The Amazon river's environs - the Pacaya Samira national reserve jungle

Why did I go to the Amazon from the River Maranon and River Ucayali ? Where were these rivers anyway – i had never heard of them prior to the booking? What about going on the River Amazon itself from Manaus, as my wife did with my parents nearly 15 years ago ?  Would I actually be on the Amazon at any time? 

These and a lot of other thoughts were on my mind when Commodore A B L Gupta, my friend, said he was off to the Amazon. It was most confusing as I was very keen on swimming in the River Amazon but would I be? After scrutinizing the itinerary minutely, it became clear that our cruise ship was actually going to the Rivers Maranon, Ucayali and Amazonas which CREATE the Amazon and are an essential part – the raison d’etre - of that famous river. By going to the head of the river from Iquitos, we were in fact seeing wildlife and the jungle in a pristine natural form as compared to going from Manaus, a crowded port city. Iquitos is the only city in the world which cannot be accessed by road – only by air or sea. Quite something.    

Throughout the 1700s, the Marañón River in northern Peru held the distinction of being the Amazon's source because it held the largest volume of flowing water compared to other tributaries flowing into the Amazon. For a period of time, I learnt that Ucayali River—a lower extension of the Apurímac River—took over as the designated source because it was considered the longest tributary flowing into the Amazon. There were expeditions, discussions and decisions for many years on the source of the river Amazon.

Whatever it may be, there is no doubt that the Amazon River is the second longest river in the world flowing through Guyana, Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, and Peru – it clearly travels about 4,000 miles / 6,400 kilometres. While for the major part, the river runs through dense rainforests, some populous and large cities have sprung up on its banks.

 What is really surprising to me and I am sure will be to others, is the sheer size of the Amazon River Basin. The Encyclopaedia Britannica states: “the Amazon River’s volume of water surpasses that of all other rivers, constituting one-fifth of the total flowing fresh water of the world. About 6,350,000 cubic feet (179,800 cubic metres) of water per second is emptied into the Atlantic by the Amazon, which is more than 10 times the outflow of the Mississippi River. The Amazon drains some 2,722,000 square miles (7,050,000 square kilometres)—about two-fifths of South America—and has more than 1,000 tributaries, several of which are more than 1,000 miles long. (For me, and this is what justified the trip) rising in the central Peruvian Andes, it is named the Maranon in its upper course; after being joined by several rivers—including the Ucayali, from which the Amazon's length traditionally is measured. If measured from the Marañón-Ucayali confluence, the Amazon is second in length only to the Nile. However, more recent measurements have claimed that the Amazon’s source is farther into the Andes, suggesting that the Amazon is the world’s longest river”.

We reached Iquitos from Lima by plane and went straight to the Manatee Rescue  Centre – see separate blog. Then, under a slight drizzle, we reached the port and took off in the ship’s “skiffs” or small boats – one for the 20 tourists and one for our bags. Our guides welcomed us aboard with complimentary drinks of Pisco Sour – a great way to start a cruise!  

 Our ship cast off and wended its way to the confluence of the Marañon and Ucayali Rivers. Here, it is generally considered that the Amazon River begins, at least in name. I am not going to detail out then hour by hour itinerary but suffice it to say, that we were busy with side trips during the day for a jungle walk where we saw various local fauna and flora (see separate blog on wildlife), went piranha fishing, met a shaman, went on daily excursions into the river’s small tributaries and into dense jungle where our boatman had to push aside massive chunks of weeds blocking our path. But best of all, we had a unique experience which i was told lasts only for ten days.  There were thousands of white birds – herons, ibis, etc who were in the low lying trees and branches waiting for fish as the waters had receded by nearly ten feet and the catch was good. Hence for nearly a kilometre, we had a phalanx of white birds in front of us escorting our boat – Presidents of countries have a few motorcycle outriders on state visits, we had thousands of these birds flying wingtip to wingtip for over a kilometre! What an unforgettable sight. 

