watching! Folks at the lodge were very excited and they will use the photos of the jaguar´s facial patterns to identify and track the cat in future research.

Later that same day, we heard howler monkeys again (their eerie territorial call is frequently heard from the lodge) and then were lucky enough to see them quite close up, high in the trees.

Day 3 brought us to an oxbow lake a 10 minute walk in from the river. We saw interesting birds and black caimans there, with eyes that reflect a freakily bright red back from flashlights. White caimans were also discovered on the river. The big moon made another visit to the mammal lick a no go.

On day 4, we left the lodge at 4:30 am, heading for Sandoval Lake Lodge for us and to Puerto Maldonado for the others in our group. Ian saw a tapir on a beach in the dusky morning light. We hiked the very muddy 3 km into Sandovol Lake, famous for its endangered great river otters. Our luck stayed with us as we were practically greeted and circled by the otters as we were paddled onto the lake. We watched the family of 6 otters catching fish, some of which were pretty darn big! After lunch, we climbed the lookout tower on the lake and found ourselves face-to-face with brown cappuchin monkeys and enjoyed a spectacular sunset.

Staying at this upscale lodge was unfamiliar territory for us. What happened to the addage, paddle your own canoe...? Sue never minds being cooked for, but we would prefer to carry our own gear and paddle our own canoe (both of which our guides did for us)!

On day 5, we explored the lake again before heading back out the muddy (VERY muddy) trail en route to the airport in Puerto Maldonado. We saw 4 kinds of herons (including one with irridescent colours), more monkeys and many macaws flying overhead, including many red-fronted macaws at a wood lick.

Viewing so many animals in the Amazon in one trip is quite unusual. There is a lot of vegetation , and animals and birds are dispersed thinly through the forest. Our guide had only seen one jaguar before our trip. Perhaps seeing such highlights of what the Amazon holds within was a gift for all the environmental work we have done over the years. We have more hope for the Amazon than we did when we visited it in Ecuador, although we now understand better how fragile an ecosystem it is, despite its biodiverisity. From the air, we could see the patterns of small-scale gold mining (with mercury poisoning downstream) and the growing accumulation of small clearings around rivers and jungle roads. It is a tough place to survive, human or not, because the edible food supply is very low and hard to catch. Many of the plants and fruits are toxic, an adaptation developed for self-protection. However, some are great to eat, as we discovered at the lodges and in the Puerto Maldonado market. Thank you Amazon for a great experience!

Cusco and the Incomparable Incas

March 18-25:

Cusco is the fabled ancient capital of the Inca people, which once supported the largest empire in the world, stretching from southern Colombia to Chile. We arrived in Cusco just in time for the Don Bosco ceremonies marking the Italian priest´s legacy of supporting health care and education for poor and rural people. The festivities were somewhat a transformation of Cusco history - the dramatic entry and pronouncements of the Inca ruler and musicians in the Quichua language, meeting with the Archbishop and Bosco representative, convergence of dancing school groups, parade of Don Bosco´s simulated body in repose, and then testimony to the good works over the last century-- all in front of the grand Cathedral on the central square with thousands gathered to watch. No conquistadors nor massacres, fortunately enough. The city and surrounding Sacred Valley are rightly proud of their Inca heritage, quickly overun to great loss by the Spanish conquistadors in the early 1530s. Today, the rust-coloured rooftops, arcaded squares, grand buildings and remarkable ruins of the area pay tribute to its history, survival and evolution.

We explored some of the city´s ornate churches, complete with gold, silver and carved wood artefacts plus Cusco School paintings that add Andean flavour to the period´s European Christian motifs. The hills and former Inca sites are now covered in Christian symbols and churches (a challenge to the multi-faith pluralism of we Unitarians). A 1950s earthquake topled part of one church to reveal the Incas´most sacred Temple of the Sun (Qorikancha), with incredibly fine masonry in their walls and reflecting a sophisticated astronomical and religious understanding. The Temple´s and other sites´gold and silver were looted by the conquistadores as the Inca ¨king´s ransom¨. Other remnants of Inca palaces remain in the city, again demonstrating a renowned masonry in the walls.

We spent one day exploring four nearby Inca ruins: the Sacsaywaman fortress-temple-observatory complex overlooking the city, with massive tiers of stone walls topped by the round temple that forms the eye in the puma design of the city; a massive rock carved into a temple; a hunting and administrative centre overlooking a valley; and a royal retreat and baths, with picturesque waterfalls flowing through Incan masonry. Another day we ventured further on an organized tour to the complexes at Pisac and Ollantaytambo (unfortunately, the tour did not stop at the prominent local markets, despite the itinerary). Both sites are perched high on mountain spurs overlooking the river valley and both contain incredible stone terracing, buildings, and observatories that catch the sun´s light at special times of the year. Again, we were impressed by Incan ingenuity and engineering, along with their and predecessors´agricultural adaptations (e.g. developing 1000 varieties of potatoes, and 50 varieties of corn and beans, all adapted to particular uses and elevations).

