Cusco to the Amazon

We got up pretty early to head to the Cusco airport and fly to Puerto Maldonado in the Amazon jungle (near the boarders of Brazil and Bolivia). It was a weird experience to take off about 11,000 ft - it took FOREVER for the airplane to rotate and it was going FAST by that time! Also, there was no decrease in cabin pressure as we climbed out, if anything, it actually increased!

Since there was a cold wind blowing down from the Andes, it was unseasonably cold in the jungle - only about 15 degrees and drizzling. We boarded a bus to the office of the lodge we would be staying at and had some time to find a pair of rubber boots and repack our things into duffel bags they provided. Since we were still waiting for a few more groups to arrive, we wandered around the town a bit. Puerto Maldonado is home to mostly miners and loggers, and the town looked pretty muddy and desolate - not the type of place you would want to spent too long in (but it could have been the weather). After the others arrived, we all climbed back onto the bus and drove 15 minutes to the port.

At the port, we made our way down the slippery and muddy stairs into our boat. The boat is narrow and not very stable, so we had to make sure that we sat down in pairs opposite each other. I was seated near the back of the boat which turned out to be a good thing - the people in the front got pretty wet from the rain and the waves. What was really strange was that the water was so warm, almost like a bathtub! (I'm used to lakes and rivers being cold!) And since it was such a cool day, it was steaming like crazy. The lodge supplied us with lunch on the boat - a rice dish cooked and served inside a banana leaf. After an hour and a half, we reached our dock.

The boat was unloaded and we began our hour hike into the jungle. It was still raining so I was glad to have my dollarama poncho - of course, it made me look like a giant yellow blob (my backpack was under it), but at least I was dry and warm (some of the others didn't dry out until we left). The trail was extremely muddy in parts so it was a good thing we were wearing our boots. I feel sorry for the porters though, who had to push and pull a cart with all out things through the mud - it must have been a tough job!

We got to the end of the trail and after the porters bailed out the canoe, we climbed in and they started paddling us down a channel and across the lake. It took another hour to cross the lake (still raining!) and get to our lodge - Sandoval Lake Lodge. We were greeted with tea and hot chocolate and shown to our rooms. All the rooms are connected by a covered veranda, and the front and back walls are large screen windows. The walls between the rooms don't go all the way to the roof, so you can hear everything going on in the rooms around ... not too much privacy! But it was a great room, my favourite on this trip. There was electricity in the morning and the evening, and they put a pitcher of drinking water on the bedside table.

After dinner, we went on a night hike. Because of the cold weather, most of the insects were hiding, but we did see a tarantula, some other spiders, ants, moths, and even a crab! It was a dark, quiet, and cold night (I used both of the quilts they provided and was still a bit cold).