Amazonas: How Africa Spoilt the Amazon

After one night too many (and we only stayed the one night) in the new arsehole of the world, Sao Luis (it takes the grand prize in a fiercely contested battle with Puerto Montt) we caught one of the strangest flights we have been on to date.

Billed as a direct flight from Sao Luis to Manaus, we stopped off in Belém and Santarém before finally arriving in Manaus – it was like the local bus, stopping here and there to pick up any strays along the route. No wonder it was cheap!

After arriving early in the morning and checking into a $12 hotel for couple of hours sleep we were picked up by our tour guide and started making our way into the Amazon – the jungle that is. This involved a 6am public bus from Manaus to god knows where, where we jumped off in what seemed like the middle of nowhere, right outside a convenience store of sorts.

From here we hauled aboard a largish wooden canoe (I say largish as it could sit 7 of us at a squeeze whereas most canoes I have previously encountered would hold 3 at most), complete with the smallest outboard you could imagine. This thing would be more suited to a whipper snipper than a boat, but still it did the job, and after an hour and half we made it to our Cabana where we were to spend the night.

Our Little Cabana

The trip in the canoe took us up the Rio Negra (Black River), named after is coffee black waters which is one of the main tributaries to the greater Amazon River. Along the way we saw countless dolphins, both pink and grey varieties, and apparently an otter, which our guides informed us are at the top of the food chain in the Amazon. These guys will attack anything from an anaconda to a piranha, and not necessarily for a feed either.

The cabana, which acted as our base for exploring the jungle, was located on an island (well at least in high water) with two basic huts and a long drop, was to be our home for the next few days. We strung up hammocks in the guest’s hut and then set off for some piranha fishing. This involved a more traditional 3 man canoe, a raw chicken leg, a length of fishing line wrapped around a broken piece of a polystyrene esky, and a hook seemingly fashioned out a paper clip. Yeah you guessed it, we didn’t have much luck. But we did paddle around and explore the river a bit more. The Rio Negra, at high water resembles more of a flooded jungle or savannah than a river, with the water rather sedate and clusters of trees everywhere, separated by waterways and tributaries.

Piranha fishing

And while we didn’t so much as get a bite, the other group were a little more successful. They had rods fashioned from branches and came home with 4 piranha for dinner that night. After dinner we again split up and headed back out onto the water for some ‘caiman hunting’, or so the itinerary quoted. We weren’t successful in this endeavour either, but to be honest I’m not too sure how much we wanted to be successful in this case. My guess is that the caiman of the Amazon are nothing like the salties of the Kimberleys, cos no one in their right mind would stalk the salties of the north in an 8 foot wooden canoe about as steady as a drunk on payday, armed only with a wooden paddle and a flash light. Still, we searched high and low for these guys and just enjoyed to absolute calm and serenity of the river at night. The entire river was like a shimmering mirror, reflecting even the stars above, and it was actually one of the highlights of the tour. Again the other group probably out-did us, as they had their peaceful paddle interrupted by a kamikaze fish that actually jumped into their boat and eventually made its way onto our plates the next night.

The others' catch

After an early night (it’s always funny to be reminded that without electricity, once the sun goes down there aren’t too many options on things to do. Out in the Amazon there are two options – 1: Sit around by candle light and get attacked by every bug imaginable, or 2: go to bed – we opted for number 2 on every occasion) we were up before sunrise to get back on board our trusty canoes and see the sunrise over the river and chance our luck at spotting more dolphins and other animals, who like us had hit the sack early and were up and about at 5am. 

Sunrise over Rio Negra 

Dolphin spotting on the Rio Negra

We were rewarded with the dolphins but not too much else happened on our leisurely paddle until on our way back to the cabana the other group were waiting at the edge of a cluster of trees with their guide evidently excited. They had entered the trees when Luis had heard a monkey screeching at the top of its lungs – he was sure this was a sign that the elusive anaconda was in the area. After a few minutes searching the tree tops we spotted the king of snakes, sunning himself atop one of the taller trees, blending in so much he seemed just an extension of the branch he had anchored himself to. Apparently anacondas, although very common in the jungle are extremely hard to find, and Luis was so excited to have found one he seemed disappointed it was just lazing about in the tree. I reckon he would have climbed the tree if we had let him, but he settled on trying to wake the beast up by any means possible. Still the beast was unmoved and we continued on our merry way.