On our route, we also observed the remants of flooding and small landslides near the town of Pisac, which has suffered considerably this year during the rainy season and only now is starting to recover as the sun shines this week. The saturated soils and flooding of infrastructure has also closed the famed Machu Pichu since January, with rumours of reopening only part of the train route there next week (likely too late for us to visit). International tourism has fallen off in these last months, only partly replaced by visiting Peruvians supported by tourism incentives. Unfortunately, that has meant that we have borne our undue share of the on-street touting of tours, paintings, cigarettes, massages, and handicrafts at every step of the downtown core. Still, there are some fabulous weavings, metalworks and other artisan items on offer here, another legacy of Incan traditions.

It was Sue´s turn to be under the weather for a few days, due to altitude, pollution in narrow streets, and possibly from something she ate. Still, we have enjoyed great food here, in quaint restaurants overlooking the hubub of the central plaza - we even caught up with fellow travellers from Mississauga over a local specialty, the Pisco Sour. One evening we enjoyed an evening of folk dances as part of our expensive Tourist Ticket that allows widespread access to important sites. Overall, the city, Sacred Valley and their legacies are remarkable and we feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn and appreciate this historic and current centre of Incan culture.

Trekking the Cordillera Blanca

March 9-17:

The Pacific Coast beaches and sand were nice enough, but we longed for cooler climes and higher heights - the Cordillera Blanca of northcentral Peru. The Rio Santa Valley runs between the glacier-capped Cordillera Blanca and the nearly-as-high Cordillera Negra, with a string of Andean towns and the city of Huaraz. The bus trip from the coast at industrial Chimbote was spectacular as we climbed up through the Duck Canyon - twists, turns, the roaring Rio Santa below us, and high mountains and impossible zig-zag walking trails above us. We had to search around to get the day trip through the canyon, but it was worth it as glacier capped mountains were revealed as we got close to Yungay. This town was essentially wiped out in the 1970 earthquake and resulting landslide from Mt. Huascaran, the highest mountain in Peru (6768m). Only some 260 children survived the landslide, sheltered by a visiting circus. One of these children (now our age) was our taxi driver the next day, who took us to the magnificent Llanguanuco Lakes, green from glacial meltwaters flowing off the towering walls of the valley. Here we hiked for four hours, and combined rides with an athlete from the Czech Republic (who was much more ambitious than us!).

We headed to the valley´s central city of Huaraz and woke up the next day to a lovely array of white peaks surrounding us! The mornings started off bright but soon clouded in, often with rain in the mid-afternoon. We enjoyed some nice meals (delectable at Chef Cristof´s!), visited with folks from Belgium, and made arrangements for a 3-day trek into the mountains. Ian was sick for a day or so in town, but we started off in Olleros with fine weather and puzzled greetings from villagers along the way. Corn and other crops soon made way to potato cultivation and then sheep and cattle grazing, with stone corrals and seasonal thatched huts as we gained higher elevations. Besides the occasional herder, there were no people (but lots of cows!) as we climbed, encountering hail then cold, wind-whipped rain. At 3:30 pm we achieved our intended campsite (4000m), set up our rented tent, and quickly dove into our trusty, toasty sleeping bags. We had dried out and warmed up to eat our dinner, Chef Christof´s premade delicious pesto pasta. Early lights out at 7 pm, followed by an early sunny rise the next day. As we climbed, we had fantastic vistas back down the Rio Negro valley and up to glimmering peaks arounds us. We almost took a wrong turn to a southern glacier, but our good map led us onward in the right direction. At high altitudes, our abilities to climb were limited, with frequent stops on the uphills and a quicker pace on the flatter sections. We again encountered hail (which is fortunately not wet), and then reached the teasingly elusive Punta Yanashallash pass at 4700 m, complete with an old rock Inca tomba, or travellers´shelter. Glaciers, small ponds and craggy peaks surrounded us. On the downhill section, we strode along a wonderful stretch of a carefully constructed Inca road, paved and framed with carefully laid rocks - yes, used for half a millenia or more on this traditional route! We marvelled at the construction (beats the longevity of Canadian modern roads, for sure!) as well as the views of layered sediments heaved sideways and the pastoral valley below. The old trail was carpeted in grass, thoroughly nourished by cow dung and ample rivulets, for much of the way to our next campsite beside the river and near some occupied huts. The wind picked up significantly at dusk, and again we enjoyed our premade meals without the need to struggle with a camp stove. Sunshine greeted us at dawn, but our tin pot left outside had vanished - hopefully, to a good home where it will be well used. We had a lovely walk downhill through a winding valley above a deep gorge, sharing the well-built Inca trail occasionally with colourful local sheep and goat herders. We offered some of our leftover food to a gathering group of local kids, who have little education and a limited diet. Almost at the end of our trek, we were stopped by a municipal official who explained that there had been a landslide the day before that had eroded the next short stretch of trail, and that the town had equipment working on it and we would have to wait. Minutes later, he warned of a couple of blasts that ricocheted up the valley and tossed fist-sized rocks nearby amidst a widespread cloud of dust. At the ¨all clear¨ signal, we quickly scrambled across the improvised trail behind the official. At least we didn´t have to retrace our steps back over the pass! Another 3km or so and we arrived at the town of Chavin to find that the archaeological site was closed for the day, but that the hotsprings down the road were open all afternoon ... so after eating our lunch next to a town debate over one car slightly bumping into another, we headed to the hotsprings and soaked our trekking grime off in a private small pool! The cutest dog enticed us to share our chicken dinners with him (just like Rex would!) and we retired to a fine hotel overlooking the main square, complete with duvet covers and cable TV. The following day enabled us to explore the ruins of the 3000 year old Chavin de Huantar temple, the centrepiece of ancient Andean religious activities in Peru (we loved the sign at the edge of town - ¨Chavin: Established 1200 BC¨!). It is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its open plazas, labyrinthian tunnels and chambers, temple, grand doorway, and intricate carbed stones and obeliscs. Impressive, even in the drizzle!

