Routes from the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve programss of Parks and
Tribes / Cofan Lodge:
Left above: Cuyabeno Lake Area;
Right above:
Cuyabeno Loop;
Left: Lagarto Coche Expedition with the Cuyabeno Lake area as an
additional option.
Are these really the 6 Best
Ecuador Trips for seeing wildlife?
YES! This is why...
When one walks in the forest, the animals above you in the the
crowns are difficult to observe. Looking up you hardly see anything. The
contrast between the sky and the leaves is so overwhelming, that they appear
almost black. On the other hand, along narrow rivers, the light can break through the canopy,
illuminating lower braches and wildlife. So, from the water you see the birds, flowers and mammals much better,
as they frolick through the shrubs and lower trees along the shores.
So what makes Cuyabeno so special...
It's the only Amazon park in all Amazon-Andean countries with wide flat
plains. Slow-flowing narrow creeks, rivers and many lakes can only develop
in flat lowlands; not in hilly terrain. This makes Cuyabeno so unique!
In
the dryer sections, one gets to see the terrestrial animals and birds. With
so much water, one also gets to see water animals like: Dolphins, Manatees,
Capybaras, Cayman, Ducks, Cormorants, Herons, etc.
Spotting wildlife from a canoe is much easier than when walking on a trail.
You have your birding and wildlife books, your binoculars and your camera
all close at hand.
But there is more...
Getting from Lagoagrio to Cuyabeno is (mostly) over an asphalt road.
Distances over water are much shorter than to other reserves, like Yasuní
National Park;
Our
programs are organized by or in collaboration with small Indian tribes, the
Cofans and Sionas;
All programs are so child friendly, I took my grandchildren (3,5 & 6) there.
Wao, did they love it!
Our transport meets you in Lagoagrio to take you in about 1 hour 30 minutes to the the
canoe landing location
Nuevo Unión, on the Aguarico River:
Cuyabeno Loop route takes you on
a 200km odyssey through the Western Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve.
The tourist canoe of the Cofan Lodge.
Upon arrival in Zábalo, you will be shown around in the
village and taken to your cabins to freshen up and rest, as it has been a long
day since your departure from Quito:
The restaurant of our Cofan
Lodge.
One of the cabins of the Cofan Lodge.
Relaxing
in the hammocks in our restaurant.
A view of our
Zábalo village.
In the evening, you will be
taken on a night excursion to discover the critters of the night:
Tree frogs are everywhere, but it is a
bit difficult to spot them. The moment you think you finally have one in your
camera, they leap away to never be found again .
On a rare occasion,
with lots of luck you may catch the green eyes of a wandering Ocelot Cat
in the beam of your flash light.
Cuyabeno loop, Day Two
Early in the morning, we take on one of the
few Ecuadorian black water rivers, where the clear water provides an ideal
conditions for Giant Otters. Black water gets it color from decaying leaves
fallen in the forested lowlands and swamps, while there are little or no
sediments. There is also a vivid population of Scarlet Macaws
as well as a great variety of tropical birds and monkeys.
The Zabalo River is one of the few clear black water
rivers in the Amazon of Ecuador.
The clear
black - sediment poor - water of the Zábalo river mixes with the sediment
loaded water of the Aguarico River. The color comes from the
soil particles dispersed in the water.
The day starts out with a
discovery of the Cofan ways. You will be taught how to use a blowgun, and
get to see the traditional Cofan dresses:
Learning
how to shoot with a blowgun.
The shaman
with some of the children of the village and of visitors.
The
traditional Cofan vegetable garden produces a part of
your food.
The Cofan
turtle breeding program has restored the turtle population
in the Zábalo River.
After breakfast, we take you to
the mouth of the Cuyabeno River, where usually some river dolphins hang out. From there you will be taken to
the Canopy tower, to have an impression of the natural canopy.
The Mouth of the Cuyabeno River is frequented by Amazon
Dolphins.
The highest
canopy tower in Cuyabeno takes you all the way into the
crown of a gigantic tree.
Admiring
the view from the canopy tower platform.
Looking down from the canopy tower.
