Rurrenbaque Tours - Madidi Travel

Hi,
We just came back from a 4day/3night tour of Serere Reserve, with Madidi Travel and it was fantastic. The lady who runs it is very eco minded and they seemed to have a great ethos about the way the tours should be run. It´s not in Madidi national park but it´s very close and we saw heaps of animals so I dont think the fact that it´s not in the park should matter. Especially since the reason it´s no longer in the park is because they weren´t happy with some of the unethical practices that were going on inside the park and they didnt want to be in any way associated with that.
Our guide Nelo was what made the tour though he was fantastic by far the best guide we´ve encounted during our travels in South America. He spoke excellent english and he went out of his way to accomodate for us.
The food also was great but take snacks for the walks (just ask the cook to take some fruit, they dont mind) because we got really hungry during the walks and didnt realise we could take fruit with us for two days.
Make sure you go Piranha fishing its awesome.
So Madidi travel is highly recomended!

Can you elaborate on the "unethical practices that were going on inside the park"?
I ask because your post seems to imply that Serere was previously inside the Park and that its managers took a decision to opt out, which sounds a little unlikely as it would not be their decision.

I second that Threeshire.
I am not passing Judgement on Madidi Travel, but it does look suspicious the post by pearlycole. It is the very first post by perlycole, and when on searches Madidi Travel, they own/have exclusive use of the private Reserve called Serere Reserve, which does not directly border Madid { nothing wrong with all that, and I wish them luck, } but when under these circumstances one posts "Especially since the reason it´s no longer in the park is because they weren´t happy with some of the unethical practices that were going on inside the park and they didnt want to be in any way associated with that. "
From a distance, not currently there, it appears that this post maybe an advert for Serere, not unheard of, BUT when someone posts what you have, it could be a very serious backfire on Serere Reserve for saying such things with a broad stroke of the brush.
I would suggest that Madidi Travel clarify this point here!
One does not climb higher by just putting others down.
Thanx, and I look forward to clarifications posted here.

It is great to hear about great experiences.

The lady you mention is Rosa Maria Ruiz, the leader/owner of the Serere Sanctuary (Santuario Serere). She was the leader of 'Eco Bolivia'. Referring to a report by journalist Christine Fennessy, from autumn 2006, Ruiz is "the manager of Madidi Travel, a tourism agency she created to be the commercial arm of Eco Bolivia, but sold after her troubles began. The agency is owned by a group of people that supported the work of Eco Bolivia and operates on a private reserve outside of the parks."
This is a quotation from "Bolivia burning. An environmentalist’s vision in ashes", published in "Earth Island Journal":
http://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/eij/article/bolivia_burning

This article from 2006 tells a little about a long and complicated story.

As far as I know, the situation today is that the Serere Sanctuary "go its own way" and do not collaborate with other lodges or organizations committed to conservation in the Rurrenabaque area.
Other lodges and community-based ecotourism in the Rurrenabaque area co-operate with international organizations, such as United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and NGO's (non-governmental organizations), such as Conservación Internacional Bolivia (CI) and Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). But as far as I know, the Serere Sanctuary does not form part of this network.

I can refer to the Wikipedia article about the Madidi National Park: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madidi
From the paragraph 'Effort' I can quote: "Rosa Maria Ruiz is a woman who has fought for the park and its conservation. Though it should be noted that she is a controversial figure among the Tacana Indigenous who originate here in the northern lowlands of Bolivia. Ruiz is reputable for acquiring resources and funding in the name of the Tacana which has led to expulsion from many Tacana communities as from the National Park."
(Wikipedia is not always 100 % reliable, but this statement has been on Wikipedia since February 2008, unchallenged. In fact the first text about Ruiz was added back in October 2007. This first version told a different story, and apparently it provoked the present version).

I am sorry to write about all this. But when you tell about a tour outside the Madidi NP, and hint that something is wrong in the Madidi Park, I have to tell what I know. And as you tell yourself, the tour operator Madidi Travel do not arrange tours in the Madidi NP.

I want to be fair: If somebody connected with the Serere Sanctuary read this post, please make a comment.

And of course I believe that Madidi Travel and Serere Sanctuary can give their clients a great tour and a great experience. But please do also listen to other sources.

(Talking about source criticism: I guess that some users of this TT forum are a little sceptical when reading posts from first time posters. So welcome back, I am looking forward to your contributions).

Thank you Erik07
Rosa Maria Ruiz's problems start an eon ago relative to today { at the time of ex Dictator Banzer's Presidency} Bolivia has changed dramatically since then, I wish her good fortune in her endeavour, but that ancient history is not germaine to today's Bolivia, and she could only create even more problems for herself IMHO relatively speaking in today's Bolivia.

I see great opportunities in Bolivia, but an integral part must include a social conscience and not yet be taken advantage of.

I pass no judgement on her history, but there never is one side at 100% fault.
I have been involved in Bolivia for nearly 20 years, and there are many who lost more than she has, some rightly, and some wrongly.

The majority of Bolivians are now in the driver's seat {that is to say non-whites} and it is to bad that the past history was brought into play for the futute of her Lodge in this forum.

