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Manu Lodge Tours |
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Operator:
Manu Nature Tours |
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Manu Cloud Forest Lodge + Manu Lodge
6 days
/ 5 nights |
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Price: US$ per person
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Fixed Departure Dates 2008 |
Tour Includes |
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Tour Itinerary |
ITINERARY DESCRIPTION
Day 01. 6:00 am. Rendez-vous and departure of our private vehicle from
our Cusco office. Our destination today is Manu Nature Tour's 1,300 Ha.
Private Reserve in the cloud forest near the southeastern boundary of
the Manu Park nested between the grasslands and the lowlands of the
Upper Madre de Dios River. We travel southeast through small Andean
villages while we observe cameloid shepherds and native peasants in
their colorful attires. We travel at leisure making several stops along
the way, including many photo opportunities, and the colorful colonial
town of Paucartambo. As we reach the Acjanaco pass, near the
southern-most tip of the Manu Park, a delicious lunch is the perfect
complement to the magnificent views of the elfin forest, cloud forest,
and the lowland Amazon Basin below.
Mountain Biking: For those with the energy and a sense of adventure we
will offer the choice to use a sturdy mountain bike with front
suspension to descend effortlessly on the most scenic and beautiful part
of the single-lane dirt road into the heart of the cloud forests. For
your security, and since this is not a competition but a chance to enjoy
nature, you will have to ride behind our transport. We provide bike
helmets and gloves.
We reach our Manu Cloud Forest Lodge to have a relaxing evening by the
lodge's veranda. The sound of the Union Creek by the lodge and a visit
to the lodge sauna will put us into a pleasant sleep.
The above is an optional activity and must be reserved and paid in
advance.
Day 02. After breakfast, we head towards Atalaya, the first navigable
port on the Upper Madre de Dios River. The ride will take us through
small villages of Andean colonists and indigenous people whose main
economic activities are rudimentary farming and low-scale logging. Once
at Atalaya we board our motorized boats, equipped with individual
cushioned seats, and long tarps to provide shelter from the baking sun,
or the sudden tropical downpour. River journeys are long in Manu and
visitors have rated our boats as the most comfortable in the entire
region. We will boat down the fast-flowing, braided, clear water, upper
Madre de Dios River for about four hours to the confluence with the
meandering, Manu River. As soon as we enter the great Manu wilderness,
every river bend will bring us a vista of unspoiled beauty. We may see
Black Caiman, White Caiman, toucans, parrots, scores of wild macaws,
several species of raptors, and maybe even a magnificent Jaguar. The
best proof of the presence of Jaguars and the possibility of many of our
tour groups to see these great cats, are the many wonderful amateur
photographs that our customers have sent back to our company.
After about four hours, we arrive at the Juarez Lake sandbar, then we
hike 600 meters along a flat trail to the Juarez oxbow lake, where
guides paddle us in a catamaran to the secluded Manu Lodge, the only
full Lodge in the entire protected wilderness of Manu. If during the dry
season the catamaran cannot be used due to the low water level in the
lake, we will walk a one kilometer trail (about twenty minutes) only
taking our hand-bags with us while the main luggage is carried by the
Lodge personnel. Overnight: Manu Lodge.
Day 03. We rise to the loud call of Howler Monkeys, and to the option of
a dawn paddle on the lake. During breakfast from the dining room, you
may be able to see entire troops of Squirrel Monkeys, Brown Capuchins,
and White-Fronted Capuchins that may be visiting the lodge clearing in
search of palm fruits. Without any doubt, one of the highlights of Manu
Lodge is the family of four Giant Otters who usually breed there. Manu
Lodge visitors have been able to see these playful and gregarious
carnivores from a 15-meter distance without causing any disturbance of
their daily activities. This group of Giant Otters visits the Manu Lodge
every now and then, and when at Juarez, they can be seen at different
times of the day. Surprisingly, a few dead logs in front of our dining
room are their favorite spot to eat fish, preen, and play.
Manu Lodge offers the largest and most complete trail system available
in Manu (over 20 km of marked trails), and the result of standardized
trail walks completed by groups of researchers over the course of
several years, show that "it is actually those sections closest to the
lodge and most heavily visited, which were the most productive in terms
of mammal sighting. This suggests that the presence of tourists and
researchers is not having a disturbing effect on the local mammal
population." (1995, Durham University Expedition Report.)
Day 04. Two miradors are located within a close distance from the Manu
Lodge; when clear they allow visitors with a vista of the canopy that
stretches to the snow-capped peaks near Cusco. A dawn visit to the
miradors is the most rewarding and while we look at the seemingly
endless horizon, several primate and bird species may reward our
patience. Mirador visitors regularly see: White-throated Jacamar,
Paradise Tanagers, Opal-rumped Tanager, and Swallow Tanager. Eye-level
sights of Red and Green Macaws, Scarlet Macaws, and Blue and Yellow
Macaws as they fly by the mirador, and turn their heads to look at us is
an unforgettable memory. On some occasions visitors have been rewarded
with sights of Ornate-Hawk Eagle, and the monkey-eating Harpy Eagle. At
over a meter-high, its yellow legs and talons seem larger than human
arms and hands.
