Manu Biosphere and the Polar Vortex

AREA OF MASCO CONTACT 
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF HEATHER

MANU BIOSPHERE: July, 2014-"Que Pasa" she yelled, no answer, so the cook of the a local trekking company out of Cuzco, got up to see what the commotion was in the dining room. When she arrived all she saw were "naked buns" running out the back with some of the cookware.  The Mashco Indian tribe, on the Alto Madre De Dios River tributary of the Amazon, is one of the 12 tribes in the Manu Rainforest Biosphere that still has had no formal contact with the outside world. There are strict governmental guidelines on "first contact", so diseases like small pox are not introduced, the lodge has since been closed to guided trekking. Check out this short U-tube video on the tribe. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlVpVkBOypk This picture shows the area we passed on our boat ride and just last year, a farmer was killed by the tribe over a food dispute.
DROPPING IN MANU: We were on a 6 day trip into the famous Manu Rainforest Biosphere, I have wanted to visit this isolated place since back in the 80s, when it was first created. One of the largest reserves in the world and is home to the famous Giant River Otter, and covers more than 7,263 sq. miles. Manu is the largest reserve in Peru, about the size of (2) Massachusetts, getting there however, is another story.

CLOUD FOREST ENTERING
MANU

WINDY ROAD GOING DOWN

First we took an 8 hour bus ride from Cuzco and dropped into Manu from the west on its cloud forest side. According to our guide David the weather patterns have already started to shift, due to climate change. The roads would normally be covered with muddy water. Interesting enough the water vapor that reaches the Andes passes through the jungle first, from the east, picking up 40% of the transpiration from the rainforest, the other 60% comes from the ocean. So if u cut down the forest--the water cycle is affected, And BAM it changes the glacial/snow coverage of the Andes. Riding the bus down this gnarly road, made your hair stand on end, one missed swerve and you would be at down at the bottom of the canyon. On our first stop in the valley we were lucky enough to see the famous "Cock of the Rock" a brightly colored parrot like bird. We hid behind a blind for 1 hour until a female landed with her spectacular plumage that stood out like a red stop light.

COCK OF THE ROCK

THE STAR BABY PECCARY

HEATHER HOLDING THE
WOOLLY MONKEY

STOPPING FOR LUNCH

Next stop was a Wildlife Sanctuary called- Dos Loritos, where they had rescued all sorts of animals and raised them by hand. The peccary was hilarious, u scratched him under his chin and he would just stand there-docile. And the Woolly Monkey was the hit, he had just lost his mother and was at the clingy stage, everyone was his mom. BOAT RIDE TO MANU: The driver was a master, we were in the dry season, and the water level was extremely low, this set the stage for giant jutting tree trunks sticking up out of the water. But along with his look out person on the front we managed to miss all the tall, twisted branches and sand piles on the bottom.

CAIMAN BASKING IN THE SUN

The ride was full of sights and relaxing, at least the first 5 hours, seeing lots of birds and caimans, & always on a look out for a jaguar, David our guide, said he saw 2 on his last trip. But after 9 hours and 1 stop in-between we were all done and ready to do some hiking.

GIANT RIVER OTTER
 CHOMPING ON A FISH

THE PERFECT BIRTHDAY GIFT: July 24th just happened to be Heather's birthday. We loaded up on the platform boat at daybreak and headed out on the Oxbow lake of El Salvador, where the Giant River Otters hang out. There are only a few places in the world where these 70 lbs cuties can be found. We approached the group quietly drifting in the water, when all of the sudden they actually started swimming towards us.

OTTER JUST APPROACHING
THE BOAT

They had spotted a school of fish and were diving left and right. One broke the surface with a foot long fish in its mouth,  he turned on his back, and with paws shoved the fish down his throat head first, and started chomping on it with its powerful jaws, in the mean time the tail was beating wildly outside. Quite the sight, and then he went over and climbed on a log to finish his meal.  According to our guide they eat upwards of 12 lbs of fish a day.  These captivating creatures were all but eliminated from most of the South American rivers in the 1920s, when they were hunted for their pelts. We were also lucky to see 7 species of Monkeys, including the 25 lb Woolley monkey, and 25 species of birds. What a birthday present for Heather!