I apologize to pearlycole if I was unduly harsh, I am not Bolivian, but I do get somewhat protective of what I interpret as undue negativity about Bolivia.

pearlycole:
As the original poster, perhaps you would like to exercise the right of reply?

Schmuck, Thank you for bringing a better perspective into this thread. I apologize if I have mentioned circumstances irrelevant today. And I endorse your point of view.

I wish all the best for Ruiz, Serere and Madidi Travel. Their tours are a good contribution to the range and quality of tours from Rurrenabaque (Jungle and pampas seen together).

Of course it is okay to go one's own way, and okay not to work together with the Madidi NP. But if the noting of no collaboration is explained by a judgement on practice inside the park, it is not okay.

In general the reviews posted in this TT forum about Serere and Madidi Travel are positive. This also apply to blog posts I have found via the Google Blog Search.

I have had another look at the homepage of the Madidi Travel. Regrettably some of the past history is still alive in the history told about the creation of the Madidi NP. I do not wish to quote. But it is hard to find the resignation and reconciliation that would make the future easier.
So, I am a little confused, and I am looking forward to read more posts in this thread.

The issue here whether the allegations by the people at Madidi Travel and Serere Reserve about the Madidi Park have any substantiation or whether they are merely spoiling innuendo - sour grapes by persons embittered because they feel unjustly deprived of a leadership role in Madidi which they think is their entitlement.
Absent any clarification from the OP, I incline to the second hypothesis.

While I wait for more views (more posts), allow me to write about a subject outside the heading of this thread.
I am a European, and English is a foreign language for me. I have followed this TT Bolivia forum since the spring of 2007, and often I have to use a dictionary or Wikipedia to understand some of the words, wordings or acronyms/abbreviations. But this thread holds the record, and I have really learned some English and American, new to me.

I may not be the only TT user with such a linguistic handicap, so here is an explanation of just three of the 'tricks' in the posts above:
eon, also spelled aeon or æon, means eternity
IMHO - In My Honest Opinion or In My Humble Opinion
OP - Original Poster

From another recent thread I learned the term tongue-in-cheek. I admit that I did not know this facial expression (expression on a person's face) or the term.
So, please, take into consideration that we are not all equal familiar with the English language and culture, in all its variations.
That said, I do admire Threeshire for the short and precise statement in # 7. But I had to consult my (digital) dictionary for seven of the words, to be sure to get the full benefit, and to use the opportunity to improve my knowledge.

Threeshire, my understanding is that your hypothesis "hits the nail on the head" precisely.
Erik07 - one more expression, but you definitely are getting on with no problems of the contortions of the English language.
I thank you for your research for background on Serere Reserve/Madidi Travel, without that I would not have connected the dots.
Too bad, so sad..

Edited by: schmuck

Edited by: schmuck

Schmuck, yes, Threeshire "hits the nail .." in # 7. (And this expression is the same in my language, Danish. But the phrase (metaphor) "connect the dots" is 'new').

Four days more have passed without a clarification from the poster/user who started this thread and discussion, and without replies from other people, who have visited the Serere Reserve or know it from inside.
In a way it is more remarkable that until now we are 'only' three users who try to question or oppose the serious accusation against the Madidi National Park. But okay, this is just a travel forum, and this thread has only some few readers.

The Madidi NP has many eyewitnesses and friends, not least UNDP Bolivia, CI Bolivia and WCS. These and other reputable organizations have staff members who thorough know the Madidi NP, for instance in connection with the project Chalalán Ecolodge.
I am sure that if somebody would tell some of these organizations about this TT discussion, we would get the wanted information.
Besides thousands of tourist have visited the Madidi NP, and hundreds of volunteers and paid employees have worked (or are working) in projects there or in Rurrenabaque.

About the Serere Reserve/Sanctuary: Many of the tourists who have visited Serere have written entries in their travel blogs, and it is easy to find recent entries about visits in Serere by using the Google Blog Search. Search for "Madidi Travel" (with quotation marks). And make another search for Serere Rurrenabaque (with plus signs). (Serere alone will return blogs about Serere in other senses).
You can choose "Sort by date" instead of "Sort by relevance".

These reports about how tourists understand how Ruiz, Serere and Madidi Travel work and brief their guests are interesting. Some of the guests pass on information that is one-sided, and accusations like the one in the opening post in this thread are found.

I do not wish to harm the business of Madidi Travel, cf. my post above, # 6. The purpose of this forum is to exchange and discuss information about Bolivia in relation to travel. The point is to exchange recommendations and to help fellow travellers by replying questions and by adding new angles. This forum is also used as a huge knowledge bank. Search e.g. for "Madidi National Park" (with quotation marks), and you will find useful posts. Most TT users do not ask questions themselves, instead they search or go some weeks back.

Pearlycole who started this thread did the right thing; contributed to this forum by telling about a good experience, and recommending a tour operator. I have checked what other TT users have written and what travel bloggers have written about this tour operator, and I can confirm that all these posters are satisfied and write positively.

But both the pros and cons have to be mentioned, and to be found when searching the TT. To travel is also to learn about the society, and it is a natural part of a tour and a stay that the guide and staff members tell about the background and situation of the area and the company.

Let me put the negative this way: Listen to the story of Serere, but to be sure to reach a balanced understanding, do also listen to other sources.

