17-01-22
Madidi National Park stretches from the tops of the Andes mountains in the west down into the Amazonian basin. Located here on the Rio Tuichi, upstream a couple hours from its junction with the Rio Beni and the cleft in the interior mountains in which Evo Morales wants to place a hydroelectric dam, the Madidi Jungle Lodge is on the Amazonian side of the park. This day we divided the class in half and half of us piled into one of the lodge’s riverboats and drove thirty minutes upstream. From there we made our way back to the lodge on inner tubes, riding the currents, whooping over the standing waves, avoiding the tree snags and shallow bars, and generally enjoying getting wet and watching the rain forest float by on either side. (The other half of the class had done this the day before.)
Ready to ride the river!
Floating toward the Amazon