Most of our time was spent in the Pacaya Samira national reserve – one of the largest protected areas – an area of 208 million hectares / 515 million acres / 803,000 sq miles. It’s located in the Ucaitiara depression meeting place of the Maranon and Ucayali rivers.  

This national reserve is called “the jungle of mirrors” because it’s most characteristic scenery is the reflections of the forest and sky in the dark waters of the river!! The Reserve is the most representative areas of the floodplain forest called the “varzoo” – a unique ecosystem present in only 2% of the Amazon. These forests play an important role in the maintenance of hydro biological resources and natural cycles. 

The Amazon contains a variety of terrains, soil types, vegetation, waterways that makes it diverse, resulting in different types of forests and ecosystems. In this reserve, the main types of forest are determined by the flooding and soil type. An estimated million or more people live in the jungle.

Here you see the kapok tree which has these wonderful balls of flower. In the early part of the 1900’s, kapok cotton was very important as it was used for pillows and other expensive items. Then with the innovation of fibre, its use was limited and the industry declined drastically.  

 




The photos show the kapok flower before and after it opens into a white fluffy ball.









                                            

 This is the Aria - a 5 star vessel of a competitor to our shipping line. The website details their facilities but their itinerary was not as good as ours. 





 
All kitted out in heavy duty rain ponchos to protect us against rain and the chilly wind when going fast in the motorized skiff  - here we stopped to see various birds and jungle fruit

We saw many varieties of trees – Ficus of different types, malcira, ohe benjaminca, kapok, rosewood, copal, and others. The copal tree’s wood was used as a fuel by Europeans as it’s a slow burner and it’s good as a tar replacement. The morasia tree changed its DNA and is now called the Secropia. The tangarana tree is the local name as it’s an empty tree trunk full of deadly fire ants which come out when the tree is shaken.  Hubert explained that there are thirty species of palm trees in two groups – 1) Aracia – no spikes, smooth trunks 2) Astrocarien spiky palms. Like the porcupine palm. The Socratia palm is used by local women who use its root as a grater due to the spikes on it - see photo on left above! The wood is used for walls and floors.

This picture shows a beautiful tree with fan shaped branches. The photo below reveals how much the water level had dropped in the few days just before we arrived on the scene.

These are the giant water lilies or Victoria regis which are found in Tipischa de Huana. They have a series of tiny sharp thorns around the rim which are near invisible but when you touch they really prick you. This water lily is covered half way showing its underside which has a rich crimson colour and thick veins.
 




                                                           

These lilies last for three weeks. Beetles pollinate them on the first day when the colour is white. Daytime, the beetles get trapped inside. 2^nd day, beetles fly out. Flower turns male and colour changes to pink! Beetles go and pollinate other flowers. Subsequently the flower turns magenta in colour!!

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We went to a Tree House – its a property of a local person. It has two types of cable walkway.. lower one has three lengths and four rooms on top. The upper one has only two long walkways and three rooms. Each room is rented out for U S $ 300 per night – no Air conditioning. Basic facilities – but there is mosquito netting. It is generally occupied by Russians and American tourists. Each riser is 6” and there are 80 steps but i don’t think it is anywhere near the claim that the platforms are 98 ft high. The walkway is not as long or as scary as the one in Taman Negara, Kuala Lumpur’s rain forest.

 

Here we are so small against nature’s might. Munkudo trees of Taman Negara are similar to the trees shown here in the photo or at Angkor Wat. They especially reminded me of Ta Prohm - the same variety with its huge trees twisting through the stone blocks of the temple or even at Taman Negara in Kuala Lumpur. Angkor scholar Maurice Glaize observed, "On every side, in fantastic over-scale, the trunks of the silk-cotton trees soar skywards under a shadowy green canopy, their long spreading skirts trailing the ground and their endless roots coiling more like reptiles than plants”.  The roots of these trees are not deep into the ground but grow along the ground level, often forming 4 ft above ground high ridges with tall trunks. Many of them have lichen and lianas growing on them so that the tree is covered fully.

Night falls on the river.and the scene of the evening sunset followed by the ship at night leaves you wistful of a holiday which will soon draw to an end.
 




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