In the start of this post I mentioned the Conservation International (CI) and the Chalalán Ecolodge. The homepage of the Bolivian CI is mostly 'under construction', so use the search function at the CI international page, or use Google to search for: "Conservation International" Bolivia
This will lead to a CI page about Chalalán, telling among other things that Chalalán receives about 1,000 tourists a year.

I also mentioned the WCS = Wildlife Conservation Society. I can refer to How Does WCS Protect Madidi?

As an example of how to use this TT 'knowledge bank', I mentioned a search for "Madidi National Park" (with quotation marks).

In fact this search reveals an other side of the story of the Madidi NP, told by Threeshire in the thread 'Madidi National Park', 12-Jul-2007.

Threeshire, do you have an update about this petition ?
And how to combine the petition and your post from 12-Jul-2007 with the present discussion ?

Another interesting subject 'revealed' by the mentioned TT search:
Mashaquipe Ethno-Eco Tourism, mentioned in the thread 'Supporting indiginoues communities in Rurrurenbaque', 09-Aug-2007.

It is also easy to find travel blogs telling positively about Mashaquipe, so when choosing a tour from Rurrenabaque there are many options.

And in this context, the competition of tour operators:

This thread is about Madidi Travel.
Not to be mixed up with Madidi Amazon Travel

The homepage of Madidi Amazon Travel tells:
"Madidi Amazon Travel is a privately owned and operated local Bolivian and Canadian tourism enterprise promoting mostly indigenous socio-cultural tourism in the nation of Bolivia. Because of our past experiences in international foreign aid, we promote and encourage local residents to start their own ventures through capacity building, proper administration, marketing practices and local experiences - sustainable development. Madidi Amazon Travel basically supports ethical businesses."

So, if Madidi Travel and Serere tell they are the "only true eco-friendly operator in this town" (a quotation from the blog entry 'Rustic Rurrenabaque' by Felicia Wong, Apr 20, 2008), just check this post, mentioning:

Chalalán Ecolodge
Mashaquipe Ethno-Eco Tourism
Madidi Amazon Travel

Thanx Erik07
Well done. Unfortunately Rosa Maria Ruiz's "prejudice's" are being preached to her guests { she is the only one who knows what should be }
In today's Bolivia, many have that attitude vis-a-vis having a narrow almost God-like attitude, not only regarding Eco and these Parks.
IMO it is a recipe for their own self made disaster, when their energy / knowledge / experience could be so productive.
Thirteen years ago Rosa Maria Ruiz was doing so much, and now later, so much venom, and for many reasons, not all of which were of her own making. But many were.
Madidi came into being because of many, not just her. It was not her private fiefdom, and indeed, I would not be surprised that she attracts a certain set of problems to her existing "Park".
Times, they are a changin' in Bolivia.
Sure there are problems, but Bolivia does much better regarding her Amazon than any other country having Amazon territory, having the highest Eco Certified Forests, percentage wise.
Sorry for the rant, but an insinuation saying:
"Especially since the reason it´s no longer in the park is because they weren´t happy with some of the unethical practices that were going on inside the park and they didnt want to be in any way associated with that. "
is not today's reality in Madidi, but rather a personal, ancient feud, that she lost and was evicted from the Park.
Ruiz brought many of the problems on herself years ago, and she, like many of the 15% "White" Bolivians today are having trouble adapting to the new reality, and from that perspective she was ahead of the curve in learning the new reality.
And being a "Team" player is part of that reality, which is why all the other operators interact, with the exception of Ruiz.
As I previously sad, Too Bad, So Sad.
She could have contributed so much.

Hi,

as you can see this is also my first posting on this forum, just as the person who started this thread. I have been using thorntree for about 3 months now since my trip began but have not posted as yet. Hopefully i will post more times on my trip to give my experiences of what i find (i state all this to autheticiate that i am not working for /advertising one particular company).

just as the person who started this thread, i also went on a 3 day jungle tour of the surere region next to madidi national park with madidi travel. I also had an amazing time. I was very impressed with the excellent eco friendly accommodation (no electricity, carefully designed cabins that blended in with the jungle giving excellent panoramic views of the jungle etc), with the tasty nutritional food much of which is grown organically in the surere region and of course the excellent, informative, guides. Everything we experienced in the jungle at surere promoted conservation and eco friendly practices. there was no hunting, no using machetes to cut new trails into the jungle and no macho type jungle experiences which many tours seem to promote and unfortunately many people seem to sign up for, ultimately helping further destroy an area which they have come visit.

i do realise that there are many other good companies located within the madidi national park and i am not promoting madidi over any of these ethical, eco friendly companies. like the person who started this thread, all i wanted to do with this post was to simply share with people my experience of an excellent tour i had in the surere region. so when i found this thread and read some of the background and murky/grey stories that were in the earth island institute report i was quite disturbed.

i, like everybody else, have no real clue of the truth that went on in the madidi national park that led from one of the pioneers of the creation of the park (rosa marie ruiz) to be ultimately excluded from the park (either by force or by her own stubborness).

what i think i can shed light on in this thread is a personal experience i had with meeting rosa marie ruiz.
i only met rosa marie ruiz once i came back to rerurrenbaque from my tour. she has not been in the jungle now for approx 2 yrs as she was attacked by a caimen while having a morning swim in the lake which she has swam in every morning for over ten yrs. she had a lucky escape but sustained a major injury to her leg, forcing her to a long term stay in hospital.

