Ecuador: Day 4 - Sacha Lodge to NWC

Another 4am morning. All of our things were packed and ready to go before breakfast. 

We started the morning by taking our last canoe trip with Wilmer and Andrew across the lake in the dark on the way to the river trail. We then hiked that at a brisk pace and got to the river as the sun came up. There we met our motor boat, and headed down stream. Dad was in rare form. 

We arrived at a parrot clay lick on the bank of the Napo iver, which is where a bunch of parrots basically get together and eat dirt. I guess the reason for this is that the parrots eat a lot of palm fruits, which have some toxins in them. By eating the minerals in the dirt, the toxins are neutralized. Mother Nature is weird. 

We also spotted a large guinea pig-ish creature. And no, Ginger, I didn't have time to cook and eat it. I'll keep you posted on further developments though. 

Supposedly good eats

The we landed on one of the river islands. It's completely composed of sand, and the grasses and trees that grow there create a unique ecosystem for certain birds. Also, quicksand! Reall, honest to God, Pitfall Harry quicksand! I really wanted to find some deep stuff and get in - for both the experience and the great photo opportunity.  Wilmer insisted that I should not, partly with the idea that I should not risk life and limb for a dumb photo, but mostly because I'd be filthy and would certainly dirty up his boat if I did actually make it out alive. 

From there we went to another island, although it was connected to the mainland with a dry stream bed. It seems the rivers are all down quite a bit at the moment. We were looking for a woodpecker, but it was not readily available. 

Back on the boat, we hurried to the Napo Wildlife Center docks to get shelter from a quick rainstorm. We waited there for about 45 minutes. No birds to speak of, but I did see this. 

I don't know what it is yet, but it was growing out of the side of a tree right where the mossy and dry sides met. Looked good, anyway.  

After the rain let up, we went upstream again to the Napo Wildlife Center Community Center. There is a small village there with a school, restaurant, and some lodging. We had lunch there, said goodbye to Wilmer, and waited for our next local guide.

The NWC boat finally came and took us, along with many other people, back to the NWC docks. Since the NWC is within the national park, no motorized boat are allowed. It's a 7km canopied (we didn't get to paddle) to the lodge. 

Sacha Lodge was nice. This place is bordering on fancy. It was clear right away that this lake was much MUCH more alive than the one at Sacha. By nightfall the lake was full of splashes, large splashes, and huge splashes as different things tried to eat different things. Had a beer after tha canoe ride, and another with dinner, and retired early. 

The beer of Ecuador