Yes that is an anaconda up there disguising itself as a branch

We returned to the cabana, packed up our gear and started our trek into the jungle where we were to stay the night. They say in Brazil if you want animals you go to the Pantanal (one we missed but will hopefully be back one day to enjoy), if you want jungle you go to the Amazon. So in our 4 hour trek into the jungle we didn’t see much wildlife but we were introduced to a variety of plants and trees that were fascinating albeit unmoving. We learnt about trees that could cure, trees that could heal, trees that could sting, trees that would cut, trees that could hurt, trees that could kill (other trees that is) and of course trees that could just stand there.

Trees of the Amazon

After about 4 hours hiking into the heart of the jungle we made it to our camp for the night, a small clearing next to a stream and only a short walk from a small waterfall. This waterfall was a god-send – after 4 hours hiking though the humid jungle and a few days between showers, the cool water of the falls was more refreshing than I could have imagined. That night our guides cooked up a few chicken legs and the kamikaze fish from the previous evening paddle, and we were curled up in our hammocks watching the flickering lights of the candles slowly burn down and melt away into the night, all before 8pm.

Wilfred feeling right at home in the Amazon

Nighttime in the jungle

After hiking back the following morning to the cabana, the other tour group departed for civilisation whilst Nic and I lazed about in the hammocks and swum around in the river until the larger canoe returned. Whilst waiting we did paddle over to a neighbour, of sorts, who lived aboard a floating house. The family were renovating the house to make it more ‘authentic Amazon’ and their methods were nothing but ‘authentic Amazon’. At one stage they needed to get onto the roof, problem was the roof over hung the balcony by about a 1.5m. Solution: Nail one of the doors you recently pulled off one of the bedrooms to the balcony and climb a ladder from there. Problem Number 2: Need a ladder. No dramas, just knock one up from the scraps you’ve got lying about here, there and everywhere. Problem Number 3: No one was too keen to try out their handy work. Too easy, send up the oldest one of the bunch, he’s already had a good run. Problem Number 4: The tin roof was apparently fricken scolding. Well throw the poor man his thongs, it ain’t rocket science.

The Floating House

In amongst all this action, Nic made quite the impression on the little toddler they had. After being rather shy at first, he came around with a quick game of hide and seek and in the end didn’t want Nic to leave. Later that night he evidently told his mum he wouldn’t go to sleep until he got to see the ‘girl with the golden hair’ again. So she got one of the workers and his brother to row him over to our cabana only to find Nic had gone to bed – yeah outlasted by a toddler, and Fat Cat. Our guides promised him that they would bring the ‘golden haired girl’ over in the morning, and apparently he was satisfied with this.

We lived up to this promise early the next morning and on this occasion we both (somehow and unbeknown to us) made quite the impression on the entire family as they invited us over to have lunch with them. From what we could gather from our guides this was quite unusual but we returned bearing gifts for the little one (we parted ways with a small toy Mario that Bazil has found just before we left Perth. For those that know of Wilfred our monkey teddy, he was not up for adoption) and enjoyed Sunday lunch with the family and a few others from nearby dwellings on the river. Somewhat of an unexpected look into life on the Amazon.

Amazon fishing First World style

Who believes I caught this?

For most that head into the Amazon, I believe it is the highlight of their trip (and we did get this impression from the others on our trip) but for us it was a little spoilt by our time in Africa. We both enjoyed the trip, but when it’s all about the jungle and you’ve already trekked through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest (yeah its name has the word impenetrable in it) it’s hard to measure up. I guess this may make us sound a little like travel snobs but we’re not trying to be. It’s just in Africa, when we were hiking through rainforests there was more to it than just the forest itself – the Gorillas of Bwindi, the chimps of the Kalinzu– these were things you can’t get anywhere else in the world. The Amazon as a whole, in the jungle, the river, the wildlife (although minimal), the people and the way of life were incredible and something Nic and I will look back on fondly, it just wasn’t Africa. It lacked the rawness of that continent, and the savageness that lies at the heart of it.