she seems a very charasmatic lady who deeply cares about the local indigenous people, the jungle and especially its conservation. while my wife and i were talking to her some little street urchin (possibly not politically correct term?) children whom we had spotted earlier on the street, begging and being turned away by almost everybody, were sitting in her office. they were pretty wild kids with no education and consequently they set about flicking through loads of documents and generally wrecking (not intentionally). instead of turning them away, ruiz allowed them to stay and gave them little treats. they seemed to turn up to her office daily and knew that for a few minutes they had somebody who would not turn them away and would actually help them if only a little.

i know this is all a bit long winded but i truly believe that ruiz is a person who genuinely cares for people and the environment. i do not want to pass judgement on any past history as i think it is almost impossible to decipher what the truth is. i suspect, like in any conflict where land, money and ultimately power are concerned many underhand dirty tricks were used by those who wanted to get wealthy from the forest and its treasures. however, i definitely think that ruiz's heart is in the right place. i know for a fact that she operates ethically and truly believes in protecting the jungle and its wildlife.

so, to summarise, like the first poster of this thread i would also highly recommend madidi travel for doing a jungle tour. by booking a tour with madidi you can book in the confidence that your money is supporting eco friendly and ethical travel principles. i do recognise however that there are other eco friendly and ethical operators in the area. i hope this all helps in any decision making for future travellers to this area.

Thank you moo

Thank you Moo.

Welcome as a poster to this travel forum.
It is good to have things looked at all sides (or more sides). Your story is important.

This forum is unique.

A little detail: You call the place (the region) Surere. I read the name as Serere.

Only just seen latest posts are some absence from the forum.
"Serere" is the correct spelling. It's the name of the screaming, prehistoric-looking birds that flap around in the trees along the banks of lakes down there.
Moo's post is fine. Good for Madidi Tours. But the issue on this thread, I repeat, was not the quality of their services but vague and unfounded allegations made by Ms. Ruiz against other parties ans passed on in the OP.

My read of it is, that there is not, and was no basis for the allegations, now or ever.

I was surfing the web looking for news of Rosa Maria Ruiz, and came across this thread. I'm not sure if I'm too late to join your discussion, but could not let some of the statements from Schmuck and Threeshire stand because they are flat wrong regarding Ruiz. I can only conclude that you do not know her personally, and that you are drawing your conclusions from inadequate thirdhand sources. I met Ruiz in college and she was my first wife.

The statement that drove me to respond was Schmuck's statement in the 11/30/08 thread that, "she like many of the 15% white Bolivians today are having trouble adapting to the new reality." Nothing could be further from the truth. Ruiz has been a champion of indigenous cultures her entire life. She drew this sensibility from her mother, who was a one woman development agency, who accomplished such projects as the road to Apolo entirely on her own. Community development is her family business, not in the sense that they are in the business of making money, but in the sense of that is what they do. Her mother who died a few years ago, was considered a saint by most (literally), due to her work with impoverished populations.

Ruiz's problem is not with indigenous leadership. It is with her ability to get along. She is difficult to work with. She only has two ways to do something, her way and the wrong way. She can be a bitch to deal with. (After all, I am divorced from her.) But don't question her motivation. She is strictly motivated by altruism, not personal gain.

Ruiz's Bolivian stories always sounded like tall tales, but in my experience with her, every single one of them turned out to be true! I think that Schmuck's comment that, "my read of it is that there is not, and was no basis for the allegations, now or ever" is wrong. My only knowledge of what happened in the Madidi with ECObolivia (etc) is what I read in Christine Fennessy's article, but the allegations described there have a ring of truth to them. Ruiz may be prone to some exaggeration in her explanation of why her current lodge is outside the park, but believe most of what she said about the turns of events. She was seriously upsetting many people's plans about exploitation of the Madidi region, and they took care of her. I'm sure she has resentments and sour grapes about how things turned out. The Madidi reserve was a lifetime dream for her, and all her efforts turned to ash. You'd still be pissed off too, if that happened to your life's work.

Lastly, a comment about her as a traveller and tour promoter. I travelled extensively with her for years at a time, in South America back in the 1970's, and there is no better person to travel with. She taught me to see Latin America through a Latin American's eyes. She always finds the best in every area. She knows emergency medicine, and can tell you that the blister growing on your toe is really a nest of insects that you better clean out pronto. I can think of no person more qualified to design tours of that area, or who I would want planning out my Bolivian travel. Moo1979 was totally on track with his impressions of Ruiz. Threeshire and Schmuck - you should eat your words, or at least some of them.

Too bad, so sad.
Ever heard the apt description that "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions" ?
Aptly applies to brilliance { if that is a description, apt here? } bordering on "Ownership" of the results of an idea ! { or Ideal ! }

Still don't see the difference do you!
And yet you write "She only has two ways to do something, her way and the wrong way."
And she definitely does not get the difference.
Not the first time that someone whose mantra was " My way or the Hi-way " ended up taking the Hi-way themselves!
My information is that she never married { legally }.
I would suggest you re-read the postings here.
Some inaccurate " accusations" were made in the original post {OP } regardingand posting " they weren´t happy with some of the unethical practices that were going on inside the park "
THAT is what is what is being attacked by Threeshire and myself ! We are not attacking Rosa Maria Ruiz for having beautiful thoughts about Madidi, however she is being attacked for accusations that flow from her as against others who donot not and have not in the past agreed with her in doing things "HER WAY"
Everyone needs to have a first post on Thorntree, but three first posters on this thread??

