Our day started early as we got up to have breakfast, said bye to Wasai Tambopata Lodge, and went back down the river to Puerto Maldonadu. Closer to the town we again observed traffic on the river. The small canoe like river boats with a cover were often loaded up to the brink with local produce. Our boat would slow down in order not to flip them over.
In the afternoon, we went down Madre de Dios River for about a half an hour toward another protected area near Puerto Maldonado, Lake Sandoval. Along the way, we saw capuchin monkeys in the trees. It is about a 45 minute long walk from the river to the lake. We received another stamp in our passports at a ranger station. It was a hot and humid afternoon. Upon arriving close to the lake, we boarded a large canoe and Paul navigated us through a narrow channel surrounded by the jungle out into the lake.
There was a lot of wild life along its banks. We saw numerous birds - some that at least in some form were familiar to us as birds occupying bodies of water - herons, egrets, and cormorants. Some were more foreign looking. Hoatzins - or as Paul called them - stinky birds, look like large pheasants, inhabit much of the Amazon Basin, and their digestive system causes their manure-like odor. Anhingas - snake birds - impressed me with their streamlined shape. They are large birds and excellent divers. We also saw a number or birds of prey and vultures circled up in the sky the whole time.
The highlight of the trip to Lake Sandoval was supposed to be seeing giant river otters. Paul turned the canoe out to the middle of the lake to look for them and it did not take long to find them. They live in extensive family groups and there were at least twenty that we could see. One of them was just chewing on a freshly caught fish. Paul described them as the top predator in the Amazon. They can grow over 6 ft (1.5m) long. The population of this species is estimated in the order of a few thousand so this was a truly special find.
We came back to the bank and Paul spotted another monkey in the tree. He had promised us at least two types of monkeys before the trip to Lake Sandoval, and said he was done. So we paddled back, giving him a ride, which he had certainly earned. The sun was setting as we rode up Madre de Dios River which seemed somehow appropriate as our trip to the Amazon was nearing its end.
Coming back from Lake Sandoval, I watched traffic Madre de Dios River in Puerto Maldonado. The river is more than a half a mile wide. Some boats seemed precariously small to carry their large loads, including large trucks. Ferries are the only way for vehicles on the Interoceanic Highway to cross the river until the Continental Bridge is finished. Paul mentioned that construction had gone on and off for the last ten years... It looks close to finished now.
Puerto Maldonado is a small town, yet by far the largest in the area, and serves as a hub for logging, gold mining and most recently tourism. With its mostly unpaved streets, it is still very much a jungle frontier town as some website, that I had visited before our trip, had called it. Wasai Puerto Maldonado lodge is located one block from Plaza del Armas, the main square. The square was a very busy place on Sunday night. There was a show which attracted a lot of people. We caught a part of it that consisted of a bigger guy slapping around a small guy repeatedly to the laughs of the audience. Unfortunately, I could not make out what the point was - I might have been laughing too.
We set out to see more of the street life in the morning. Motorcycles and small tricycles are a mode of transportation of choice for the locals. It was curious to see a four person family to get on a motorcycle. Later it was off to the airport and to Lima with a stopover in Cuzco.
Watching Lima from above on our arrival, I could see there were breaks in the clouds. As much as I thought Lima was not a must see on our Peruvian trip, we had some six hours to kill and the weather was not so bad. The airport, much improved from 11 years ago, is not a bad place as we had found when spending a night there, but I figured I could show Irina around at least a little bit. I had stayed in Miraflores eleven years before after trekking for two and a half weeks around Cordillera Huayhuash. Miraflores is considered a nice area and it seemed worth visiting again.
A taxi ride took about 40 minutes and signs of an improved economy were visible everywhere - lots of new retail, new cars on the streets, car dealerships, and in general a less dreary look of the neighborhoods. Then again, it could have been the weather - the sun was at times peaking through the low clouds - or just a high of having had such a great trip that painted everything bright for me.
We walked around Ovalo de Miraflores, a square at an intersection of several big streets. While checking for directions on my phone, nearby Parque del Amor caught my attention . The park, overlooking the coast, is dedicated to lovers. It seemed to be fairly popular and there were a lot of couples enjoying its monuments and views of the Pacific. It was a fitting place to finish our South American trip, looking into the mist over the ocean streching seemingly to infinity and blending with the fog in the distance. I pondered what a great trip we had and what the future held. It did not seem foggy at all.
What else than ceviche could have been our fare for dinner back on Ovalo de Miraflores. Finding a cab that would take us to the airport took a while. We still made it back to the airport with plenty of time to spare to check-in for our overnight flight back to San Francisco. And that was it and I cannot wait to go back for more.
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