KAHTERINE APPALLED BY THE
LOGGING TRUCKS

BIG LEAF MAHOGANY

THE HIKE:
through the forest we searched for
monkeys and birds, and then we came across 2 extraordinary trees the Mahogany and the Kapok. The Mahogany is considered to be the crown jewel for its hardwood. and is making its "Last Stand" in Peru, according to a National Geographic article-"Mahogany's Last Stand" April 2013, the wood is valued like "gold". The law of the gun is taking over the illicit harvesting of the big leaf Mahogany and has been reduced by 30% of its historic range. The Perus Conservation Complex, a 15,000 sq. mile area (which Manu is part of) contains what they believe 80% of the remaining trees. So conservation is helping, but we still saw a lot of logging trucks screaming down the dirt roads. THE GREAT KAPOK TREE!

THE KAPOK TREE

Children's books have been written about it, "The Great Kapok Tree", by Cherry Lane (1990). I remember reading this book to my kids when they were little and capturing their imagination. Truly one of the most magnificent trees of the rainforest. With its giant buttresses for support the powerful stem stretches up through the canopy to become part of the emergent layer.

VIEW FROM PLATFORM

SPIRAL PLATFORM

On the last day Heather and I climbed the Kapok platform next to our lodge. We climbed 150' of spiraling staircase before we broke out above the canopy on to its crown to enjoy the glories of the rainforest like a bird.
POLAR VORTEX: An interesting thing happened on the way out of the jungle, another long, long boat ride. But on top of that it was extremely cold--like I could see my breath--possibly 34-40 degrees! In the lower Amazon, what is going on! So when I came back home I ran across an article from the journal of Nature Climate Change,  where researches from New South Wales University say that the warmer water in the Atlantic is sending parcels of air high into the atmosphere, where they are carried by the upper winds of the Pacific and giving the trade winds an extra boost of cool air when it descends. Wow, just shows how little we know about climate change, never felt anything like it before!!!!!

HEATHER POWERING
THROUGH A FREEZING BOAT RIDE

TIME TO LOAD UP THE
TRUCKS FROM THE BOATS

TIPS:
TRAVEL AGENCY- ANDEAN TREKS--fantastic- we worked with Daisy 800-683-8148
DIFFICULTY: If u include the 15,100' Moonstone trek 3+ out of 5 stars.  Everything else was pretty easy, although the bus and boat rides were pretty long
FOOD:  Some of the best in the world, in Cuzco go to Green Point-vegetarian & Maracela Batata
HOTELS: Hostal Tiki Wasa in Cuzco great location- not really a hostel. Villa Urubamba--in the Urubamba valley, great place to relax, yoga room. Agua Calientes: Hostal El Presidente. All the lodges in Manu were great, & mostly mosquito free, the best one was the luxury: Manu Wildlife Center lodge where they had the platform up the Kapok tree
CLOTHING:  We went in July their dry season, bit chilly at night--need a jacket in Cuzco. On the trek, never used our rain gear, I would bring my own down sleeping bag (stuff in a compression bag and tie down), extra mat for cushion and it keeps u off the cold ground-flash pad from REI.
COSTS: $1672 included 5 nights in the Cuzco area, 2 nights at Machu Picchu and 4 nights on the Moonstone trek. $2,000+ for the Manu extension--quite expensive for 5 nights, but everything is included. Flights: $1,400 + $160 out from Puerto Maldonaldo to Lima if u go to Manu
SKIP: Lima, nothing special from what I hear--if u have a late flight out of Lima, most are,  go to the Miraflores district for dinner on the coast--very nice.