Bedford TruckI woke up before sunrise to nature's alarm clock - red howler monkeys - and began gathering up my gear for an early boat ride to circumnavigate Indian House Island. While waiting to board the boat, I got some good shots of kiskadees and pied plovers (or lapwings), and spotted a pair of red and green macaws high in the canopy but too far away to photograph. During the boat ride sighted an orange winged macaw, several green kingfishers, a few pygmy kingfishers, a green ibis, an orange breasted falcon and Muscobe ducks. Still no jaguar!
We returned to the River Lodge for breakfast to refuel for a 2 hour hike up Turtle Mountain. At the foot of the trail, we were greeted by the aptly named roadrunner lizards scurrying about the grass at incredible speeds! Along the trail to the peak, I kept a look out for red howler monkeys. I could hear them in the distance but only got a glimpse of one high in the canopy. A few black spider monkeys rustled amongst the branches above but were moving too quickly for me to get a good photo. After two hours, we reached the peak of Turtle Mountain, dripping of perspiration due to the over 90 degree heat and even higher humidity! But it was worth it! I gazed down upon the Irokrama River and the rainforest canopy which stretched out endlessly. Quite a breathtaking sight!
The hike back down was a bit easier than the trek up and a cold beer at the lodge never tasted more satisfying! After lunch and a brief siesta, we were back on the river to view Kurupukari Falls and Amerindian Petroglyphs on nearby rocks. Of course along the way, we were frequented by kingfishers and other birds. We then pulled our boat ashore and strolled through the Amerindian village of Fairview on the way to a butterfly breeding farm. Darkness was rapidly falling and by the time we reached the butterfly farm, only a few of the colorful residents were still awake. I wish I had suggested to visit the farm before the trip to the falls and petroglyphs but thought about it too late. We concluded the day with a short hike back to the lodge, still hoping for a jaguar. I guess another agouti would have to do for this day.
The holiday of a lifetime. The company is Alaksa-owned and thhat makes a big difference to the experineces you get i.e. meet genuine First Nations tribes people. The amount of wildlife was beyond my expectation, and seeing everything on sucha small, intimate boat made it even more spoecial and unique.
Liz O
7 hours ago
Adventure Life covered all the details in planning our trip to Ireland. Any questions we had were answered immediately. Any trip glitches, which always happen when traveling, were resolved immediately. There were no worries, just fun!
Kathleen Weller
22 hours ago
It was an outstanding, up-close, educational vacation of nature, culture, history, animals and geology! It was everything they promised! Binoculars were plentiful on the boat, but I'm glad I brought my own. Food was excellent. Rooms had black-out shades. Pack/wear multiple layers of clothing (I carried a small backpack when off the ship). Crew were delightful and very accommodating! Remember to jump FEET FIRST first when taking the optional polar plunge! Spend as much time outdoors as you are able and ENJOY!!!
Janet Dutton
5 days ago
Excellent travel advice and service
This is my second experience working with Adventure Life. I’m sold. Jess Heuermann is an experienced traveler and provides a lot of useful information when planning a trip. These are the questions I like to ask at the outset - What’s it like to go here, there, what would you suggest, what do people report, can we add any additional side trips? Jess took the time to answer my questions and seek additional information to share with me. Petchie Colina is outstanding in helping with travel logistics and final preparations. Adventure Life has excellent guides and offers private guides and small group adventures. We enjoyed the opportunity to talk with the guides and drivers to learn more about their countries, cultures and histories. A highlight was having the guides pick local restaurants where we could share meals together. Highly recommend.
Claire Cordon
6 days ago
Our six-day tour in Iceland went smoothly with one exception. We had asked for two rooms each night. Somehow we were booked with one room with three beds. It could not be fixed at the first hotel in Reykjavik because the hotel was fully booked. Once informed of the problem, however, Adventure Life rebooked for two rooms for the remainder of the trip. As an 85-year-old traveler, I appreciated that one could participate at different physical levels at many of the stops. Iceland is a great place to visit but on the expensive side.