After the visit to the canopy
tower, the programs split into:
Cofan standard program
and the
Cuyabeno Loop
The Standard Ecuador Trip to the Amazon
The Cofan Lodge standard program will
take you on a fabulous excursion into the Amazon jungle, after which it takes
you back to the Cofan Lodge.
Standard Program, Day 4
On day four, of the standard
program takes you back on a ride on the Aguarico River, and from there back to
Quito.
The Cuyabeno Loop
The Cuyabeno loop continues its
journey upstream to the Cuyabeno Lake, from where the program will be taken over
by one of the lodges at the Cuyabeno Lake, of which the most famous it the
Cuyabeno Lodge
Continuing the journey upstream the Cuyabeno River.
The
Macrolobium trees at the border of the Cuyabeno lake are
like giant Bonsai trees and full of epiphytes.
Upon arrival at the lodge, you
can take a hot shower and rest up a bit and take a swim in the lake at sunset:
A swim at the lake is always wonderfully refreshing and
a lot of fun.
Dinner in the restaurant of the Cuyabeno Lodge.
At night you can take an night excursion at the lake to look for the orange eyes
of Caymans and other nocturnal animals that hide in the Macrolobium swamps.
Cuyabeno loop,
Day Four
After a well-deserved night's
rest, you will explore the Cuyabeno Lake and its surrounding Macrolobium swamps.
Most of the time you will be
able to spot an Amazon Dolphin (of course no we can never guarantee this) or maybe,
if you are very lucky, even a Manatee.
Blue and Yellow Macaws fly noisily
across the Cuyabeno Lake, while Hoatzins whisper their hoarse sounds as they
scope the Macrolobium trees for food. You may also hear the mysterious swelling
sound of the Howler Monkeys or see a troop of squirrel monkeys bouncing through
the treetops. In fact, 10 species of monkeys have been recorded in the reserve.
Bird and wildlife
watching
Blue and yellow
Macaws are fairly common around Lake Cuyabeno.
Brown Woolly Monkeys are common in Cuyabeno.
Cuyabeno loop, Day Five
On day five,
you will experience the feel of so many of our visitors: "It all went by too
quickly". Maybe you will become one of our frequent visitors that keep coming
back for a special program. Anyway, you will have to leave
in the morning to get back on time to catch the plane or bus in Lagoagrio. You will ride the canoe up the Cuyabeno River to the
main entrance of the park, the "Cuyabeno Bridge", where your
transport will be waiting for you to bring you to the airport or to the bus
station to take you on your trip back to Quito. No wonder that this is one of
the
Best
Tropical Adventure Tours for seeing wildlife in Ecuador.
CUYABENO, GETTING THERE AND BACK
There are 3 options to travel to the Amazon Lowlands:
Take the night bus from Quito to
Lagoagrio (usually leaves at 11 at night) from the "Terminal Norte"
in Quito and arrive in Lagoagrio at dawn, which takes about 7 hours. It
costs about $ 25 for the round trip and you have to leave from your hotel in
Quito to the terminal an hour before departure (by taxi). Alternatively, you can
take a day bus, but then you will have to spend the night in Lagoagrio. We
will pick you up in Lagoagrio in combination with arriving passengers by
plane, departing generally at 10:30 (depending on the arrival of the plane),
to Nuevo Unión (2 hours), where we embark in our canoe at about 12:30.
Between your departure from your hotel at night at 10 at night until
boarding the our motorized canoe, will be more or less 15 hours. The same
applies for the Lake Cuyabeno accommodations which pass through the main
park entrance on the Cuyabeno River.
Fly with Tame Quito - Lagoagrio.
You can book your ticket at
https://www.tame.com.ec, which costs about $ 150 round trip, but
additionally you have to consider the cost of a taxi that costs 2X25; Then
it actually costs $ 200. Your flight usually leaves at 9 in the morning, and
takes 30 minutes to arrive. As many times the flight is delayed, count on
arriving around 10, and after getting your luggage, it will be 10:30. We'll
pick you up at the airport. From there it takes two hours to arrive in Nuevo
Union, where we leave in our canoe at 12:30. Thus flying takes a total of
5 - 6 hours from your hotel until you can embark on the Rio Aguarico. The
same applies for the Lake Cuyabeno accommodations which pass through the
main park entrance on the Cuyabeno River.
