Pampas Tour

Having made a timely escape from La Paz I headed to the jungle, one of the things I most wanted to see when I came to South America.

I got lucky and met a cool group of English travelers waiting for a cab to the airport. I decided to fly because it was the rainy season and the roads were dodgy. The usual nineteen hour bus ride was taking about forty eight. So we got into what looked like a child’s drawing of a plane and landed at the smallest airport I’ve ever seen, in Rurrenabaque, forty five minutes later, after a surprisingly smooth flight. The tropical warmth was a welcome relief after the altitude of La Paz. Rurrenabaque is a simple, dusty little town in a spectacular setting on the banks of the Rio Beni. It’s firmly on the ‘gringo trail’ so there’s no shortage of tourists/travelers, the majority of people coming to do a pampas or jungle tour. I opted for the pampas because you get to see more animals. Including sloths. I was sold.

The pampas tour takes you by small boat along the Rio Yacuma which is a tributary of the Amazon. The scenery is dense and beautiful. For three days we wound our way through endless jungle. On the first night we went caymen-spotting (which are similar to crocodiles). On the second day we went swimming with dolphins. (Now let me say that I had high expectations when it came to swimming with the dolphins. I’ve only had good reviews from people. Amazing reviews actually. So when it came time, I was pretty excited. But instead of dragging me along playfully in the water or a bit of affectionate nudging (as I was lead to believe would happen) it got hold of my big toe and tried to drag me under the water. It actually drew blood. Also, it’s worth mentioning, this type of dolphin is slightly pink in colour. Surely a pink dolphin is by definition one of the world’s cutest animals? Well this one bloody wasn’t). On the third day we went piranha fishing. Our guide managed to catch a few along with an Aussie guy in our group (I think every Australian who goes on the tour catches at least one) and it was awesome to see them up close.

Along the way we saw amazing animals. Spider Monkeys, Howler Monkeys, Toucans, Caymens, Terrapins, Capybara, Vultures. And of courses, the mighty Three-toed Sloth, which was definitely my highlight. Although, somewhat predictably, it really didn’t do much once we’d spotted it.

The pampas tour is very popular and at times it felt a little bit like a zoo. We were never far from other boats and it felt a little bit oversubscribed. But the lodge we stayed in was incredible, sitting on stilts pretty much in the river. Our guide was also excellent and his knowledge of the animals and surrounding area was vast. So it was an easy, lazy but awesome way to see some incredible animals. Not the dolphins though. Bastards.

Check out the photos here: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150200854711890.309531.514871889&l=3e86f5c1d5