One last sunrise

Lençóis Maranhenses: ‘Desert Oasis’ Doesn’t Quite Do It Justice

Parque Nacional dos Lençóis Maranhenses…From above 

From Jericoacoara we made our way into Lençóis Maranhenses National Park by way of private transfer. There appears to be two main ways of getting into the park from Jeri – one by public transport, which is a 24 hour ordeal and costs somewhere in the region of R$170 ($85 AUD) or private transfer which takes 8 hours and costs R$200 – smart money is on the transfer.

These transfers drop you off at the last town reachable by car, Caburé. Although it is more a collection of 2-3 pousadas (bed and breakfasts) than a town, it is considered one of the main ‘ports’ of the area given its proximity to the ocean. From here we hired a boat to take us up river to the town of Atins, which most consider the best ‘gateway’ town in to the park. From here you can organise day trips into the park, or multiple night treks across the park for the more adventurous.

We had heard of a 3-4 day trek that would take you across the entire park that we were both very keen on, albeit a little apprehensive of how much of an ordeal it would be. The trek would start off with a casual 35km hike across the dunes to our first overnight stop that could take anywhere between 8-10 hours of walking… in sand! From here it was supposed to get easier with the next two days only requiring 3-4 hours of hiking to reach your nightly destinations.

Our hostel was able to organise guides and we were set to have a meeting at 8.00pm that night and set off the next morning. Well 8pm rolled around and so did 10pm and given we had heard most treks started at either 3am or 3pm to avoid the harshest times of the day, we thought it was a safe bet that our trip wouldn’t be heading off the next morning.

The next day we tried to organise the trip to leave that afternoon but apparently all the town’s guides were still out in the park so our trip was looking more and more like it wasn’t going to happen. So, through the friends we had made from the trip into Atins, we decided on an afternoon trip into the nearby dunes.

A 40 minute ride in the back of a clapped out old Landie brought us to a seemingly meaningless spot in the endless dunes, and from here a 15 minute walk brought you to what can only be described as a desert oasis – although this doesn’t quite do it justice.

Our first glimpse of paradise

It is not your typical ‘cartoon’ desert oasis with palms trees and a fortified fort, rather a sea of endless white sand dunes with the valleys between dunes filled with crystal clear turquoise blue waters. We found one lagao that had animal life, and a few that had scant flora growing in the middle, but for the majority, the only forms of life are the humans frolicking in the cool waters, escaping the heat of the ever present sun.

This is not a mirage…

Walking around you can easily find yourself alone amongst the dunes, but given there is fresh water over every second rise, you never quite feel too far from safety. We watched the sun go down with Luca and Pia, an Italian-French couple and Luca and Sophie, a French couple, all of whom we had met on the drive into Atins. Sitting atop the highest dune in our vicinity, watching the sun sink behind the endless dunes all around us, all the while reflecting its journey in the blue waters at your feet is a scene I don’t think we will get to witness again for quite some time.

Taking in the serenity

Nic recently said that sunsets are quite boring, and given I grew up in a place where the sunsets pretty much go unrivalled around the world, I tend to agree with her. Still, we do seem to watch a fair few of them, and even Nic agreed this one was a little something special.

Lençóis Maranhenses sunset

Later that evening we headed away from the dunes towards the coast to a small coastal village where we were treated to quite possibly the best prawns I have eaten. In typical Italian fashion Luca described the meal as ‘bellissimo’ and requested the secret ingredients, and despite his passionate pleas, the chef would not give them up.

Waking up the next day, Nic and I both looked like the prawns we had eaten the night before – I had even managed to get myself a sunglasses tan, although I don’t think you could describe the colour as a tan, more so a burn. So we were both quietly glad we hadn’t signed ourselves up for the 35km hike the day before. And looking back, although it would have been one hell of an experience, I don’t think we would have gotten a whole heap more out of the trek, given you can walk around for an hour or so in the dunes and see countless lagoas of different shapes, sizes and colours.

