"We believe that love and understanding for nature comes through living amidst it."
Starting at US$ 420.00
Manu National Park is spread out between two departments, Cusco and Madre de Dios, and covers an area of 1’692.137 hectares (or the entire Manu River basin). The park has a great variety of animal species: more than 800 bird species like the harpy eagle, the jabiru stork, the Orinoco goose, the Andean cock-of-the-rock, and the roseate spoonbill, 200 mammal species like the common woolly monkey, the black spider monkey, the giant otter, the jaguar, the little spotted cat, the anteater, and the Andean deer, and over a hundred bat species.
Leave Cusco early in the morning approximately at 6:30 A.M. in our mini bus and we go through the Andean mountains, making many stops at different places. Ninamarka is one of these places, we take a break here to appreciate pre-Inca chullpas [burial towers] and then we will visit the village of Paucartambo.
At noon we will have our lunch in Acjanaco, that is the entrance to Manu National Park and resting place before leaving towards the cloudy or rainy forest. From here we will be able to appreciate the dwarf forest rich in orchids. Next to it we will appreciate the mystical cloudy forest with the vegetation rich in ferns, as well as cecropias, etc. At the same time you will be able to observe an ample variety of birds.
That afternoon we arrive at our comfortable lodge located in the cloudy forest where we will spend the night. A nocturnal walk is optional.
Before dawn we leave the lodge towards the hiding platform where we will be able to observe the ritual of the Andean Cock of the Rock, emblematic bird of Peru and of special beauty. Returning to the lodge we will get ready to continue on our trip to the port of Atalaya. On the way, we will visit coca plantations that are grown by local families. When we arrive at the port of destination our motorboat will be waiting so that after loading our things on, we will navigate down the Alto Madre de Dios River. From the boat it is possible to appreciate different types of birds such as herons, vultures, parrots, etc. We will have lunch in the hot waters of Shintuya where at the same time we can enjoy the natural cold or hot thermal waters. Later, we will continue navigating down the river towards the Amarakaeri lodge. After settling in we will take a long walk in the afternoon and part of the night through our trails near the shelter in search of interesting insects, arachnids and others. We will have dinner at the lodge and then we will spend the night at the shelter in comfortable beds with mosquito nettings.
This morning after an early breakfast we will leave towards our first campsite called Aguas Negras gully. The walk takes 4 hours as an average and is 7 kilometers long, approximately. During this long walk we will go through primary and secondary forests, having the opportunity to learn about medicinal and industrial trees, their use and commercialization. At the same time we will have the opportunity to observe wild life. Arriving at the campsite we will settle in comfortable tents equipped with camping mattresses under our shelter roof. At night we will take a long walk towards a small collpa [observation post] to observe mammals like: the tapir, capybara, etc. Our system of trails offers different alternatives of long walks, including a search for caymans, tarantula nests and other overwhelming nocturnal species.
Night at the Aguas Negras Campsite
We leave the campsite early in the morning to return to the Amarakaeri Lodge. This morning, the return walk is more direct, always observing and looking for other opportunities to see wild life on the way. We arrive at the lodge at mid-morning.
After a brief rest we will take the boat and navigate upstream returning to the port of Shintuya or Atalaya where our land transportation will be waiting for us to take us back to Cusco. We will be arriving in Cusco early at night.
B=Breakfast
L=Lunch
D=Dinner
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