|
Swimming with the caimansMadidi National Park tourRoute: Rurrenebaque - Madidi - RurrenebaqueChalalan ecolodge is an excellent base from which to explore the Amazonian rainforest from the Bolivian side in Madidi National Park. The lodge was established by the Bolivian government to provide an alternative source of income for the indigenous Indian population. The resort is run exclusively by locals and all proceeds go directly to the local community. From the jungle village of Rurrenebaque, it's 5 hours up the river to your lodge. Hidden away deep in the Amazonian jungle, on the banks of Lake Chalalan, this ecolodge was built by the villagers of San Jose de Uchupiamonas using only local resources and traditional techniques. Because of its remote location in Madidi National Park, the area around the lodge is teeming with wildlife. This Amazon jungle tour includes a guided trek through the rainforest and a canoe trip onto the lake for a close-up glimpse of the animals. You could see howler monkeys, tapirs, jaguars, parrots and, of course, caimans… Want to see where you can go next? Take a look at our other Bolivia tours, or longer suggested Peru holidays which combine both countries. |
| Duration |
4 days / 3 nights Departure daily |
Accommodation |
1 night Rurrenabaque incl. breakfast, 2 nights Chalalan full board and shared facilities (see our photos here). |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Price |
£270 per person - based on 2 people sharing |
Includes |
Transport, accommodation and guided excursions |
|
Transport |
All transfers by land and water |
Excludes |
Return flight La Paz- Rurrenabaque (approx US$ 100 pp excl. tax), other meals, excursions and entrance fees |
Day 1 La Paz - RurrenabaqueIn the morning you’ll board the small turbo prop from La Paz (not the international airport but a smaller, military airport) for the two hour flight to Rurrenabaque. From the aeroplane window you can see the snowy peaks of the Andes gradually making way for hilly subtropical rainforests and, finally, the green tropical grasslands of your Bolivian Amazon jungle tour.(Theoretically, you could travel from La Paz to Rurrenabaque by bus but it takes 16-24 hours in an old battered bus across a bumpy, pot-holed road). |
|
|
Two hours later, the plane touches down on a grassy airstrip where you’ll be met by a local representative and taken to your accommodation in Rurrenabaque village. “Rurre” is a proper jungle village with a peaceful, laid-back atmosphere. In dry season it’s very dusty, in rainy season, it’s sticky but, it’s always tropically warm. First on the agenda of your Bolivian Amazon jungle tour: change into shorts and t-shirt. Rurre has no paved roads. Along the main ‘street’ you’ll find a couple of internet cafes and bars where you can have some lunch. The tropical fruit shakes are almost fresh from the tree. In the evening, you can laze around in a hammock at the hotel or hit the local nightlife at happy hour in the downtown gringo bar. |
Day 2 Rurrenabaque - Chalalan Lodge in Madidi National ParkOn day two of your Bolivia jungle tour, you’ll be picked up at the hotel early in the morning, for the short transfer to the harbour. From here, the motorised longtail boat is waiting to take you three hours west across the Beni and Tuichi river into Madidi National Park. If you followed the Beni eastwards, you’d end up on the Amazon. Madidi National Park covers an area of 19.000 km2 and four different eco systems; from the Andes mountains to misty forests and the tropical rainforests to the plains of the grassy pampas.During the boat trip, we spotted lots of tropical birds as well as tapirs, caimans and a whole capybara family. From the park entrance, it’s another 30 minutes walk to the lodge. After lunch, enjoy a little siesta as you listen to the sounds (and there’s lots of them) of the rainforest. |
|
|
The Chalalan Lodge stands on the banks of Lake Chalalan with free standing cabins and nine smaller cabins within two rectangular buildings. There’s a large dining area and open kitchen, as well as an information centre that doubles as a museum. The twelve cabins are made using natural materials from the rainforest and are decorated in traditional style. The beds have comfortable mattresses and mosquito netting which you really can’t do without in Madidi National Park. The shared facilities have cold (well, lukewarm) running water. The staff are all natives from the local village of San José de Uchupiamonas. The Indians from the village relied on logging, hunting and fishing for their income until they realised their traditions would eventually destroy their natural habitat and their community. In search of new economic opportunities, they decided upon the building of an eco lodge, switching their focus to eco-tourism as an alternative source of income to logging. With support from the Bolivian government Madidi was declared a protected National Park and the project was granted funds by development banks. Its a great place to stay as part of your Bolivia trip. |
