DIY Amazon Adventure

Canoeing in Zancudo Lake, Amazon Basin. Lonely Planet Images.

Article by: Greg Benchwick, February 2008

Hire a water pilot? Build your own boat? Take a ride with the locals? There's more than one way to skim a river.

There are few rivers in this world that stir the imagination quite like the Amazon. The very name conjures twenty-foot anacondas and blowgun-wielding tribes, slow-trawling river steamers and fast-paced adventure.

But leaving aside the myths - and believe me, the only blowguns you're likely to see will be mass produced for the tourist trade - the Amazon is a simple, easy-paced region to visit, and creating your own adventure here is easier than you might think.

Setting course

The Amazon is nearly 6400km long - it's the largest, but not the longest river on earth (the Nile receives that honour), so it's best to focus your energies on one region. In Peru, Pucallpa and Iquitos make good jumping-off points. In Brazil, most people choose to begin their cruise in Manaus or along the Atlantic coast in Belem. From Ecuador, Cocos, located along the Peruvian border, is probably your best bet. It rains year-round here (after all, this is the rainforest), but most locals recommend visiting during the high-water, extra-rainy season, which lasts from mid-November to the beginning of May. The locals here eat much of the local fauna - boiled tapir, yum! - so you'll see less wildlife than you would in places like Costa Rica, but on most trips you can expect to see hundreds of species of bird - the area's main attraction - monkeys, sea otters, loads of insect species (including the elusive blue morpho butterfly) and even pink freshwater river dolphins.

River transport in the Amazon Basin runs from high-end luxury cruisers like the Dawn on the Amazon to rough-and-ready colectivos (large vessels that transport everything from pigs to people, and stop in every village, hamlet and forgotten rubber outpost along the massive Amazonian watershed). Hardcore adventurers can even build or charter their own small boat.

Man showing piranhas teeth in Amazon Basin rainforest. Lonely Planet Images.

Building your own boat

Bill Grimes, who owns the Dawn on the Amazon, came to the sultry town of Iquitos about 10 years ago to fulfil a dream: to build a boat and cruise around the Amazon, fishing for peacock bass. He built his first expedition boat for around US$2000, but you can charter your own boat and motorista (a licensed river pilot required by local law) for far less: about US$42 per day (not including food). Like many frontier cities, Iquitos has its fair share of crime, and sex tourism is also prevalent. Watch for pickpockets in busy areas.

Check in with the Capitania del Puerto (Captain of the Port Office) at the dock to find motoristas and arrange the necessary paperwork for your trip. You'll need good Spanish or a translator to do this. Hiring a motorista is an adventure in itself: check around and ask for references from local expats and expedition outfitters.

Travelling by colectivo

Colectivos are the cheapest way to get around the Amazon and its tributaries - they can take you anywhere from Pucallpa to the Atlantic Coast of Brazil.

One of the most popular cruises is the relatively quick trip from Pucallpa (accessible by bus from Lima) to Iquitos. The trip covers some 990km along the Ucayali River, a tributary of the Amazon, and takes four to five days, depending on the current. Expect to add at least a day if you're going upstream.

'On trips involving overnight navigation it is the responsibility of the passenger to bring a hammock to sleep in, pure water, and luxuries such as toilet paper and soap,' advises Grimes. Travellers with delicate constitutions should even consider bringing their own food for the trip, as colectivo cuisine (beans and rice) is reported to be some of the worst in the Amazon. 'I do not recommend gringos ride colectivos alone,' says Grimes. 'Make sure you hang your hammocks very close together so that there is not room for a stranger to hang between you.'

It's best to try for a spot on the upper deck of the colectivos, as the smell from the livestock corralled on the lower deck can be overwhelming. Most boats leave every two or three days from the Iquitos docks (visit the dock beforehand to figure out when the next boat is coming through), and cost US$20-30. You can usually board up to eight hours before departure, which ensures you the best hammock space. Sounds like a dream vacation, right? Well, yes and no. Of course, conditions are rough, but that's what gives the true flavour of adventure.
'The Amazon rainforest is the ultimate adventure destination for nature lovers, naturalists, anthropologists interested in shamanism and natural medicines, and birders,' says Grimes. 'People that live in the city and only walk in the park on weekends owe it to themselves to take a cruise on the Amazon River watershed.'

Going to the source

Veteran traveller Catherine Clark recalls her trip to the Amazon's origins.

What was your favourite place?

Of the many favourites, I would include the Pacaya-Samiria reserve in the Peruvian Amazon. It's a giant wonderland - uninhabited and virtually untouched. I spent seven days paddling with a local guide up the river Samiria, with the mighty trees of the forest towering up to 200ft above us. It felt like stepping into a David Attenborough documentary with all the birds and animals around: gold and blue macaws, toucans, river turtles, crocodiles, electric eels and dolphins, with monkeys munching in branches less than 10ft away. My encounters with the local insect population were somewhat less enjoyable, as I was stung by a scorpion falling from a tree into our canoe. An Amazonian saying is that newcomers need to be bitten 'for the jungle to get to know you,' but it was an intimacy I could have done without.

How was it travelling solo as a woman in the region?

I can't say it was always easy, but in many ways it acted in my favour. I was struck time and again by the kindness and hospitality of local villagers. On almost every boat ride I encountered a middle-aged woman who took it upon herself to adopt me for the duration of the journey, and who would ask after me if she hadn't seen me in a while. On one boat, the passengers thought I'd been left behind when we stopped to unload cargo and were on the point of sending out a speedboat to get me. Luckily they searched the ship first and found me lounging on the top deck.

Did you eat any grubs? Other exotic foods?

No grubs. There are large worms - served fried - that are popular around Iquitos, but I couldn't bring myself to eat them. I tried crocodile, which is delicious and tastes like a cross between chicken and fish. I also grew fond of piranha fishing, and found satisfaction in hauling the vicious creatures, with their bad-tempered expressions, out of the water. The only other thing I really couldn't eat was monkey. I'd been prepared to try anything while with the Aguaruna community in Sachapapa, but when they brought out a whole monkey's arm with a tiny hand attached I had to make my excuses.

Where did your trip end?

At the source of the river Amazon, the 'Eye of the Amazon' as it's called locally, set high on the 18,000ft Mount Mismi near Colca Canyon in southern Peru. After a torturous ascent, crossing high plains and climbing snow-clad ridges, I arrived at the spot where a mere trickle of water came gushing out of a dark wall of rock, starting the 4000-mile journey I'd just travelled in reverse. It was one of the happiest moments of my life, and that day I had one of the best drinks I've ever tasted - the ice-cold water from the Eye of the Amazon.

By Regis St.Louis