Macaw Roosting & Nesting Site: In the afternoon we will visit old oxbow
lake, within a 15-minute boat ride from Manu Lodge presents large stands
of Mauritia Palms, which make wonderful roosting and nesting sites for
dozens of Blue and Yellow Macaws and Red-bellied Macaws. An elevated
platform will provide visitors with "next to stage seats" to watch these
colorful birds, as they play, preen and display while their bright
plumage reflect the golden light of the setting tropical sun.
Optional: Canopy climbing. During your stay in Manu Lodge you have the
chance to explore the rainforest canopy at a closer range. Our staff can
take you for a spectacular and safe climb to a platform located 76 feet
above the ground. Overnight: Manu Lodge.
This is an optional activity and must be reserved in advance and paid in
cash at the Manu Lodge.
There are almost 500 bird species recorded in the vicinity of Manu
Lodge. Some of these species have traditional nests right next to Manu
Lodge. These "neighbor" species include: Black-tailed Tityra, Yellow-
rumped Cacique, Golden-bellied Euphonia, Palm Tanager, Silver-beaked
Tanager, and Masked-crimson Tanager. The immediate vicinity of the
Juarez lake offers you easy and superb sightseeing of: Striated Heron,
Wattled Jacana, Yellow-billed Tern, the bizarre Hoatzin, White-winged
Swallows, Black-capped Donacobius, and Red-capped Cardinal. Other
frequent visitors of the Manu Lodge are: Great Egret, Green Ibis,
Osprey, and Black-collared Hawk. All of them can be easily seen from the
lake banks or from our comfortable catamaran. Overnight: Manu Lodge.
Day 05. At 06:00 o’clock we start our three-hour river journey back to
the confluence of the Manu and the Madre de Dios. This journey is our
last chance to spot a Capybara, the world's largest rodent, or a Tapir,
a relative of horses and the rainforest's largest mammal. After about
three hours we will reach Boca Manu for a brief stop and to refuel our
boats. From Boca Manu we will explore the lower portion of the Madre de
Dios River where we may have a chance to see large Red-and-Green Macaws
perched on the trees or making short and long flights to the rain forest
canopy. Although the lower Madre de Dios River, in the vicinity of the
Macaw Lick is not within the protected Manu National Park, the riverine
wildlife viewing is surprisingly diverse. On a recent scientific survey
on this area our biologist guides have spotted: Black caiman, white
caiman, capybara, river turtles, over 200 wood storks, roseate
spoonbills, horned-screamers, turkey vultures, snowy egrets, great
egrets, cattle egrets, several species of oropendolas, swallow-winged
puffbirds, white-banded swallows, white-winged swallows, black-collared
hawk, large-billed terns, yellow-billed terns, neo-tropical cormorants,
scarlet macaws, blue and yellow macaws, tui parakeets, shiny cowbird,
great-black hawk, giant cowbird, bat falcon, black cara-cara, cocoi
herons, road-side hawks, Orinoco geese, bare-necked fruit-crows, black
skimmers, pied lapwings and tropical kingbirds.
We will also see several lowland native settlements and gold miners
digging and panning gold along the banks of the Madre de Dios River. The
river ride is perhaps the best option to spot the diversity of wildlife
that each bend of the river may offer to all visitors. About three hours
from Boca Manu, we will stop in the far-west type gold-mining town of
Colorado to start our overland journey to Puerto Maldonado. Upon arrival
in Colorado you will have the chance to see a true frontier, gold-mining
town where everything, from food supplies to outboard motors is praised
in “grams” (grams of gold, that is!) From Colorado a private vehicle
will take you to the jungle city of Puerto Maldonado in approximately
three hours along the inter-oceanic highway that will link Brazil with
the Pacific Ocean.
END OF OUR SERVICES
Important Notice: During the high-water season from January through
March, due to bad road conditions, we may change our itineraries in
order to boat from the Manu to the port of Laberinto, from where we will
continue by ground transport to Puerto Maldonado. Please see our website
maps for more details: www.manuperu.com
Day 06: Today, from Puerto Maldonado you may take a safe, 30-minute,
jet-flight back to Cusco. (Arriving between 12:30 and 13:00) After a
brief stop the plane continues for another hour to Lima. If you have a
nighttime flight you may connect to your home the same day. Please
reserve and pre-pay these flights back to Cusco or Lima well in advance.
Inclusions:Ground, and boat transport from Cusco to Puerto Maldonado,
naturalist English-speaking guide, all meals, accommodations at Manu
Cloud Forest Lodge and Manu Lodge. Not included:Commercial jet-plane to
Cusco or Lima, Manu National Park entrance fee (about $50 per person,
which may change without prior notice), transfer to the airport in
Puerto Maldonado, airport departure tax, post-tour hotel transfers in
Cusco or Lima, laundry, alcoholic beverages, items of a personal nature
and tips.
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