The Treehouse Lodge was founded in 2012 by a successful entrepreneur looking for something more fulfilling. But it had to have 3 elements: adventure, humanitarianism, because he sought greater fulfillment; and viability, because it wouldn’t last otherwise. He spent months thinking, dreaming, and seeking.
Finally, the idea for the Treehouse Lodge was born on another adventure trip. He thought back to years ago when he took his family to an Amazon lodge in Peru. He fell in love with with the Amazon on that trip. So he thought “Maybe that.” It definitely was adventurous. Finding land and building a lodge in the middle of the jungle with no heavy equipment, access to the land only by boat, and working only with local people in a language he did not speak certainly fit the definition. It held many humanitarian opportunities with the river village people who needed work, medicine, clothes, and clean water. And it was viable if done right using labor and materials from the locals and marketing Amazon jungle accommodations and excursions to people in North America and Europe.
lt is those areas would provide the best natural rainforest and animal life. What’s difficult is finding primary rainforest with clear title to the land. For a true rainforest experience, you have to be in primary rainforest. Primary rainforest has never had it’s trees cut or land cleared. The trees are bigger and many types exist including valuable hardwoods. Large vines wrap trees and hang across the paths and the vegetation underneath the canopy is varied including areas with minimal growth that lost the battle for access to the sun.
It took a year, but he finally found the ideal property for his Amazon lodge. It was 400 acres of primary rainforest at the headwaters of the Amazon river. It sat right at the confluence of the brown water of the Cumceba river and the black water of the Yarapa river. The mixing waters also presented an ideal feeding ground for many pink and gray fresh water dolphins who could be seen daily. Perhaps most importantly, the whole area had been preserved from loggers, commercial fisherman, and hunters.
It took a year, but he finally found the ideal property for his Amazon lodge. It was 400 acres of primary rainforest at the headwaters of the Amazon river. It sat right at the confluence of the brown water of the Cumceba river and the black water of the Yarapa river. The mixing waters also presented an ideal feeding ground for many pink and gray fresh water dolphins who could be seen daily. Perhaps most importantly, the whole area had been preserved from loggers, commercial fisherman, and hunters.
He didn’t want to build a lodge that was just like any other lodge in the area. He wanted to build something unique; something to really fascinate people and draw them in. He always had a love for adventure and heights and started looking for ways to get the lodge guests up into the canopy to see the animals and trees from that perspective. Many people look for a lodge that has a canopy tower or a canopy walkway because they know that it is often easier to see birds from above than it is from the ground. He decided to take the idea even further - to have people actually live and sleep up in the canopy.
The treehouses slowly came together along with the steel cable bridges and stairs that connected them. And they couldn’t just be a simple platform enclosed in mosquito mesh. He wanted people to be able to live and sleep there comfortably. He didn't want people to have to wake up in the middle of the night to walk across two 80 foot cable bridges and down 60 feet of stairs in order to go to the bathroom. So all of the treehouses required toilets, showers, beds, sofas, and chairs.
It took more than a year to complete. It was in reality a nearly self-sustaining village. Water came from the river, was settled and purified in a series of tanks, and then pumped into high tanks in the treehouse ceilings and on towers. Electricity is collected from solar panels and stored in batteries with a backup generator. They help to power beautiful bistro lights above the bridges and walkways and rustic lights in the upper and lower levels of the main building. And sustainable sceptic systems were created for every treehouse and structure.
It took more than a year to complete. It was in reality a nearly self-sustaining village. Water came from the river, was settled and purified in a series of tanks, and then pumped into high tanks in the treehouse ceilings and on towers. Electricity is collected from solar panels and stored in batteries with a backup generator. They help to power beautiful bistro lights above the bridges and walkways and rustic lights in the upper and lower levels of the main building. And sustainable sceptic systems were created for every treehouse and structure.
The excursions offer a wide variety of options that feature the uniqueness of the area:
- Dolphin Watching
- Jungle Walk to Learn About Medicinal Plants
- Dugout Canoe Trip (maybe see river otters)
- Jungle Walk to Oxbow Lagoon to See the Giant Water Lilies and the Hoatzins
- Walk to observe the Night Monkey ( the only nocturnal monkey that can be seen during the daytime.)
- Visit the Jibaro Community
- Night Excursion by Boat
- Night Walk to see Insects
- Early Bird Watching from the Platforms - In one morning, you might observe at least 50 species of birds
- Visit to Puerto Miguel, a Kukama Community who still preserve their traditions, ancient knowledge, and even language. .
- Visit the Butterfly Farm - Peru hosts close to 4,000 species of butterfly, more than any other place in the world. Many of the species are endemic and, therefore, restricted to Peru. The community of Vista Alegre, together with a Peruvian NGO, took measures to reproduce and protect some species of butterfly by creating a butterfly farm where farm villagers learn about the entire process of metamorphosis of these beautiful creatures.
| Local villagers were helped during the building process and more projects are planned. One of the nearby villages faces very difficult conditions every year. The amazon rises as much as 30 ft every year and then drops back down. When it rises, they pretty much live out of canoes because they have no dry ground. Sometimes it rises high enough that it covers the floors of their stilted homes. So they put some blocks down and then a bunch of board over the top to keep dry. 1.5 years ago, it rose so high that the entire village was forced to evacuate to Nauta in camp-like conditions. The village has decided to relocate to the other side of the Yarapa River because the ground is a little higher there. So they are in the process of that move which will take another year or so. They need a new school and new churches. |  |
They also don't have a clean water system now or on the other side of the river. They usually just drink out of the river. Sometimes they boil it and sometimes they put some clorox in it, but they get sick too frequently because they lack a clean water system. The lodge owner wants to build a water treatment system for this village, similar to the one that the lodge has. The lodge people will pay for most of it and do the labor, but are going to do it a little more slowly and let guests participate if they want to over the next several months. Though the plan isn't definite yet, they are thinking they would post of list of materials that they need and people could then offer to donate those items. So they would pick them up at the airport and then go buy the item(s) with the guests. Guests could go home feeling good that they donated a tank or a pump or pipes for the clean water system. They would probably install a single solar panel and battery for the pump so the system is self sufficient. It would require maintenance and an ongoing supply of chemicals, but they think many future guests would be happy to help with the future purchase of chemicals.
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