We said bye to Erin who had to go back to the states, we were back on our own. Before heading into Bolivia we decided to hop over to the Peruvian jungle and cloud forests near Manu Nation Park. We booked a four day expedition to Chontachaka Ecological Reserve.
After driving through the mountains and clouds for hours we finally stopped at a small hut. Several of us were instructed that this was our destination and then the mini-bus promptly drove off. We had no indication of where we were or where to go except for a trail leading into the jungle. The trail ended at a zip line trolley across a river – so that was the next logical step. Once we crossed the river we saw a few huts and eventually found the keepers who welcomed us to the Jungle!
Over a pasta dinner the hosts told us what to expect in the jungle. To my surprise this was home to the famous “Bullet” ant who’s bite is a bad as a bullet. I didn’t expect to see it at all, but they were surprisingly numerous. Luckily they weren’t aggressive and would only attack if really provoked. To work off dinner, the hosts took us on a night hike. We saw bio-luminescent mushrooms while we thought about if we wanted to partake in a San Pedro Ceremony.
The next day was a beautiful day in the Jungle. We took a morning hike to see some big trees and several waterfalls. There was plenty of time to cool off in the fresh water filled with a surprising about of fish. Lunch consisted of soup, veggies and banana chips. After lunch the hosts took us to their ‘secret’ waterfall and we had a great time swimming in the splash zone.
As the sun went down our hosts setup the San Pedro Ceremony, which everyone had decided to attend. They tea it made tasted horrible and not to long after I felt incredibly nauseous. Luckily that soon passed and Sara and I had a wonderful time thinking about life while watching the lightning light up the trees into different beings. We wandered back to the main hut where we saw everyone else chatting and having a good time. Just as everybody started talking about food the host brought out a large pot of rice they had preemptively made, which was fantastic!
Our last day there we relaxed in the river before more rain moved in and forced us to relax at the lodge. We played games, petted the animals, and caught up on the blog. I even made the pasta dinner that night!
We really enjoyed our time in the cloud forests and were sad when it was time to take the mini-bus back to Cusco. To make it even tougher Sara’s ring slipped and fell through a crack in the floor – we looked for it until the bus came but couldn’t find it again.
