The rivers of Ecuador are so awesome that oft times the surrounding jungle gets little more than a second glance.  High forest cloud forest, low altitude jungle–the river we do on any particular day determines the backdrop of scenery.

A glimpse of the rain forest when paddling in Ecuador

For once, we decided to leave the (plastic) kayaks behind and take a bit of time to explore the jungle of Ecuador. Destination: Cuyabeno Reserve.  The point of embarkation for Cuyabeno is six hours further down the road then we have ever been here in Ecuador. So we drove past our favorite haunts in Baeza, Borja and Chaco and continued following the Quijos north downstream past San Rafael Falls and continued further past the point the Quijos/Coca turned and headed east towards the Napo River, until we reached the infamous town of Lago Agrio. For a town that did not exist prior to the oil rush of 1970, the 40,000+ populated city was the last stop for “civilization.”

Everything to be found in Lago Agrio

The Cuyabeno River flows into the Agrio River—which while smaller than the Napo is still one of the main tributaries heading off to the Amazon. This is where we left our wheels behind.  From the bridge at the Cuyabeno River, transportation is limited to boat.   Boat or tall boots!

Exchanging river flip flops for Jungle wear

Ten hours from Quito, at the end of the proverbial road, the only option for reaching Cuyabeno is a three-hour boat ride into paradise.

We had an amazing three days/nights in the jungle.  During day we embarked on avatar-like walks through the primary forest. And a visit to Siona tribe—one of the four indigenous groups that inhabit the reserve.  We were treated to a glimpse into the daily life of a remote community.

Trying a hand at hunting for lunch

when blow guns don't work, using a machate to dig up some yuca is always an option

Night is as busy in Cuyabeno as day. Evening is prime piranha fishing time.

nice smile!

.And once the sun set, flashlights allowed us to light up the eyes of caiman, hunt for anacondas and watch bats and night birds fly by.

of course it is a good idea to go out in a little boat....at night...and look for jungle creatures!

Angel embarked on his own adventure—midnight fishing for pirarucu—possibly the world’s largest freshwater fish.

Our remarkable visit into the jungle was over too soon.  We returned to Quito on our well-traveled road, stopping for a glimpse of some of our favorite sites in the Oriente.

A glimpse of Reventador Volcano

We invite you to take a moment to enjoy our whole collection of photos from Cuyabeno Reserve, and our individual paddling trips!

Ecuador is 2200 miles south of the border–and the weather is a whole lot better in Ecuador than in the States right now. In fact, some have complained that there has been too much sunny weather here in the Oriente.   Not us!!  While the rivers have been lower than in years past, the uniquely low levels have made for new interesting routes not explored previously.

The cold weather at home means more time around a warm fire. If you are in search of interesting reading material while waiting for the snow to melt, check out the ERA Guide Reading List:

The White Rock, Hugh Thompson

Tropical Nature, Adrian Forsyth & Ken Miyata

1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, Charles C Mann

The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon, David Grann

Sweat of the Sun,Tears of the Moon: A Chronicle of Incan Treasure, Peter Lourie

Valverdes Gold, Mark Honigsbaum

Land of Ghosts, David Campbell

River of Doubt, Candice Millard

Savages, Joe Kane

Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson

Latin American Heroes, Jerome Adams

When the Rivers Run Dry, Fred Pearce

Confessions of an Economic Hitman, John Perkins

and of course any book by Christopher Moore!

Some brush off the idea of international paddling because of the quality of whitewater found in their own backyard.  And while that may be true, and while at the same time we might wax eloquent on the thrill of exploring new rivers in new places, paddling is only part of what fuels our enthusiasm for spending time in countries like Costa Rica and Ecuador.

Typical view on a river in Ecuador

Kayaking is the reason we travel, but the bonus is the chance to gain glimpses into other cultures.  So while we will share stories of paddling throughout the winter, we would also like to share some of the cultural experiences we find different in Latin America. One of the first cultural differences found on the streets of Ecuador is the personal greeting.

