Amazon Adventures

Peru Tours and Travel Packages

Manu Biosphere Reserve Adventure

DAY ONE : Leaving Cusco after breakfast we travel through traditional Quechua communities and through the spectacular eastern ranges of the Andes to the village of Paucartambo, passing snow-peaks and small Andean farmsteads. We will have time here to look around this picturesque village and visit local craftsmen famous for their production of masks used in local festivals. We then ascend to the last pass overlooking the Amazon Basin and begin the breath taking descent from 3500 meters to 1600 meters above sea-level to our comfortable lodge in the orchid laden Cloud Forest. This is a spectacular journey passing cascading waterfalls and multicolored birds along the way. In the late afternoon, we'll walk into the lodge to the sounds of Quetzals, Trogons and Gray-breasted Wood-wrens. Night at Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge. L:D:

DAY TWO : Pre breakfast walk to a nearby spot in the Cloud Forest where the strange and beautiful Cocks-of-the-Rock display at dawn. This is a wonderful sight as up to 25 bright red-orange males dance and sing attempting to attract the favors of the duller, burgundy colored females. After visiting this lek we return to the Lodge for a leisurely breakfast and continue in our all terrain bus to the Madre de Dios River and our motorized dugouts and we begin our journey down the river, past the last folds of the Andes, to it's confluence with the Manu River. Well pass settlements and native communities during the trip. Just before we get to the village of Boca Manu we pass the native community of Diamante. Their culture is Piro and this is the largest settlement in the area. There is a small handcraft shop here, which offers hand painted fabrics, necklaces of seeds native to the region and a small selection of weavings and ceramics. A stop here must be pre-arranged through your guide. Passing the village of Boca Manu we arrive at to-nights destination -a small, locally built and managed lodge. The lodge is across the river from the tiny airstrip of Boca Manu. The two species of Tamarin monkeys are here -the Saddleback and Emperor. There is a trail system we can explore if time permits. The latter with their long, white moustaches are a rare and precious sight. B:L:D

DAY THREE : Well fed and rested we leave Boca Manu, leaving the relatively clean waters of the Madre de Dios behind, we enter the clay laden waters of the Manu River. With a brief stop at the park ranger station at Limonal to present our permits we travel for about five hours up the Manu. Beaches, especially in the dry season, are loaded with nesting birds and feeding Herons, Egrets, Orinoco Geese, Terns and Skimmers to name but a few. Some beaches will host sunning White and Black Caimans (South American relatives of the Alligators) and breeding Side-necked Turtles. Hundreds of Sand-colored Nightjars roost during the day on logs and beaches and there is a chance of encountering a sunning Jaguar - the worlds third largest cat. In 1999 one in three of our trips saw Jaguar in Manu. We will see some species of primate on this river trip, possibly Red Howler Monkeys or the smaller Squirrel Monkeys. After having lunched by the river we arrive at our Safari Camp near the lake of Cocha Salvador. We'll have the afternoon to explore some of the trails through the pristine rainforest in the area. A visit to the lake of Cocha Otorongo is planned, where observation piers and a 20 meter observation tower in the rainforest canopy overlooking the lake are available for observing wildlife. We will also be on the lookout for a large family of Giant Otters that inhabit this lake. Before or after dinner an optional excursion into the forest at night is available with your guide in search of nocturnal creatures. The lakes are full of eye-shine of the large Black Caiman and if we are lucky we may encounter an Olingo Kinkajou or even an Ocelot on the trails. Certainly the nighttime noise of tree frogs and insects in the forest is an experience not to be forgotten. Night at Cocha Salvador Safari Camp. The camp is really not a camp. There are flush toilet and shower facilities and large walk-in tents on raised roofed wooden platforms with cots for sleeping. B:L:D

Note: The first fixed departure of each month will stay at the Casa Machiguenga Lodge.

DAY FOUR : After breakfast we'll spend the morning at the lake of Cocha Salvador. Some of the time will be spent canoeing the lake on a floating platform observing ox-bow lake animal life from the water. We may encounter an Agami Heron or a Sungrebe and Brown Cappuchin Monkeys are usually feeding on fruits nearby. Specially constructed piers that jut out into the lake enable us to look for a family of Giant Otters that live here. These, the world’s largest freshwater carnivores, remain common only in Manu, having been hunted to extinction throughout most of their former range. Each animal consumes between 4 and 5 kilos of fish daily and often they can be seen eating large fish on logs at the lakeside. The rest of the day will be spent walking the trails in the area in search of some of the 13 species of Monkey found in the forest here. Your guide will explain some of the basics of rainforest ecosystems and point out some of the medicinal plants of the area used by local, indigenous groups. We may cross paths with a group of Peccaries - a species of wild boar found here. A late afternoon swim in the river near the camp as the sun sets . Night at Cocha Salvador Safari Camp. B:L:D.

Note: The first fixed departure of each month will stay at the Machiguenga Lodge.

DAY FIVE : Today we'll walk from camp for 4-5 hours through the forest to Cocha Otorongo. We may encounter troops of Monkeys. This is a particularly good trail for Woolly Monkey. We'll pay special attention to the plant life on this walk and take it slowly listening for the rustle of vegetation or the soft sound of fruits falling to the rainforest floor that may betray the presence of animals or large birds. We'll be met at the river by our cook with a picnic lunch and then board our motorized dugout for the 4 hour trip down river to Boca Manu for the night. The river trip may hold surprises and we'll be attentive for any wildlife on the beaches. Night at the lodge at Boca Manu. B:L:D

DAY SIX - This morning we have time to explore the small trail system at the lodge before heading across the river to the tiny airstrip of Boca Manu. On arrival at the strip we board our aircraft for the 35 minute flight to Cusco. First we fly over seemingly endless rainforest and then past snow peaks and glaciers to Cusco, where our staff will be waiting to take you to your hotel. B:

THIS IS A FIXED DEPARTURE TRIP AND LEAVES EVERY SUNDAY THROUGHOUT THE YEAR EXCEPT FOR THE MONTHS OF JANUARY, FEBRUARY AND MARCH, WHEN ONLY THE FIRST SUNDAY OF EACH MONTH IS A SCHEDULED DEPARTURE.

I want to book this!

The first fixed departure of each month, day three and four will be spent at the Machiguenga Lodge instead of our camp at Cocha Salvador. The lodge is across the river from our camp and gives the opportunity to experience an aspect of Manu otherwise neglected.

2010 PRICE in US$ : $1395 + $195 air + $65 National Park Entrance Fee = $1655USD. $195 single supplement