Take our Private Trans-Andean Transportation to the
Aguarico or Cuyabeno River, of which you can read the details below. We will pick
you up at your hotel early in the morning and take to the Aguarico River in
about 8 - 9 hours depending how much time we spend on the way at the
overlooks into the Cayambe - Coca Ecological Reserve, the San Rafael Falls,
the Reventador Volcano and the Papallacta spas.
The same applies for the Lake Cuyabeno accommodations which pass through the
main park entrance on the Cuyabeno River.
Routes from the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve programss of Parks and
Tribes / Cofan Lodge:
Left above: Cuyabeno Lake Area;
Right above:
Cuyabeno Loop;
Left: Lagarto Coche Expedition with the Cuyabeno Lake area as an
additional option.
Near the mountain pass you pass by
beautiful paramos and some of the highest rainforests in
the world along Lake Papallacta.
The San Rafael waterfall surrounded by virgin cloud
forest is the most beautiful waterfall of the country.
Bordering Lake Papallacta is the Jamanco Spa with
great mineral water without prior filtration as done in
the Papallacta resorts. As a result, the mineral quality
is supposed to be better, while resort prices are a
fraction of the spas in Papallacta.
The Reventador is Ecuador's most
active volcano and frequently runs of down-pouring can be
seen glowing in the night.
It is possible to
arrange for spending the night at either a Papallacta (costly) or Jamanco
(friendly and much more economical) Spa, but then another day is needed.
Many passengers
who take the private transportation, chose to fly back or visa versa.
Arrival at the airport of oil-boom town Lagoagrio.
On a clear day you can see the
Cayambe exactly on the equator, as you fly around it. It is
the only major volcano as well as the only glacier in the
world precisely on the equator. On the way in, chose a
window on the right and on the way back on the left of the
plane.
WHAT IS INCLUDED?
National Parks Tours
All hotels
and lodges;
Transportation:
All ground transportation on the National Parks tours;
In-country
flights where included in the national parks tour program, but NOT to/fro Galapagos
or Lagoagrio;
An English speaking naturalist guide. A German or
French speaking guide may also be available, but can't be guaranteed.
All entry fees.
NOT INCLUDED:
Meals and beverages.
Amazon Tours
Lodging;
Excursions with professional nature guides;
All Amazon
programs
include all meals, and fruit juices served with the meals. Our restaurants serve
a mix of international cuisine and occasionally, the Cofan Lodge offers a
sample meal of traditional Cofan dishes.
Meals include coffee, tea and bottled
water;
Transportation between Lagoagrio and the access
rivers.
NOT
INCLUDED:
Bottled and alcoholic beverages need to be paid.
COMBI-DISCOUNTS
Depending on the program you selected, we always try to give you
a discount on combined modules. Groups above 4 passengers will receive discounts, depending on group size.
HOW TO BOOK A TOUR?
Our programs are rather customized and we try to
accommodate the travel needs of our customers. To avoid misunderstandings, we
don't offer a prepaid travel option.
Just send an email to
or contact us through our contact data below.
From Abroad:
Sending money from abroad is rather costly and we try to minimize money going to
bank transfers.
Once your schedule has been worked out, we kindly request you to make a reservation guarantee
transfer of only $100 by
Western Union or
Moneygram. The balance you pay in CASH in
Quito upon arrival (we don't take credit cards!) This way you don't lose a lot
of money sending money. The $100 is NOT recoverable upon cancelation.
Why we don't accept credit cards in Ecuador either? The credit card services
charge 7%! We would have to charge you for that, making your trip more
expensive. We do everything to make your trip as cost effective as possible.
Already in Ecuador?
You can pay in our office mentioned below. We apply a cancelation fee of $100.
+593 2 2 50 5310, +593 96 29 35 271
PARKS
AND TRIBES
.
