The Peruvian Amazon River

Our Delfin II Amazon Cruise was scheduled to depart from Nauta an hour and a half drive from Iquitos, but the exceedingly high water level changed our embarkation point to be Iquitos itself.

We landed in Iquitos early evening and had to wait on the plane about 20 minutes for the rains to subside before we could exit the plane and run across the tarmac in the heavy drizzle to the Airport Terminal. We were met by the team from the Delfin II and after all the luggage turned up we were driven down to the dock. The trip took about 30 minutes and the traffic was made up of mainly TukTuks, those 3 wheeled conveyances, it seemed like chaos. I felt like we were on The Amazing Race, the day had been a holiday and there were still celebrations going on and some roads were closed. Once at the dock we were taken across to the Delfin II by the skiffs, had a welcome drink, a short briefing and had a late dinner. That evening sleep was constantly interrupted by the boat hitting some submerged object, the engines being cut and then the whole process starting all over again as we headed up the Amazon River. The total elevation change of the Amazon from Iquitos to the mouth is not very great. The web says "the elevational gradient of the Amazon is very low. Iquitos, Peru is some 3,600 km (2,250 miles) from the Atlantic, yet the river-level at low-water season is only about 100 m (a bit more than 300') above sea-level" So says Project Amazonas.

The next morning we were told we would be approaching the beginning of the Amazon proper at 10AM, where the Rio Ucayali and Rio Marañón meet. It wasn't that impressive of a sight, but we were given a drink to celebrate and the main guide made a Toast "Arriba, abajo, al centro, pa' dentro" The glass held up, then out front, then down and then you drank. In my head I was saying "Eins, zwei, drei, g'suffa".

 The Rio Maranon to starboard.

The Rio Ucayali to port, this is the river our boat cruised up, we went upriver as far as Rio Dorado. For the most part we were "exploring" in the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve.

Some photos of The Delfin II

Each day we had a morning and an afternoon skiff ride exploring side channels, temporary lakes and small rivers. While the Delfin II was on the move, the skiffs where held out of the water. I was told that the 3 skiffs each used 35 gallons of gasoline over the course of our 5 day cruise.

Here is a small side river joining the Rio Ucayali. Some of the smaller side streams were slower moving and less turbid than the main channel as you can see above.

 One morning we went kayaking, we were told to stay away from the trees and bushes at the side of the river because of the possibility of spiders and snakes.

Here's the front half of the kayak with her lampshade.

 The river was high but receding, the waterline on the trees shown above is about 8 feet. The river was about 3 meters above normal the week we were there.

One of the other skiffs from our boat. You weren't required to take every excursion, you were always welcome to stay behind and relax in the lounge or nap in your suite.

 Silt left behind by the annual flooding. The farmers plant rice on the side of the river when the water level drops and then harvest it 4 months later.

These are some of the watercraft we passed on our cruise.

Transportation of goods and non-tourists.

These last 2 photos were of another cruise line we had looked at while planning our trip, but we were very happy with the Delfin II.

Here are some riverside views

 A small village on the river.

 A day camp for fishermen.

 An Amazon lodge.
We also visited Puerto Miguel, a fairly large village which had a shop where local women sold handicrafts. All the tourists show up there.

 Here is a floating restaurant in Iquitos and some more views of Iquitos

 Two last views from the dock where we started and ended our cruise.

Our cruise was a 4 night/5 day cruise and was a perfectly relaxing way to end our Peruvian holiday. There was both a shorter and longer cruise, but I think our pick was just right.