Amazon Lodge Stay

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    by Discover Travel

    Stay at an Amazon Lodge

    In April this year I visited the Ecuadorian Amazon for a 3 night stay in a lodge.

    Getting there was a bit of an adventure and it started with a 40 minute flight from Quito to Coca that gave great views of the Andes as we flew over the Amazon basin.  On arrival we then transferred to a motorised canoe for a 2 hour trip along the Amazon – great to see the various villages along the route and the other boats on the river (some precarious loads we thought!).  We then arrived at the entrance to the lodge and had a walk along a boardwalk for 30 mins (luggage transferred by wagon) and then our final part of the journey was a short canoe ride across the lake to the lodge.   An impressive arrival!

    The lodge is set in a private ecological reserve in the pristine rainforest and has a fabulous setting, it very much reminded me of a lodge in Africa with the thatched roof and hammock on the terrace to while away the middle of the day.

    Each day we enjoyed a number of excursions, either by boat or on foot accompanied by an English speaking guide and an Indian guide.

    My favourite experiences were:

    • Being quietly canoed down narrow black-water tributaries with our native guide finding impossible-to-spot birds and pointing out the fauna along the way.
    • The Canopy walk was fantastic, you climb 150 feet in the sky and walk along swing bridges hung between huge kapok trees. Lots of birds and monkeys to spot and the view all around is stunning. I recommend a good pair of binoculars, although your guide has a great spotting scope.
    • Night walk – spotting tarantulas, frogs and looking for the elusive Puma. It was amazingly dark and incredibly noisy with all the frogs and insects.
    • Day walks along boardwalks learning about the flora and fauna with the highlight being our guide spotting a large sleeping owl high in the tree.
    • Watching fellow guests swim in the lake after they have been fishing for piranhas!
    • We also visited an excellent local museum that featured the various tribes and how they lived and hunted – very hands on and interesting.

    We enjoyed excellent meals with other guests, it was very social and like Africa, there were loads of books and materials to enjoy in between excursions.  The lodge itself is very restful so a great opportunity for a rest before or after a busy time in the Galapagos.

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