Comprising a Life

The entire Amazon region is rich in exotic plant and animal life but where the most diversification can be observed is in the Upper Amazon Basin. In this region habitat changes quickly as elevation drops and smaller tributaries feed into larger ones.

Before the Andes were born, through  the forces of tectonics, salt water from the Pacific Ocean freely flowed into streams and lakes of Northern South America. As the Andes were lifted up these salty bodies of water were trapped and the animals within them slowly adapted to a freshwater system. That is why one finds freshwater dolphin, stingrays and other puzzling spieces in the Amazon basin today.

While teaching bonsai at the Mid-Atlantic Bonsai Convention some years ago I was introduced to an adventurous couple who not only grew bonsai but shared my bent for exotic travel as well. Telling them of my interest in some day visiting the Amazon basin, they invited me to join a small expedition that they were putting together to the Galapagos Islands and the upper Amazon basin.  Unfortunately I couldn't leave my business long enough to participate in both parts of the trip and thinking I would more likely be able to get back to the Galapagos sometime in the future, I chose to go on the Amazon basin portion of the trip. It turned out to be quite an adventure.

Years after the trip, I scanned the photographs I had taken on it into my computer with approximately three photographs per scan. Unfortunately I did this when I was recovering from one of my brain surgeries and I am afraid some of the various camps that we made along the river are out of sequence and there is some repetition by notice.  But rather than scanning them all over again I'm including them here as they were first put together.  My apologies. If you keep scrolling down you will see the entire trip.  I suggest you view the trip slowly, looking at a little bit of it each evening  rather than at one sitting.

Your trip will begin with your group meeting for the first time in Quito Ecuador and then a flight over the Andes where you'll land at an airport in the middle of nowhere and then travel towards coca and on the way investigate a couple of "sprung up overnight" oil towns. In coca you will spend the night and on the following morning locate your dugout that you will be spending your trip in.  I think the following photographs and brief explanations will guide you through the rest of your adventure.  Oh yes, pack boots!