This morning, we took a paddle Canoe ride down the Black River into the interior of the Natl Park. And when I say black, I mean black!

We saw lots of monkeys…There are 10 species of monkeys, but we only saw 4. We heard some Red Howler monkeys … their growling sounds like a strong wind blowing …and can be heard up to 3 miles away when they’re marking their territory.
We saw a Troop of Squirrel monkeys – they are one of the larger monkeys and have very bushy tails.
The Capuchin monkeys are small and intelligent …Females have a baby every two years…how exhausting!!! Titi monkeys are VERY small & mate for life. Family members groom each other often, especially during the mid-day rest. They are known for their habit two individuals sitting with their tails wrapped around each other—this behavior is used to reinforce bonds among pairs.

Iconic to the Amazon and 100% vegetarian is the Hoatzin…often called the “stink bird’ because it reeks of fresh cow manure or sweet-smelling hay, because of its unusual foliage diet. We saw many of these. They look like our turkey birds but much brighter colors.

The rivers hold lots of creatures and fish….

The Amazon is the only place in the world where stingrays are found in the river. And, of course, there are piranhas. Good luck if you fall in.😜 There are also electric eels and a fish called arapaima… that can be 9 feet long and weigh up to 500 pounds. Now that’s a damn big fish! We just thought a trophy fish was a 10 pound bass.

Can’t even begin to list or describe all the types of birds, we saw…

Hummingbirds
Macaws- blue & yellow
The Snake bird – anjinga is its given name. They have a thin neck, sharp, needle-like bill, and long, barred tail.

As your paddling down the river, you’ll see this huge Electric looking BRIGHT blue butterfly flattering up and down with the flow of the . It actually has longest lifespan of all butterflies. It’s extremely hard to capture with a camera, but a beautiful sight to witness. You can’t stay behind the camera trying to follow it or you’ll miss seeing the beauty of one of the coolest of nature’s creatures.

And, really cool was the Blue nose bats- blends with the tree so you thing it’s a fungus your seeing,

Once off the river, we went hiking through the jungle…and I mean hiking… Like up and down steps, and at one point I was wondering if I was going to make it to the observatory area where we would see the macaws… But yes, I survived and the reward was amazing. You have to sit very quiet, which most people find hard to do, and eventually the macaws come in to drink. They are beautiful birds!

The hike out was easier because I led the way and set a slower pace. I’m no idiot! The rest of the group (all younger… as I’m the oldest once again) acts like they’re evacuating from a fire, so in the past, I’d arrived last. Things were great…till we hit the uphill steps…and you guessed it, I was last to the boat🥲

Connie and I decided to forego the afternoon climb to the observation tower. After dinner I also opted out of the Night walk… But Connie went and took pictures of a few things like a frog, a huge spiderweb and a snake. Looks like I made the right decision.😉