Oi All,
Day 1.
So Al met us at Campo Grande bus terminal and handed us the tickets got us to the bus and said the bus driver will tell you when to get out in 5 hrs or about 1230pm. Windows were getting hotter and hotter the further we headed into the pantanal. When that time went past we got a little nervous thinking when will the bus stop? but it did. The stop was a regular tourist dropoff for the eco hotels. Yes. Not exactly what we expected. Anyway got met by our ´guide´ bruno and driven out to passa do lontra parque hotel (www.passodolontra.com.br) on a pickup with a cover and bench seats on the back. Nice lagoons on the side of the road and first view of jabaroo´s and other storks. Sure was hot and humid. Passed by some average looking accomodation and held our breath but it wasn´t ours luckily.
The hotel was on the miranda river and was elevated about 2m above the ground and blended in the environment well. Saw capacino monkeys slothing about in the trees above us in the midday heat. Checked in with nice cabin by river. Lunch was served in the dining room then... no activities for the afternoon????? not what Al promised us at campo grande.
Went and saw the manager. He didn´t speak english. Great. Spoke with a guide max and he said that this happened quite often with Al and he didn´t like him personally or professionally. He was our interpreter with the manager who graciously gave us a freeee canoe trip on the river starting in about 10 minutes. Don´t forget it was 2pm by then and it was hotter than hell. 40 plus degrees and 99 percent humidity.
We hopped into the power boat and got taken up river by the manager and max the guide then dropped off to canoe back. The manager probably hoped we would fall in and get eaten by the caymans or drown. Wasn´t his fault about the problem as what happens is that the sales people in campo grande sell packages for the hotel but make it seem something else... Well there were a lot of cayman in the river and plenty of birds but each time we got a little out of view the safety boat would scream past, scare off the wildlife, got about 200m ahead, tie up under a tree and drink more beer. Not exactly what we wanted out of an eco lodge. Got back very dehydrated, even though had plenty of water, back to the room, aircon on and collapsed until dinner. Thank goodness for the eco (:-) aircon.
Lodge was empty of tourists other than us at this point.
Went for a walk around 2km of elevated boardwalk and suspension bridge that went through trees and swampland as well as skirting the river. Very impressive and HOT still. Saw a couple of deer, heaps of birds and cayman everywhere. A stunning place with such diversity.
Bruno had come to our room to get us for early dinner as we were going spotlighting in the evening. We met June and Fiona, a couple of scottish ladies about our age, who were joining our group. Very friendly. Food was good. We were drinking chilled tap water at this stage as Al had said it was fine.
Plenty of cayman around for the spotlighting and a few capabara on the mudbanks quite willing to abandon their children at the hint of danger.
Plenty of frogs on the walkway.
We went for a late night lap on the boardwalk but it was a little spooky know there might be jaguars around. At the end of the lap one of the guides asked us if we had seen the ocelot on the boardwalk? we missed it by a couple of minutes (luckily)?
Got back and had a big green frog in the toilet. It kept on coming back even after being flushed and continued throughout the trip. Actually there were two of them.
Day 2. Went out to a farm. Oh. The drive was considered a safari drive which was part of our itinerary. what? We were supposed to start at 730am but it didn´t happen as our guide had other urgent business and handed us off to another guide called max who was still in bed asleep at the time. Once things got organised it was 8am and arrived at the farm at 9am. Nice drive with heaps of wildlife in the lagoons and ponds by the side of the dirt road. Heaps of cayman!!! even saw an armadillo on the way. Girls went horse riding and we went for a walk with max. It was hot! Nice walk but it went for at least 1.5 hrs and we saw little wildlife other than a couple of macaws and a few nandu. Felt quite sick after the walk but had drunk plenty. Girls were back as well. We had our lunch. Vanessa didn´t eat as feeling sick and then waited...and waited under the shade of a open rotunda which was like being in an oven. The guide and co were having a siesta and we were cooking. Apparently we were to walk again in the afternoon but it was just too hot so we got taken back to the hotel. Vanessa and I went back to the room switched on the aircon and didn´t get off the bed until late afternoon. Vanessa was quite sick with her temperature 38+ deg C and mine was also high. We didn´t have tea and I suspected the water so we yielded and started drinking bottled water which had of course to be purchased at an elevated price. In the evening I felt a little better and an old paraguay cowboy about 75 years old, smartly dressed in a suit, with the temperature over 40 and humidity high, played guitar and sang local songs even though he said he had a saw throat. Nice evening but i had to retreat inside as the mosquitos were eating me alive.
Al had turned up by now and I had complained about the program and the guides reluctance to get up early for wildlife spotting. We negotiated from 8am down to 630am for the morning boat ride.
Day 3. Up for breakfast at 6am. Wasn´t ready in time. Had breakfast and ready for the boat at 630am but neither the guide or boat driver ready. Got going at about 645am. Late.
Nice boatride and we found otters and plenty of cayman. Lots of bird life but no elusive jaguar. We started too late in my opinion.
Did a couple of laps of the boardwalk in the afternoon. We were told our program was finished now. Hmmm. I had previously price additional boat trips and Vanessa and I were laying around looking at 50 real tiger notes when we decided to go. It was arranged for 4pm, 3hrs, downriver which was according to the guides we had spoken with prime jaguar spotting time. Why? sun had lost it´s bite by then and jaguars would be going to the river to drink. Maybe...
Started well. Lots of capabaras jumping off the banks into the water. Plenty of clearings and tree shade over the river. Storm clouds in the background. Thunder. Lightning. 2hrs into the trip. Storm hit us. Heavy rain so we tied up under a tree and waited. Rain set in. Camera into water proof bag. Kept going got soaked and hit by hail! cold. cold. cold. Mist coming off the river as the river water was so warm. We turned back and I thought that the rain was the end of our chance to see a jaguar until about 1km before the bridge there she was just sitting on the bank under a tree looking at us. I spotted her and we went closer for a look. Too close as she got spooked. By the time the camera was out of the bad she was retreating. We watched a bit longer and the grass about 10m up stream started to move and there she was again. Got a little video but not much. Magnificent to watch. Bigger than I expected. I was so cold that I was shaking at the time. She disappeared into the jungle. We were very lucky. David Attenbrough would be proud of us.
Day 4.
A few laps around the boardwalk. Found a snake and chased around looking for where it was after it climbed a tree. Didn´t find it luckily.
Lesson for us. This is contracting. Must examing each clause of the salesperson and get it in writing before committing to anything. We had a nice trip but didn´t get what we were promised. Others got even less.
Caught the bus to bonito in the afternoon. Bus driver was a maniac on the dirt road.
Adues,
David & Vanessa
