Into the Wild Amazon

This afternoon, you board the Motor Yacht Tucano in Manaus, Brazil, at Mirante Lucia Almeida. As you set out on the Rio Negro, enjoy lunch onboard while attending an introductory talk on the Amazon’s key ecosystems. By late afternoon, you enter the Anavilhanas Archipelago, one of the largest river island systems on Earth. The vessel will navigate narrow channels bordered by dense rainforest bursting with vibrant plant life. Weather permitting, venture out by launch to explore the intricate flooded forests along the river’s edge. Keep watch for Squirrel Monkeys darting through the canopy and listen for the distant, resonant calls of Howler Monkeys echoing through the jungle. The Amazon’s extraordinary birdlife, among the most diverse in the world, is sure to add brilliant flashes of color to the treetops. Later, return to the M/Y Tucano for hors d’oeuvres and a toast to the sunset from the observation deck. After dinner, head out again by launch in search of nocturnal wildlife, including Caiman and perhaps the elusive Great Potoo, a wide-mouthed night bird known for its haunting gaze and appetite for giant moths.

Shortly after sunrise, set out to explore the Anavilhanas Archipelago, a protected reserve encompassing the world’s largest system of river islands and expanses of tall, dense rainforest. Here, you encounter the fascinating igapó, or blackwater flooded forest, where trees rise directly from the dark waters of the Rio Negro. You may explore this unique ecosystem by launch or kayak, depending on conditions. After approximately two and a half hours of exploration, you return to the vessel for a hearty Brazilian breakfast.

Following some time to relax, and weather permitting, head ashore mid-morning for a walk through the terra firme rainforest. This solid-ground forest teems with plant and animal life—look for tracks and signs of some of the Amazon’s great mammals, such as peccaries or even the elusive jaguar.

Around midday, you return for lunch and a short siesta before setting out again in the afternoon to explore by launch along the forest’s edge. As the sun sets, listen to the symphony of birds, howler monkeys, and frogs echoing through the canopy.

Weather allowing, you embark on a night excursion to spot caiman—the Amazon’s crocodilians—and other nocturnal wildlife. It’s not uncommon to glimpse arboreal porcupines or sloths moving slowly among the treetops.

Today, voyage southeast on the Rio Negro and continue scouting in your launches and walking in the forest. Explore areas, according to the weather and water depth, that are rarely visited by anyone else. Tonight, the M/Y Tucano goes downstream, and river depth permitting, you enter an east bank affluent of the Rio Negro and explore deep into the rainforest on this small river. After your nocturnal exploration of the rainforest in your launches, return to the M/Y Tucano for a good night’s rest.

You begin the day with a dawn excursion hunting for waking wildlife, followed by a full Brazilian breakfast. Conditions and navigation permitting, you then go into the forest one last time. In the mid-afternoon,  begin to journey downstream. You should arrive late in the day at the “Encontro das Aguas” - a stark, several-mile-long line where two of the world’s largest rivers, the Amazon River and the Rio Negro, join in a turbulent maelstrom. Here, the dark water of the Negro runs beside the opaque brown water of the Amazon. This is often a good place to fish for the legendary scourge of the Amazon, Piranhas, which might just become hors d’oeuvres. At sunset, the M/Y Tucano will once again turn her bows upstream on the Rio Negro and journey to your overnight anchorage. As you pass in front of Manaus, marvel at the scale of one of the world’s largest and most vibrant port cities, over a thousand miles from the sea. As you pass the glittering lights on shore, have a small party, as you say in Brazil, a festazinha, your “Caipirinha Night”. Tonight, have a farewell dinner and prepare for an early departure in the morning.

Early this morning, after a hearty breakfast, all guests disembark from the M/Y Tucano. 

Optional City Tour of Manaus: This three hour and one half tour of Manaus is available at the end of the cruise and is operated by the ground staff. Among other sites it includes the boisterous Mercado Municipal of Manaus, the Teatro Amazonas - the famed opera house of the Amazon, and the historical birthplace of Manaus, the Praça Dom Pedro II. Included are the services of a bilingual guide, a commercial vehicle and commercially licensed driver, entrance fees and transportation. Please note that museums may be closed on holidays. Kindly inquire for rates.