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Yacutinga Jungle Lodge

"What a fantastic place!! Everything about it was magical... the owners, Charlie and Micky, and our guide, Marito, really made it for us and we got on extremely well with them, feeling more as invited friends than as paying guests. The jungle itself is extraordinary, I never experienced a place that was so "alive", and with Charlie and Marito's help we were able to interpret the jungle and its inhabitants rather than just gawping at the wonder of it. We spent four days exploring various trails and observing birds and wildlife. Charlie helpfully compiled a list of the different species of bird we had seen - 46 different species in total!!, as well as monkeys, alligators, spiders, small furry animals whose names I can't remember now, etc. and of course an enormous variety of plants, trees, orchids, ferns, vines, etc. Yacutinga Lodge is clearly someone's dream and passion and it's still hard to believe it actually exists!"
Stefan Aalten, U.K.

See short story about our trip there in Sept. 2004

An environmentally friendly Lodge and Private Wildlife Nature Reserve located in the heart of the Argentinian Rainforest, surrounded by the Iguazu National Park. The Wildlife & Nature Reserve area, which covers 570 hectares, is part of the 270.000 hectares of protected Rainforest; shared by Brazil and Argentina and known as the "green corridor".

Yacutinga Wildlife & Nature Reserve still maintains richness in bio-diversity, far away from massive tourism concentration. You can enjoy diverse out-door activities with a soft adventure and eco-tourism focus, such as; canoeing, biking, bird-watching or walking which will provide you with a variety of information unlocking the mysteries and peculiarities of the Rainforest.

The Lodge offers you 40 suites, 3 restaurants, a pool, naturalist guides, and a natural inventory of over 270 species of birds and mammals.

Location
Yacutinga Lodge & Wildlife Nature Reserve is located on the Iguazu River in the northeast of Argentina, in the subtropical Rainforest with its richness of wild fauna and the spectacular Iguazu Falls situated 42 km down-river from Yacutinga Lodge. The Lodge can be reached easily from Puerto Iguazu (Argentina) or Foz do Iguazu (Brazil).

The Iguazu National Park in the northeastern province of Misiones, is a region of large rivers, humid tropics, red soil and bright green jungle, full of giant and ancient trees, peculiar endemic flora and a large presence of wild fauna. Iguazu itself means 'large waters' in Guarani language. The park, located on the Argentine border with Brazil and Paraguay, presents a pristine area of subtropical rainforest, with more than 2000 identified plant species, more than 400 species of birds, mammals and reptiles and of course also contains the impressive Iguazu Falls, one of the worlds natural wonders featured in Frank Coppolas' famous movie "The Mission".

To describe, with words, the rainforest to someone who has never witnessed such majesty with their own eyes is near impossible.The overwhelming presence of various layers of vegetation overlapping from the ground up to the highest canopy formed by giant trees, the profusion of vines of all types and sizes creating an inextricable web with numerous epiphytes plants clinging to everything that can provide support, balancing in space trying to fill the void, and in the end the impressive variety and infinity of species, shapes, dimensions and colors that are the result of this natural chaos all constitute a whole that is so extraordinary as to defy description and can only be comprehended by someone who has seen and admired something similar, never to be forgotten.

Description

The Lodge buildings follow smoothly with the natural step of the terrain and maintain harmony with the surrounding jungle. Local materials, such as stone and large wood pieces gathered from naturally fallen trees, have been incorporated into the general architectural concept, conforming this concept to the wilderness of the area. Only 4 hectares of the 570 total have been used for the facilities of the lodge and special care has been taken to use only naturally fallen trees. An absolute minimum of forest has been disturbed to accommodate the buildings. The main building which contains the reception, an indoor restaurant, an inside garden and a terrace bar provides a special atmosphere enhanced by the Palmetto palm forest formation which surrounds the whole place. Descending the impressive wooden stairs from the main building you arrive at the central botanical garden with its two open-air restaurants, the pool, a vegetable garden (the Lodge is self-efficient in terms of food supplies) and the main self-guided cat-trail (an elevated wooden walkway suspended in the trees) allowing you to enjoy and observe the canopy of the surrounding native forest from a unique perspective. The facilities consist of 10 separate sleeping areas called "Butterflies" (due to the amazing variety that congregate here), spread through the forest around the common areas. Each Butterfly contains four private suites, all with the comfort of 42 sq. meters. The suites provide split-level accommodations with rustic details comprised of an entrance porch leading up to a sitting area and bedroom and further up to the bathroom. Each suite has private facilities (shower / tub) with 24 hour warm water. During winter-time, wood stoves provide heating in remembrance of the colonial period. Nice jungle views are common to all suites, providing a relaxing environment, in-touch with the "green". There are a total of 40 suites of which 6 are doubles (queen bed), the other 34 are twins. Triple occupancy may be booked on request.

From the very beginning the Yacutinga Lodge project was concerned with both having a low impact on the environment, while providing excellent tourist services. We have achieved these two different concepts by following a sustainable development philosophy, focused on:

The responsibility of managing one of the last untouched private rainforest reserves.
Employment of local labor to provide environmental education and income to our neighbors.
The prohibition of hunting and all other nature spoiling activities.
The development of native flora seeding programs, to re-insert endangered plant species.
The performance of wild-fauna re-breeding programs, to re-locate native species in other areas.