|
On your trips into the Bolivian rainforest you’ll be accompanied by one of the local Indian guides. After your siesta, he/she will tell you all about the rainforest and what you’ll be seeing this afternoon. The knowledge of the Madidi National Park jungle has been passed on from generation to generation, so the local guides know the area like no other. Without a guide you’d most certainly never be able to spot all the animals, traces and special places of the rainforest. The afternoon is a good time of day for a canoe trip. As the sun sets, the animals come out to drink and feed along the shores of the lake. You’re likely to spot turtles jumping off the dead tree trunks into the water, colourful macaws flying overhead and monkeys swinging from branches in the trees. You’ll arrive back at the lodge early evening where dinner is waiting and you can reflect on an exciting day of your Bolivia trip. |
|
|
Seated at long tables, you’ll be treated to a local meal of fresh fish from the lake and home-grown vegetables and herbs. With your belly full you’re ready to begin your jungle night walk, a real highlight of your Amazon jungle tour. The animal kingdom is wide awake at night and as you walk through the jungle in the pitch dark you’re surrounded by a cacophony of animals screeching, howling and singing. Your guide will point out tapirs, sloths, monkeys, snakes, butterflies and tarantulas hiding in the dense forest. There are jaguars in the rainforest but you might not want to come face to face with one. Their footprints are exciting enough. At the end of the night walk you can crawl into your bed back at the lodge and let the sounds of the Madidi jungle lull you to sleep. |
Day 3 Madidi National ParkOn day three of your Bolivia jungle tour, you’ll set off after breakfast on a four hour trek through the Bolivian rainforest with your guide. Your guide will tell you all about the unusual trees and plants of the rainforest and their uses; which plants cure headaches, which trees are best for building houses, which resin can be used for paint, which fruits are the tastiest, which tree saps you can drink and which leaves you can use to make clothes. The jungle is just one giant supermarket. We liked the tumtum trees best with their huge pear-shaped trunks. With a bit of luck you’ll see some more wild animals hidden in the undergrowth on your. |
|
|
After lunch, you can enjoy another siesta, or go for a swim in the lake or follow one of the marked trails into the forest. If you want to take it more easy on your Bolivia trip, find a quiet hammock in the garden and watch the hummingbirds hovering among the hibiscus. Around 4pm on your Madidi National Park tour, your guide will take you on another walk around the lake up to a viewpoint at the top of the hill. You’ll see more wildlife here, from bee colonies and armies of ants to several species of monkeys that live along the lake. From the viewpoint, you’ll have a fantastic view across the lake and the jungle treetops of Bolivia. Towards the end of the day, you’ll see the red-green and blue-yellow parrots screeching across the lake on their way to their treetop homes. |
|
Later that evening, after dark, you’ll head out onto the lake in a little wooden canoe in search of caimans. The guide navigates the canoe across the water in dead silence. It’s pitch dark, except for a bit of moonlight if it’s a clear night. In the torch light, you'll suddenly spot a pair of little red lights in the distance; the eyes of a caiman. In the distance you can hear the faint rhythmic drumming and whistling from the village. It’s all very eerie but a real highlight of your Madidi National Park tour. |
|
|
Day 4 Madidi - Rurrenabaque - La PazIt’s a very early start today and the last day of your stay in Madidi National Park. From the lodge, it’s half an hour’s walk back to the river. Because it’s downstream to Rurrenabaque, the boat trip back takes just three hours. Early in the afternoon, you’ll be picked up at the little bus station in Rurre and transferred to the airstrip where you’ll board the plane back to La Paz, marking the end of your Amazon jungle tour.If you’re planning on doing the grassy Bolivian adventure tour after this Bolivia jungle trip you’ll spend another night in Rurrenabaque before travelling on to the pampas the next day. |
|
|
Madidi National Park accommodation (Click to enlarge)
 |
 |
 |
Follow Rickshaw Travel and be inspired...