Schmuck - just curious. You must have crossed paths with Rosa Maria, because your interest in her is so intense. What were the circumstances?

BTW - your information is wrong. We were married legally in 1973, in my parents living room, by a county judge. I was there.

And, I do agree with you that the results are sad, indeed.

If you refer to my having crossed paths as to being interpreted as having crossed swords, the answer as no.
I have no intrest in her, however she is IMHO the master of her own destruction, past and future.

In my reply on 24 November to the OP, I wrote:

"Can you elaborate on the "unethical practices that were going on inside the park"?
I ask because your post seems to imply that Serere was previously inside the Park and that its managers took a
decision to opt out, which sounds a little unlikely as it would not be their decision."

There was no reply to this, or to a polite private message I sent to Pearlycole calling attention to my post. Indeed,
Pearlycole seems to have disappeared from The Thorntree after this one and only post.

In a further post on 30 January, I wrote:

"Moo's post is fine. Good for Madidi Tours. But the issue on this thread, I repeat, was not the quality of their
services but vague and unfounded allegations made by Ms. Ruiz against other parties and passed on in the OP."

Your post gives me no reason to eat any of those words.
Let the record stand: the allegations transmitted in the OP are vague and unfounded.

Making vague and unfounded allegations is, in itself, unethical.

Hi, yes another virgin, and I regret a suspicious too, (and I have to apologize for my definitely not perfect english due to I am no english native either)

just like moo79 and pearlycole I visited Serere just a couple of days ago. I can agree with them, that it was a good time we had and that they took it extremely serious with the conservation of this park. This went that far, that we skipped half a day program to patrol a rainy season connection between the rio beni and one of the five lakes.

About the reserve, and that it is far outside the borders of the park has the reason, that the properties can't be bought just like that, but are areas of the neighbouring indigenous communties which were given to the project to maintain and secure them as fishing grounds for the communities. So Serere has the right to use it exclusively but has also the duty to maintain its borders to the river (as just happened) and to conservate it.

@threeshire : The reserve is two hours upstream (north) Rurrenabaque and streches from the shores of Rio Beni to the east. The Madidi NP is and was ever situated south of Rurrenabaque and expands to the west and north but never touchs the shores of the Rio Beni again. It was never part of the Madidi NP and also not of another type reserve. Try wikipedia to verify it!
www.ecobolivia.org/es/mosaico05-popup.php

And finally I'm sure you all read the "National Geographics" cover article from the year 2000 (I think march edition). I guess you all read this article accurately and came over the pictures with the illegal logging. After talking to Rosa Maria I am sure (yes she poisoned me as well) that by "unethical practices" was ment the continued tolerating of logging inside the park bounderies and the hunting, which is illegal in all of Bolivia. And by the way it is quiet amazing how many people driving around with shotguns for their self defense.

@ schmuck : And honestly to schmuck, not replying doesn't mean guilty as you like to proove. I think after reading the complete thread I was quiet overwhelmed with the (maybe unwanted) hatred here and I know e.g. my girlfriend would rather jump out of the 5th floor than reply that. So by any means!
Happy new year!

Glad you enjoyed Serere.
I can only repeat: the issue is not the quality of their services. It is the casual repetition of allegations against others without any backup.
Quoting Wikipedia is NOT backup.

What matters to me is the present situation and what has happened in the recent years (two - three years back). Of course to understand the present time the background - the history - is of interest, but what is worth a discussion is the current situation in (2009 and) 2010:

I do not believe that illegal logging and hunting is tolerated in the Madidi NP today.
Wichtel, do you have concrete testimonies ? Do you know somebody who has been in the Madidi NP recently, and who have witnessed illegal activity, or have seen any proof ?
You write (in your post # 22 above) "it is quiet amazing how many people driving around with shotguns for their self defence". Is this your own firsthand experience ? Or who is your informant ? (And where are people with shotguns driving around ?)

Wichtel, I read your above post together with your post in the thread Animal friendly pampas tour?, started 25-May-2009. Your post is # 4 of 09-Feb-2010.
In this thread you write "Madidi Travel, a Tour operator which was forced to step out of the Madidi Park". Is this information relevant (today) ? If it is relevant, when and why the event took place should be added. Without a clarification the information sounds like an injustice.

Besides: There are threats against the Madidi NP. The Bala Dam Project is unfortunately still a real threat. A road project is a threat. Oil prospecting is a threat.
I would wish that these and other real threats could be an issue.
Instead of false and outdated accusations against the administration of the national park.

We landed in Rurrenabaque for a day to rest after the sleepless jeep journey before starting on the tour and it was class 3 days 2 nights - of spinning up down along a river yucuman (i think its called) which is a tributary off the Beni River and going for a hike through the pampas.