We missed the Chavin museum of artifacts since we needed to catch the bus back over another snow-dusted pass, past a gorgeous mountain-framed lake, to return to Huaraz and the rest of our luggage. A further night in town and then another winding bus trip out of the mountains and back to the desert of the coast. Entering Lima presented huge sand cliffs and surf, followed by the traffic, scattering of signs and intensity of urban Lima. We admired the colonial architecture downtown at dusk and found a hostel in an old colonial house across from (not in ...) the Convent of San Francisco. We adjusted to the change in altitude and landscape briefly before our morning flight from the colonial/current capital of Lima across the Andes southeast to the ancient Inca capital of Cusco.

Sand, clay and a beach

March 2-8:

The contrasts between the verdant Vilcabamba valley of southern Ecuador and northern Peru are stunning: the land becomes drier until it turns to desert, with sand drifting around rocky hills. Large swaths of desert are privately owned by mining interests, with what appear to be bleak mining camps scattered along dusty side tracks into the hills. Here and there are river valleys flowing with distant Andean glacial meltwaters, turning the desert into narrow green corridors of sugarcane and (believe it or not) rice paddies. At these river valleys along the Pacific coast are cities and evidence of ancient cultures clustered around these green corridors irrigated for hundreds and thousands of years by a network of canals.

We had crossed into Peru from Macara, and landed by bus in Piura with a cluster of other westerners. Together, we found banks to convert money into Peruvian soles, and then searched for a bus company to take us further south to Chiclayo. Unlike Ecuador, most Peruvian cities don´t have main bus stations, just the company depot, sometimes near or often on the other side of the city from the other companies´ depots. This makes coordination of bus travel among cities a more onerous undertaking for a tourist, to be sure. In Chiclayo, we were amazed at the small houses made of adobe or reed mats on the outskirts, clinging to existence in the desert dust. Then, there was the abundance, exuberance and wild abandon of mototaxis, a motorcycle with an enclosed bench for passengers behind the driver - just like in some parts of Asia!

We appreciated the company of Canadians from Mississauga as we explored the nearby ruins of Tucumbe (28 eroded pyramids, the largest adobe structures in South America), and the Bruning and Royal Sipan Tomb Museums. The latter two are stunning, with displays on the Moche and Chimu cultures that inhabitated northwest Peru before the Incas, and the amazing artefacts found in several unlooted royal tombs. These included intricate headresses and necklesses, hundreds of pots with intriguing designs, plus numerous large and sculpted solid gold pieces to adorn the heads, ears, chests and arms of the ancient leaders. Quite a demonstration of artistry! The city of Trujillo brought more examples, with the extensive Chan Chan city ruins of carved and concentric adobe walls, the Temple of the Moon with 5 layers of impressive ¨Russian doll¨-type painted walls, plus other associated complexes nearby. A new artistic and architectural tradition was expressed in the lovely colonial homes, public buildings, churches and main square in downtown Trujillo, complete with ornately screened windows and wooden carved balconies (plus a vibrant pedestrian street scene).

But enough of buildings and history - we set off for the beach! In nearby Huanchaco, we savoured seafood caught that morning by fishermen on individual, traditional reed boats or by crab-collecting women of the town. We enjoyed the walks along the beach, body surfing in the waves, and sipping beers as we watched the surfers try to cruise the cresting waves. This provided some down time after several days of travel, and before we set our sights on the distant mountains inland.