Even after 14 years, it is still part of our program to do a familiarization run down the rivers of Ecuador before starting a trip—just as we do in Costa Rica even after 20 years. In Costa Rica it is because the rivers change routes like a lady changes her mind….in Ecuador the rivers do not change as much, but they still do and noting these changes is part of our job.  Truth be known, rarely will you hear a complaint from the team down doing the scouting week.  Take this week in Ecuador:

View on the commute to the “office.”

Heading out of Quito on the way to the Oriente snow-capped Cotopaxi peeked out to welcome us back. The drive over the Pass and into the Quijos Valley is always spectacular.

We had already heard that the country is in a bit of a drought. While it is devastating over on the west coast, by definition drought in the Oriente is a whole different weather pattern than what we are used to in the United States. It tends to mean that it has been raining “not as much” as normal. So coming over the pass to see the Quijos at a low level inspires a much different sentiment than at home: Relief.  You don’t run out of water in the Oriente, it just means the rivers are not as “fluffy” as normal. And low water is a much better sight than the big booming Quijos we sometimes drop off the Pass to find.

Arriving in the Oriente, we opted to hop on the Quijos for the first day back on the water. And it was so much fun being back on the Quijos that we went twice as far as we had planned. The stretch through Pica de Piedra was actually easier at low water.  But once we entered the Canyon, as is typical with canyon runs, much of the run was more difficult than it is at higher water; enough so that we hopped out to scout at Toro (the rapid we refer to as Logan’s Leap). And for the first time since our first year and Logan’s run through the rapid, we came down and leapt over Logan’s hole (okay, boofed it, but let’s keep with the namesake).  Not often that is going to happen. [missing photos here since we are waiting replacement camera equipment]

Heading down the Quijos

Angel was up above and caught a few photos of us coming down through the canyon.

Heading down to Linares Canyon

And tomorrow we have to get up and go to work again.

Putting boats to bed until next year. Pura Vida!

We said “adios” to our final friends heading back to the States this weekend. And after cleaning up the boats and tucking them away for the season, we now sadly say “hasta la vista” to Miguel and his family, and the toucans and monkeys and oro pendulas and iguanas….. hasta proximo ano!

and in both locations we have lots going on!

Blue Skies over Costa Rica. And today we welcome back an all star group of veteran costa rica boaters to help us make the best of our last trip of the 2009 season.

for photos of all our trips, make sure and check out our photo album.

Stohlquist DESCENT pfd now in stock! Having given the DESCENT a test drive last year in Ecuador, we know you are going to have to update your Xmas wish list!

Sometimes you do not know the answer to that question until after you have done it!

Costa Rica stamps

ball sunsets disappearing into burning skies

rivers with bubble necklaces hanging them onto your eyelashes

a full green, overlaying green valleys with shoulders too steep to fall into

sun eating away the leaf edges, leaving cracks of sunshine

smooth skin in love with humidity and fresh sheets

the peacefulness of hearing your own thoughts

the fork tender mouth memorizing ahi steaks

venting volcanoes, panoramicaly stacked aerial bouquets of clouds

clouds recounting their consciousness

sunlight buttons on lacy white water hems

unrequited splashes of color love

the screaming silence of secluded hanging slot canyons

burgeoning structured billowing sentients

cascading boils piqued on a morning glow

engaging form fractals creating their own erasures

rose apple light flattened across bubbling fountains of cream

jumbling yellow boats mushrooming out of pillow water

 norm

for more inspirations from nkarasa, check out the guest articles on our website

We understand that this year is a tough year for folks to get away.  So we are working super hard to keep you with us via the ol’computer…..

Each week we are working to have photos posted for everyone to enjoy–whether you were with us or not that week

We are adding posts to our ERA Facebook Page

And in our very slow time, will also have more video for you to vicariously share time with us.

We miss everyone who could not be with us this year in Costa Rica!

Pura Vida to all our friends.