After lathering ourselves in aloe vera and more sunscreen we hired quads and made the trip out to Lagoa Tropical. We had thought we would be getting 2 quads, one each for us and Luca and Pia, and a third for our guide, but instead two quads arrived complete with drivers and we piled onto the back for the half an hour trip out to the lagoon.

Lagoa Tropical – white sand, turquoise water and not another soul in sight

We were dropped off right at the foot of the dunes and a quick scale upwards brought you to a vantage point to see the whole of Lagoa Tropical in all its glory. Although not at its peak fullness, the lagoon lived up to its name, with an island (just another smaller dune) in its centre, and a small beach area to sunbathe if you weren’t already crispy from the day before.

After exploring the surrounds for an hour or two, Nic and I returned to find the lagoon completely deserted. Pia and Luca returned a few minutes later and for the rest of the afternoon we had the lagoon completely to ourselves. The advantages of doing things on your own – well sort of.

Just because… 

That afternoon we caught back up with Luca and Sophie, who had hired a guide and explored another area of the park on their own, and the 6 of us hired a boat to take us up river to one of the larger towns in the area, Barreirinhas. This is the main town to the area and comes complete with paved roads, concrete floors and a return to civilisation. The trip along the river was worth it as a tourist day trip, let alone a means of getting to your next destination. The river winds its way past small shanty settlements, housing one of two families in somewhat primitive lean-to shelters, who seem to live off the river and support themselves without the need of the luxuries of what we deem civilisation – it was like being back in Africa, and we loved it.

Don’t worry I got this!

The others continued their journey to São Luís whilst Nic and I found a place to sleep the night. We ended up stumbling upon a place that promised a bed, a fan, wifi and free canoes – they have seemingly delivered on all accounts.

Given we didn’t get to do the 3 day trek, Nic and I were still keen on getting a grander overview of the park so we decided to splash out and do a scenic flight over the park and its surrounds. There is just something to be said about seeing things from above. It was awesome to say the least. Even our pilot got into the tourist mode of things and mid-way through a gentle turn, pulled out his phone and got off a few happy snaps. Although we were only in the air for 25 minutes or so, we were able to take in a heap, and get a great picture of the entire park in all its fullness and grandeur.

Rio Preguiças and the beginning of the park

From the river with its numerous bends and small clusters of dwellings, to the ‘port’ town of Caburé, to our pousada in Atins, the first half of the flight gave us a great overview of where we had been. Then we hit the jackpot of the flight – seeing the park from the air. 

Caburé on the banks of Rio Preguiças’ delta 

Things always seem better from up high, and Lençóis Maranhenses was no exception. In fact it’s one of the places I would implore anyone who visits it, to see it from above – splurge a little, its worth it. There are not too many places in the world where you can see such scenery, rolling dune after rolling dune separated by waters of near on every shade of blue-green (and brown) imaginable is just something we will not forget for a while.

Parque Nacional dos Lençóis Maranhenses…From above during a gentle left hand turn

I think I have said something similar to that in a previous post, but I suppose that’s what you do when travelling – as Bazil (my old man for those who don’t know) has said, ‘all you seem to do when travelling is look at shit’. And he is dead right, but you have one hell of a time doing so!

Our humble ride

Jericoacoara: Sun, Sand and Enough Wind to Make the Big Bad Wolf Blush

The local bus...full of tourists

After what felt like a week straight of getting up at 5am and travelling for the entire day, we finally made the unusual trip to Jericoacoara – a small, quiet coastal town famous for its wind sports.

The journey into Jeri from Fortaleza is one of the more fun and unusual we have made by way of public transport. The first 4-5 hours are standard, travelling along fairly well maintained bitumen highways, overtaking and being overtaken at will, sharing the road with horse and carts, making a 300km trip take 5 hours, all the standard normalities of travelling in South America.

However, upon reaching Jijoca, a small town at the end of the highway, we changed from our standard coach style bus, to a 4WD truck fitted with bench seats to fit about 50. The next 30km (which took over an hour) took us through dirt tracks, over sand dunes and finally onto the white sands of the Atlantic coast where we cruised in between piles of drift wood and beach shacks onto our final destination – Jericoacoara.