Sounds and Scents

In this post, we will try to make sense of the scents and sounds we have been experiencing as we voyage through Ecuador. First the sounds ...

We are amazed at the constant urban and other sounds in most Ecuador cities and towns. Car alarms, for one thing. It seems as though no one knows how to turn the alarms off before they get in their car, and often not afterwards either! There is always one going off, including outside our hotel in Quito twice during the night, with the alarms switching wails every 20 seconds. Then there was the pounding disco nearby and constant police emergency lights and sometime sirens. Often, there are roosters crowing at 5 am (even in cities), with the propane delivery trucks trolling the streets for customers.

These are some of the urban noises we have encountered and appreciated being blocked.

Amazonia to the High Sierra and South

February 16-28:

Baños was a party, and when we reached the Amazon basin by bus at Tena, we were (literally) inundated in the community water fights, waged from rooftops to roaming trucks with water barrels on the last day of Carnival festivities. We retreated to nearby Jatun Sacha, a private nature reserve with prime forest and meandering nature trails, part of a network of reserves managed by an Ecuadorian foundation. Here, as the rivers flow out of the volcanic sierra into the Amazon plain, there are hundreds of bird and butterfly species, plus thousands of types of plants documented by visiting scientists. We had our own dorm, with intriguing animal sounds at night (e.g. electric-sounding crickets). Nonetheless, we could not spot much wildlife in the daylight, amongst so much vegetation. With international volunteers, the reserve runs an organic demonstration farm (which we visited), and environmental education programs in local schools.

A couple of days later we left the Amazon and returned by bus to the central sierra spine of Ecuador, using Riobamba as a base. It is a lovely city and we enjoyed a quaint older hotel and fantastic pizza! We wanted to experience the high sierra and thus arranged to wind our way up to the base refuge of Chimborazo Mountain, the closest point to the Sun on Earth (yes, closer than Everest due to the equatorial bulge). We arrrived at 4800m altitude and climbed ever so slowly in the thin air to the second refuge, at 5000m. It is from here that mountaineers climb the melting ice to the peak at 6310m; we actually saw some climbers descending from high above, and talked with two guys arriving to acclimatize before their attempt. The veil of mountain clouds parted just as we arrived, giving us a breathtaking view of the steep peak and wide surroundings. On the way back to town, we saw rare wild vicuñas (relatives of llamas), stopped at an interesting indigenous ecotourism village (the grandfather of the young guide, Marta, had long ago seen the now rare and iconic Andean condor) , and then had llama stew as a late traditional lunch.

We then headed south towards Cuenca, a world heritage site recognized for its colonial city architecture and history. Both in Cuenca at Pomebamba, and a bit north at Inkapirca, we strolled around impressive Inca and pre-Inca Cañari ruins of houses, baths, irrigation channels, and sun and moon worshipping sites. The mystery of history seemed still present as clouds rolled in to envelope the site at Inkapirca, and rain then hail enveloped Tomebamba and its lovely demonstration gardens. At the latter, we were soaked and headed back to a welcome warm meal at our downtown hostel. The colonial architecture of the massive cathedral and balcony-lined traditional streets, plus the wide walkway along the central river, left a strong impression of Cuenca. We also got a brief glimpse of the Winter Olympics on TV (soccer is predominant on Ecuadorian sports TV), only to watch the Canadian men lose the first round hockey game to the U.S. Our next journey revealed stunning slopes and arid scenery along the route through the Andes to the southern city of Loja. We enjoyed an overnight stay and morning walk with Joyce (in the small town of Susidel), a helpful mature U.S. Peace Corps volunteer whom we had met on our first morning in Quito.

Another stunning bus ride south of Loja led us to the famed village of longevity and tranquility, Vilcabamba. We stayed several days just outside of town at the private nature reserve Rumi Wilco, named (as is the town) after the sacred and now quite rare Wilco tree. Our little abode, the Pole House, sits on stilts near the bank overlooking the small river, with coffee shrubs, bamboo and fruit trees planted close by (and coffee and granola available on site!). Except for the vegetation, it made us feel at home since it is so much like our cabin north of Peterborough - open room, corner kitchen, outdoor bathroom (although here they have outdoor showers!). Lots of solar heat, too, which releases a downpour at 6 pm or so most days, thus raising the river level a bit and lulling us to sleep during the night. We volunteered by hauling rocks to a wooden crib to help buffer the bank and help build up silt and thus mitigate heavy erosion nearby. Hikes to the heights of the ridges behind us, plus along a surging stoney river up a nearby valley, gave us an appreciation of the panoramas, hillside agriculture, and unique plantlife in this southern part of Ecuador, next to the Podocarpus National Park and Biosphere Reserve.