A Taste of Peru

Day 1: Arrive in Puerto Maldonado at noon. The lodge we booked through, Chuncho Lodge, sent our guide to pick us up, and we went to the lodge's Puerto Maldonado headquarters to repack our belongings so we'd only be bringing a backpack into the rainforest. We then drove and boated down the Tambopata River to Chuncho Lodge. Our guide took us to the on-site canopy tower where we saw plenty of birds (including toucans and macaws!) and on a night walk, where we saw tarantulas, other spiders, frogs, and other creepy crawlies. Our cabin only had electricity at certain hours during the day, so we had to charge our cameras carefully! The beds had netting and we didn't have an issue with too many bugs in our cabin. Showers were cold, but we were glad to have them nonetheless.

Day 2: Wake up early for breakfast and journey up the Tambopata River to a macaw clay lick. It was amazing to see the birds all huddled together! We got some amazing photos. Later that day we went on an etno-botanical long jungle walk to learn about plants, Amazon types of wood/trees, and to see more wildlife. All meals are served at Chuncho, and the food is fantastic! We had piranha one night, and always had fresh squeezed juices.

Day 3: Boat/car ride back to Puerto Maldonado. Another car/boat ride to Sandoval Lake. At Sandoval Lake we saw many butterflies, giant river otters, monkeys, and birds. We stayed out on the lake late at night to see black caimans- so amazing.

Day 4: Wake up early to watch sunrise on Sandoval Lake and see more river otters. Return to lodge for breakfast, then return back to Puerto Maldonado. We grabbed lunch in Puerto Maldonado (they have amazing cuisine) and then flew back from Puerto Maldonado to Lima, then on to return home to Washington, DC (tired, but happy!).