An interesting journey to say the least.

We spent 2 full days here, spending our time between lazing in the hammocks, walking the 2 main sandy streets and chilling on the beach. Jeri is famous for its kite and wind surfing with the majority of people either trying to learn the sport or teaching it. We had heard it had a good surf beach, but for the life of me I couldn’t see how the beach we found could be termed such.

There are also numerous tours to be taken from Jeri, but given our last hectic week of what seemed like sitting on our arses for a good 11 hours a day trying to get here, we thought we would take advantage of the hammocks and the cool waters of the main beach and do absolutely nothing.

Jericoacoara

We did  become regulars of a local restaurant where the table and chairs are simply set on the sandy floors of the roadside, and the meals cost $5 (AUD) for a T-bone as big as your head with salad, rice and beans served on an accompanying plate.

Although the sunset in not unreal, it does however set over the water, which for an eastern coastal town is somewhat unusual, although not unheard of. We watched the sun sink into the ocean from one of the nearby dunes, with a caipirinha in hand and more than our fair share of wind and sand as the last of the kite boarders made the most of the fading light.

Taking in the sunset

For many, Jericoacoara would be a highlight of their trip, but for us, being Australian (the beaches don’t amaze us as they do Europeans) and having being lucky enough to see a fair amount of Brazil and its natural beauty, Jeri was more of a gateway into Lençóis Maranhenses, a place we had wanted to get to since we first decided to come to Brazil. Still Jeri was a great place to relax, unwind and enjoy the pleasures of holidaying. More of you should join us!

When the sun sets in east?

Fortaleza: It's Not About What You Need, It's About What You Want!

One's experience in Brazil cannot be considered complete until they have made a pig of themselves at a rodízio.

These are Brazilian style all you can eat bbq'd meats with a side of all you can eat buffet.

The gimmick is that you are given a flag, or token in our case which had a green side for more gluttony, and a red side for 'I surrender and need a lie down'!

We had yet to experience the joys of such an establishment until we came to Fortaleza.

So on the back of 11 hours of travel with a half a meal to sustain us we landed in the Disney Land of rodízio - Ghellar!

Welcome to backpackers paradise!

We had been told that the meats at this place was to be succulent and more'ish (one stuffed with garlic and dripping with so much fat you could fry your chips then and there on your own plate) but we didn't really know what accompanied these delicacies.

Well Ghellar has set the bar at a very high standard. The cold selection would have been enough but this 'heaven of gluttony' came fully equipped with a sushi bar, paella, moqueca (Brazilian fish stew), chicken curry, fried rice, black beans, chips, fried bananas, the list goes on.

After trying to contain ourselves at the hot and cold buffet sections (let's say one or two plates contained) we started gorging ourselves on the meats.

The waiters come around with the meat on large skewers and slice off the meat until you wave the red flag.

About half an hour into our encounter Nic said she was pretty full and probably didn't 'need' anymore. Well these places aren't about what you need, there about what you 'want'! And we both wanted more!

Deep within the trenches

Another half an hour or so later we finally succumbed and waved the traitorous red flag. It really was like a battle, with casualties and injuries on both sides – chickens roasted in flames, hunks of beef lost to the floor, pigs left scattered over the plate. We both felt we were in need of a stretcher or a nice little cat nap. But like all good, weary, battle hardened soldiers we trudged on and made it safely back to the hostel.

That's probably when the shame set in!

Chapada Diamantina: A Blue World

Ribeirão do Meio

We had changed our original plans in order to get to the national park of Chapada Diamantina and it was one of those decisions that you wish you made more of.

Chapada Diamantina is somewhat unique for a national park in that it has numerous towns situated within the park boundaries themselves. One of the best towns to set yourselves in is Lençóis, it offers days trips by car and foot to see the major highlights of the park without really roughing it.

Another major reason we changed our plans was to meet up with some friends and spend some more time with them. It turned out there was 11 of us in total and with a group that size came bargaining power.

One of the Israeli lads was fairly fluent in Portuguese and acted as the group's spokesperson and organised two days trips for half the price we could have got on our own - as always it’s about who you know!