Hello!! I also hope my post is not too late..an I hope the interest about Madidi Tavel an Serere between you is still alive. Well, I´v being connected with the agency and with Rosamaria lately, and I might be able to give some answers to questions that were rounding this forum before.

Well, to start with I belive that Madidi Travel with Rosa Maria on the front and a lot of other people´s suport and hard work, Serere became a truly ecological Lodge and they managed to conserve this area and to independenly "sacar adelante" this new project.
Personaly, I admire Rosamaria, after all that happen,she didn´t surrender her dream and her mision in life, and she is still strong with her ideal.

And besides of beaing a dificult person to deal with in some matters, she does what others only say they do.

I´ll provide more information about the Rserve and the service if is needed
but i invite you to visit the web site: www.madidi-travel.com
HAve a nice YEAR!

First post. No track record.
Yawn!

Well here's another virtually virgin poster to be insulted. I find it interesting that some of you need to be such dinks to people who are using this site as it is meant to be used, altruistically. I understand that this site may also be used by others who are working for businesses to plug them, but i really feel that your comments are inappropriate, unkind and rude: "First post. No track record.
Yawn! " ?

"Everyone needs to have a first post on Thorntree, but three first posters on this thread??"

I think this speaks to the strength of people's experiences with Madidi Travel and Rosa Maria. People need to be motivated to post, whether it's by an really great experience that you think people should share in, or by defending someone who you feel is being wrongly attacked or maligned.

And now on to the business of this thread.

Written above: Some inaccurate " accusations" were made in the original post {OP } regarding and posting " they weren´t happy with some of the unethical practices that were going on inside the park," or more fully: "Especially since the reason it´s no longer in the park is because they weren´t happy with some of the unethical practices that were going on inside the park and they didnt want to be in any way associated with that. "

First: "Especially since the reason it´s no longer in the park"
Rosa Maria first had a lodge in Madidi, this lodge was built before the Park was made and was on land ceded to her. That lodge was burned down, and now there is Serere.

Regarding "unethical practices." I believe the point of the original poster was to relate their positive experience and not to get into the politics of MNP and Serere, as I read it anyways. One can read "unethical practices" to mean logging/poaching etc. which definitely was going on in the past, but i also understand it as oil and gas prospecting, planning roads etc.

An area that is designated as a National Park and touted as a great example of conservation, so needed because the area has vast biodiversity, should not be subjected to such financially beneficial ventures as oil and gas exploration and carving out roads. Don't these things seem completely contrary to the designation of a National Park? In my opinion these things are unethical in a National Park.

The decision to create Serere as a privately owned reserve means not only that it's operators have the right to police and prevent poaching and logging in Serere, it also means it is not threatened by oil and gas exploration or other such ventures. In this sense the original poster's comments were not uncalled for or "inaccurate accusations."

I was a volunteer in Rurre at Madidi Travel for two months.

As far as I saw in Serere the info that was exhibited in the "information house" was relating to all the things that threaten the Amazon basin and do still occur in the area as evidenced by tourist's photos, the fact that there are orphaned animals being sold by the people who have poached their mothers for their skins, there are oil and gas prospects in Madidi, roads are a threat, deforestation is ongoing... I don't believe it is a pointed attack on Madidi National Park.

I can agree with Robx on pretty much all of his posting (and can vouch that he was indeed married to Rosa Maria), as an individual Rosa Maria can come across very strongly, but she is not motivated by personal financial gain or any such thing. My passion is social and environmental justice, and I believe Rosa Maria is a similar person. I believe some of the comments by Erik07 and Schmuck are very strong, almost venomous, for people who have not met and spoken with her. Comments implying the harsh reactions to her were justly provoked are in turn doing what they have been been denouncing, and are somewhat one-sided. I believe the only thing that we can safely say from a distance is that it is a complicated situation that was likely exacerbated by foreign interests (be they private or NGOs-who are not saints and subject to all the faults that the rest of humanity is), corruption, and money.

Thank you Robx for joining in the discussion and offering a view informed by history and personal experience.

Rosa Maria has led a fascinating life full of activism of all colours. She has campaigned for conservation, indigenous rights, women's rights and equality, she spent years walking and driving through the jungle to communities where there were no roads, she gave workshops on birth control when it was illegal to do so...I can't even begin to scratch the surface. She is strong and opinionated, and genuine. I am not motivated by any gain in stating these things, and I support Madidi Travel and the Serere Ecolodge in their endeavors for conservation and awareness.

As an aside, While I was in Rurrenabaque a friend and I went to the Mayor's office and the local Tourist Information Centre about a stall that was at the Sunday market each week. The vendor was selling belts, wallets, purses of caiman and anaconda, and then on the last Sunday ocelot and jaguar bags. This was disturbing to us and completely counter to what the area, who's industry is tourism and 'eco'-tourism, should be exhibiting. The Mayor's office assured us that the vendor was not from Rurre, but from Reyes, and that these practices are not tolerated in Rurre and Madidi. The Tourist Info Centre assured us of the same and told us that they had been working hard as a community to educate about the importance of utilizing the Jungle sustainably and the long term benefit of tourism done in the right way. Both assured us that the vendor would no longer be permitted at the Sunday market. If any one is reading this who is going to Rurre and will be there on a Sunday there should not be any vendors selling any articles made from protected or threatened species and I would urge you to go to the Mayor's office and Tourist Info Center to express your concerns if there are.