Considering the philosophy of Yacutinga Lodge, we have enhanced our efforts to diminish our effects on the environment by using recycling and alternative energy systems:

Drinking water is very pure at the Lodge. A well, 85 meters deep has reached the second nap of our red clay latheritic underground soil providing the best potable drinking water.
Hot water for showers is provided by solar heated tanks. On days when the weather does not permit this, heating is assisted by a natural gas system.
To reduce energy consumption we have designed a recycling water system for the pool. Using tropical rainfall we keep the pool clean by recycling this natural fresh water collected by the huge roof of the main building. During rain-forest storms, the collected water flows over the 2 garden waterfalls to the pool at an average rate of 400 lts./min. The rain water then exits the pool along with floating debris (fallen leaves), is filtered and finally flows at the same rate up to the compost store area where it is again naturally filtered and re-used.
A separate waste-water recycling system is designed to clean water used by showering, hand washing or vegetable washing. This water goes through an engineered gravel marsh planted with various rain-forest swamp plants. Waste-water flows into the gravel marsh and saturates it. Within hours the marsh is drained and filled with air, changing the balance between aerobic and anaerobic bacteria.
The buildings have been designed to use nature to maintain a comfortable temperature. The earth remains about 15 to 17 C. cool throughout the year while the air temperature can soar to 30 C. or more in the clearing. By shading and digging we have harnessed the earth's natural cooling abilities. Cool ground air in the shade is drawn up from under the structure through natural convection currents which are enhanced by the thermal pull of the hot zone created at the top of the roofs by the solar water tanks.
Our energy requirements are provided by batteries which can be recharged by solar power. We use a solar array facing the northwest to maximize this solar gain. However, due to the variable weather conditions of the rainforest and the fact that at full capacity, about 2200 watts/hr energy is needed, a diesel generator is operated sparingly and quietly. To minimize this need we kindly ask that you conserve electricity thoughtfully while you are staying at Yacutinga.

While maintaining our commitment to living in harmony with nature, we have also managed to provide our guests with the highest standards and amenities possible in the jungle:

cool refreshments from the bar, right down to a comfortable bed with fresh linen.
The food that we serve is all organic and locally produced with vegetables and fish farmed on the reserve, fruits picked from the wild, milk from our cows, and eggs from our chickens. Local farmers provide the remainder of our food needs at busy times.

The main lodge is used as a base from which our daily activities in the reserve are organized, from an early morning canoe trip down the San Francisco River that cuts right through the reserve, to guided nature walks that unlock the mysteries of the rainforest.
At Yacutinga Lodge we base our services on maintaining the cultural roots of the area, adapting native meals to international standards; using "baqueanos" - local peasants - as assistants to complement information on medicine plants, tracks, indigenous 'cosmovision' and many other topics that cannot be obtained through literature.

You don't need to be a wildlife expert to enjoy Yacutinga ; beginners will have plenty of time to relax, soak up the atmosphere of the area, take out the binoculars and share nature oriented trips, escorted by bilingual naturalist guides. For the expert we have designed specific trails for bird-watching, entomology, orchids and other epiphyte species, game observing and track scouting.

3 DAYS / 2NIGHTS PACKAGE

Day 1 - At 2:30 pm transfer from Raíces Argentinas (Argentina) in a mini-bus through the "Ruta 12" and the Urugua-I Provincial Park. Then navigation in motor-boats on the Iguassu river until the main port of the lodge. During this ride the guide will explain some details and curiosities of the rain-forest. Upon arrival jeep transfer through the Yacutinga Wild Life Private Reserve to the Lodge. The combination of various means of transportation provides a great start as this allows the visitor the opportunity to "melt" in a comfortable way with the wonderful natural world of wild fauna. Check in and briefing about the place , the system of the Lodge and activities. At dusk wild fauna observation. Welcome dinner and overnight.

Day 2 - Early breakfast and short hike to the San Francisco river and canoeing through the quiet waters, ideal for photo safari. This canoeing tour is very secure and simple, the water of the river is gentle and it goes down current. The possibility exists to observe wild fauna from a very close distance, since fauna is more active in early morning. Return to the Lodge. Lunch. Afternoon escorted wild life excursions to the various observation trails and at the early evening visit of one of the observation towers for night games with scopes, binoculars and strong spotlights. Return to the Lodge for dinner and overnight.

Day 3 Breakfast and time for track scouting, listing (complete checklist of viewed fauna) , packing and relaxing at the pool area. Self guided tours at the hanging "passarelle"and the "orchid's trail" . Farewell brunch and transfer back to Raices Argentinas (Argentina) leaving at 12 pm, arriving at 1 pm.

Price per person:
Jan. 1-Nov. 1- single = $629, double = $428, triple = $428
Additional nights are $247 for a single, $167 each for a double or triple

- drinks during meals are not included.
- Yacutinga Lodge does not accept children under 10 years old
- there are no facilities for visitors in wheelchairs

The Yacutinga people people pick up passengers at 2pm at Raices Argentinas on the Argentine side of the falls and return them there at 1pm. We provide transfers from Iguassu and depart from hotels about 45 minutes before Yacutinga pickup time, in order to cross the border and go through immigration procedures.
Price per person for one way transfer from hotels to Raices Argentinas: $58 for 1, $30 for 2, $24 for 3