The first day we headed to the south of the park and although we spent most of the day in the car, the two caves we visited were unbelievable.

The first, Poço Encantado, is an 8m deep cave filled with the most crystal clear turquoise blue water you could imagine. Its name means ‘Enchanted Pool’ and your impression is that it perfectly describes the feeling and mood you get as you descend to near water level. Half the water's mirrored surface is illuminated and reflects the cave walls above, whilst the darker side is clear enough to see the features buried beneath.

Poço Encantado

On sunny days a single beam of sunlight streaks through the walls to illuminate a solitary section of the water, generating more shades of blue than you can imagine. Fallen tree trunks and boulders lying on the pool bottom can be clearly seen, belying their 50m depths. You feel that if you were to fall in, you may never get back out.

Poço Azul

An underwater 'Gibsy"

The second is aptly named Poço Azul (Blue Pool), and after rigorously cleaning yourself in the showers provided, you descend some 15m and are able to snorkel through the cave and let your imagination run wild. I would have loved to have been able to dive down to explore the deeper depths of this pool but the Brazilians are trying to preserve the park as much as they can, and the toxins in our skin are polluting the waters of these underground pools to an extent where in a few years I don't think you will get the pleasure of even dipping your toe into the blue waters of the southern caves.

Exploring the depths of Poço Azul

The following day we explored the north of the park, which again was dominated by caves and pools but did not disappoint.

The first cave, Gruta da Torrinha, was filled with stalactites and stalagmites which are a marvel in themselves. Dressed as Bob the Builder (in multi-coloured hard hats) we descended some 60m to the cave's depth and explored the numerous caverns and speleothems (cave formations).

Gruta da Torrinha

An up close look at a few of Gruta da Torrinha's stalactites

We were then treated to Pratinha where for an added few dollars you could snorkel through another blue cave, but for free you could splash about in the crystalline water of Lagoa Azul and chase the surprisingly abundant fish around and enjoy a picnic on the water edge

Blue Cave at Pratinha

Blue Lagoon at Pratinha

Nic and I were lucky enough to beat the crowds and spend 20 minutes or so by ourselves in yet another blue cave (or grotto), again aptly named Gruta Azul. We were able to sit by the water’s edge with only a few lonely fish for company and watch the sun pass overhead casting the water a deeper, more royal blue as it went.

Gruta Azul...

...all to ourselves

We then made our way back towards Lençóis and refreshed ourselves with a dip in Poço do Diabo (Devil’s Pool) with the Rio Mucugezinho flowing into it. It reminded me a lot of the Kimberly waterfalls and rock pools I was lucky enough to grow up with. You can relax underneath the waterfall’s edge, or enjoy a free massage from the falls themselves, or simply laze about on the rocky ledges surrounding the pool.

Poço do Diabo

Poço do Diabo & Rio Mucugezinho

We were rather quick to leave Poço do Diabo in order to make the climb up Morros do Pai Inácio for the sunset. From here you get a 360° view of the surrounding mountains and the greater Chapada Diamantina park. Although we weren’t treated to the most amazing of sunsets, sitting back watching the sky change colours whilst enjoying a beer or two, really is a great way to cap off the day. Throw in some extra relaxation stimulants, and you may have a hard time finding your way back down.

Chapada Diamantina viewed from Morros do Pai Inácio

Sunset over Chapada Diamantina

We sandwiched these two days of exploring the park between two days of exploring the immediate surrounds of Lençóis itself. On one side of the town the river meanders its way over some natural rock pools down into the town itself. 

Natural rock pools of Lençóis

On the other edge of town, a short 1 hour hike brings you to Ribeirão do Meio – a natural rock slide much like Cachoeira do Toboga in Paraty, which we enjoyed a few months back. This one was a little steeper and not as smooth, which resulted in faster speeds but a hell of a lot more torn skin and bruises in places you don’t want or need such injuries.

Ribeirão do Meio

You can’t always see everything, and we certainly only got a glimpse of what Chapada Diamantina has to offer, but it sure was more than we had originally intended. And for that, we consider ourselves pretty bloody lucky.

At heart, we are all just big kids!