Lc_yates, Thanks for posting. New posters are always welcome. As a new poster you can make things easier for yourself, for instance by: 1. Writing balanced. 2. Adding something new / a new point of view to the current thread. 3. Posting useful information about different topics, that is to say posting in two, three or more threads, and with that adding value to this travel forum.

This forum is based on sharing, and people who repay should be honoured.
(Incidentally, some of my attitudes to this Bolivia forum emerge from my post in the thread About this Bolivia travel forum. Unwritten rules, 25-Feb-2011).

With your post - reply # 28 above - in this thread and your post of 06-Mar-2011 in the thread Current conditions and flight availability to Rurrenabaque, 04-Mar-2011, you have earned / scored points in all of my three categories above.

By the way, I hope you have noticed the thread Bad Jungle Tour Experience in Rurrenabaque, 02-Mar-2011. This thread is also about Madidi Travel / Serere lodge. I am looking forward to your comment in that thread.

And now about "our" "business" in this thread:

I do not "buy" your reference to oil and gas prospecting, road construction etc. I agree that prospecting and roads in a National Park (NP) are inexcusable and indefensible. But you cannot blame the Madidi NP for it.

Roads, oil and gas are questions of "high politics" / international politics. As long as you and I and our fellow citizens in our respective countries - and as a matter of fact - do not want to change our way of life, change our gluttony, and become independent of fossil fuel, so long will countries like Bolivia want to use its resources, National Park or not.
And Bolivia wants growth and progress, wants to be on the Interoceanic Highway (Carretera Interoceánica) between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, or at least to have a part of the coming net of highways in South America. Infrastructure is a prestigious project, National Park or not.

So prospecting and roads are a great threat against Madidi NP, and so is the Bala dam project at the Bala Gorge. A huge hydroelectric dam project is question of prestige, and such dams are unfortunately "the height of fashion" in South America.

I share your passion for social and environmental justice. In a way we have the same background and attitude. But about the topic in this thread we listen to people on either side of the disagreement. I respect your point of view, and I do hope that you can respect my view.
I like the free exchange of opinions. By our joint efforts we make this forum useful.

Hi Erik07,
I am in agreement with you in regards to developed nations' consumption of fossil fuels and the need to end our addiction of fossil fuels. I campaign with Greenpeace in regards to this.

I do not "blame" Madidi NP for the possibility of prospecting, it is, as you say, clearly a matter of politics. My point was more that in having a reserve such as Serere, which is privately owned, it is perhaps not prone to the same whims of politics as National Parks here in Bolivia (and elsewhere), which are still state owned and operated and seem to be less protected than one would assume from their designation as a National Park. I do not doubt that if the government decided that they wanted to drill for oil or put a road through Serere for some lucrative reason that they would adapt the laws here to do so, but being privately owned does seem to offer it another layer of protection at this point.

"... being privately owned does seem to offer it another layer of protection at this point."

The reverse is probably true, and Serere would be no exception.

By the way, did you actually go into the Madidi NP and talk to some of the Tacana communities who live there?

No I have not been into the park or spoken personally with people living in communities there, although I have spoken to people from the park in Rurre, and a friend of mine was in Madidi for two months working at a lodge and in direct contact with people from a community. What is it that I'm to have gained in regards to knowledge relevant to this thread?

"What is it that I'm to have gained in regards to knowledge relevant to this thread?"
Well, how about some first-hand knowledge of the Madidi Park and of the opinions of the communitities living in it?
Please look back to the beginning of this thread.

You will see it starts with a post from one "Pearlycole" which passes on vague and unsubstantiated allegations of unethical practices in the Park based on what he or she was told by Madidi Travel. Pearlycole was asked (by me and others) to substantiate these allegations, but never again - nunca, jamas - appeared anywhere near the forum.
Subsequently, two or three other posters have popped up out of nowhere to say 1) what a marvellous time they have had at Serere (which nobody has challenged) and 2) to recycle the same allegations even though none of these posters appear to have been in the Park itself and none of them has provided any back-up to the allegations. Some of these posters have subsequently disappeared without trace.
So it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that visitors to Serere (including you) have been asked to post - on this rather ancient thread, which most of you will never have seen before) - to say 1) how much they enjoyed Serere and what a marvellous person Rosa Maria Ruiz is (fair enough), and 2) to pass on second-hand and unsubstantiated allegations about the Park ( NOT fair enough).
You are one of very few (if not the only one) of those who have posted on this thread from what we might call "the Serere angle" who have also .posted on other topics. As an earlier poster has said, you have given a very useful update on the flooding conditions in Rurrenabaque, so keep up the good work. But don't expect recycling unsubstantiated allegations to go unchallenged or different opinions to be expressed. And, as has also been pointed out, on another recent thread there is some fairly strong criticism of Madidi Travel.

An afterthought for those unfamiliar with the geography:
The Madidi area stretches westwards from the big, bad Beni River, which separates La Paz Department from Beni Department, to merge with the Apolobamba protected area in the La Paz highlands.

