We had an early breakfast at 6:30 A.M in the morning and decided to go on an early skiff ride to immerse ourselves deep into the wilderness of this reserve that has been well preserved by a few ranger stations along the way.
During the skiff ride, we spotted a flock “Hoatzins” also known as stinky birds or cowbirds; these birds have a very prehistoric appearance, in fact at one point they thought these birds were related to the famous Archaeopteryx; today we know the two birds are not closely related. As we continued on our expedition we encountered several reticulated caimans and a couple of black caimans along the shallow waters of the riverbank. On the surface of the river waters a few splashes were seen and once we got close we could tell they were several of the “Payche” fish (species of lung fish); a large titan form the Amazon, a fish that can get up to 400 pounds easily when full grown.
We had and incredible lunch of Amazonian fish cooked in bamboo sticks and wrapped in plantain leafs. What an incredible experience and so far its half of the day. As we came back we spotted a group of red howler monkeys jumping over the canopy, as well s few small flocks of yellow and blue macaws. Jabiru storks were seen as well, some walking along the riverbanks and a couple nesting on top of the tree canopy.
After almost a full day out exploring, we returned to our mother ship to continue our navigation to our next destination in the Peruvian Upper Amazon.