The San Miguel del Bala lodge, run by a Tacana community, is 45 minutes upstream from Rurre but on the opposite (western, La Paz) side of the river, just before the park entry point; they have an outposted camp inside the Park a couple of hours farther on up the Tuichi river, which runs into the Beni from the west. The Chalalan lodge, run by another Tacana community, is even farther up the Tuichi.
The Serere reserve, on the other hand, is downstream from Rurre on the eastern side of the river (Beni Department) and not even contiguous with the Park or the Madidi area.

So the name "Madidi Travel" is in itself misleading. Unintentionally, no doubt.

I don't think there is anything problematic with the fact that Ruiz's company is called Madidi Travel, as her reserve is located within a geographical area called the Madidi Trapeze, which encompasses the national park. She obviously chose it -like everyone else- because is the name people will know best, just as lodges in the immediate vicinities -but outside- Manu are called Manu. I saw the same in the Kruger park area in South Africa.

Regarding unethical practices, I agree that it is difficult to judge when you hear somebody speak about it. However, when you arrive in Rurrenabaque you are instantly approached by several tours operators promoting different tours, some of them jungle tours, some of them wetlands tours. They will happily show you photographs of these tours, in which foreign travelers happily grab baby caimans by their snout and pose next to anacondas. I did not go one of these but it's fairly obvious that they go completely against the spirit of ecotourism. (Apparently -but this I don't know for sure- they keep captive anacondas that they then conveniently "spot" when they bring tourists along. This doesn't make it any better, although it's slightly conforting to know they're not hounding every single anaconda they see. I still would never go on a tour of the sort).

I think at the end of the day one of the larger issues is what are the current conservation standards of the different actors involved in ecotourism in the Madidi basin. I can only speak for the one I saw -Serere- and I was very impressed by the way they preserve their patch of land.

Having spent time in the region myself, I must say that thankfully I've never posed for an unethical photo with a large snake, but I have eaten a couple.

Hi all

I'm going to post on this thread despite the fact it is over 3 years old as it seems to have plenty legs. For a variety of reasons, the lady in question and her Madidi Travel company/lodge appear to be a very emotive subject for a small number of people. My interest in the topic is that I am booked to do a Jungle tour with said company later this year and have stumbled across this thread. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Having read all the posts that have been submitted over the past 3+ years, one thing all the nay sayers seem to have in common is their use of third hand information and large dollops of conjecture! I feel this is very unfair, in any walk of life, and especially so when much of the negativity is coming from armchair critics with no first hand experience of the company/owner.

I am visiting Bolivia for the first time later this year and by all accounts, a jungle trip to Madidi N.P. (or the outskirts for those wanting to be pernickety) will undoubtedly be a highlight. I have read enough, on this website and others, to feel happy with my decision to book through Madidi Travel.

What can i say, I'm a born optimist and would rather not let the cynical nature of a few detract or discourage me, whatever their motivation. I think it is important to remember that there is a fine line between constructive criticism from ones first hand experiences and slander. This is ultimately somebody's life and livelihood.

I will of course report back on how the trip goes. A first hand account, which all critiques should be based on.

I'll get off my soap box now! ;-p

Cheers!

D.

Hello

www.madidi-travel.com

i visitet Rosa Maria Ruiz place, called Serere last juin. This was my best experience i had in the Amazonas in Southamerica. They do really a great job, carring about the nature, animals, local people, employers and the tourist. It is a very calm and peacefull place where you can get in a natural touch with the environement. Nilo is a very good guide, very calm and respectfull person, who show you wonderfull places in the reservation. You can decide day by day what you d'like to do - and you have not to run behind a big touristgroup. I had for the 10 days, i where there, my own guide. You have different activities, like observing the nature, fishing Piranias (very tasty), visiting the lovely spyder monkeys, caiman watching at night ore handicrafting jewellery with natural materials from the amazonas!!! Ore just relaxing in this peacefull environment. The bungalow are exceptional beautifull and the food is very tasty! Highly recommended!

To answer Erik07 in particular.

You mention unfounded accusations, possibly fuelled by an embittered, lone woman who "can't be a team player?"
You also attempt to defend The Madidi National Park's authorities on the basis that they are working along prestigious organisations, such as Conservation International Bolivia (CI).

Now, these guys are team-players, all right. Did you know they're actually a front for international corporations such as Monsanto, Mc Donald, Walt Disney and others ?... In a word, it's their multi-million dollar attempt at getting themselves a new environmental virginity of sorts, while they continue to destroy the planet and fill up their own pockets, to the greatest glory of Global Progress.

Oh, and I do have credentials, "virgin poster" or not. as these 2 threads will show:
http://www.grain.org/article/entries/406-conservation-international-privatizing-nature-plundering-biodiversity
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Conservation_International

Thank you for your kind input.
Nothing is what it seems, indeed, in Rurrenabaque as everywhere else on the planet.

Maybe Mrs Ruiz isn't as "one-sided" or "bitter" as you all seem to believe, after all.
She's just a woman who is mad enough to tell the truth and stand for it, while everyone else is just happy to make a buck on the Caiman's Back, so to say.

Cheers!

p.s: this is a post unashamedly in FAVOR of Serere and Madidi-Travel, and if you don't like it, tough luck.
Do your homework better next time, chums.