The trip to Canima (the jungle)

We did it – we survived the jungle.  We reached Culidad Bolivar at 6am and were greeted by our travel agent Ruben.  Ruben gave us a brief of the next couple of days which included one night in a room and the next night sleeping outside in hammocks.  Hmm – not what we expected but what can you do.

The only way to get to Caniama is by plane – not some commercial flight but by a small prop plane (ie. A Cessna) that seats no more than 6 people, including the pilot.  The trip took about 2 hours and while flying we saw some amazing landscapes, mountains and lakes.  From our vantage point, there were no real inhabitants to be found.  The highlight of the plane ride had to be our pilot texting while flying the plane. We were in safe hands if he had the confidence to do that!

Upon reaching Caniama, our ears ringing and a bit nauseas, we were greeted by our guide Miguel.  Miguel is actually a Peruvian but had settled in Venezuela for work purposes (and also b/c he found a local girlfriend). Our camp was extremely rustic but the people were really nice and the food was quite edible.  The bathrooms were horrendous though with only a small stream of water in the showers and the bathrooms had their fair share of wear and tear (I am being very kind).  Given we had taken the overnight bus and a cramped plane ride over, it was important to at least feel some sense of being fresh no matter how bad the conditions.

After cleaning up and having a full belly we started our trek for the day.  The trek first started with us getting on a boat and doing a tour of all of the falls in the area.  There were 3-4 big waterfalls near our camp and before you ask, they were not as magnificent as Niagara Falls.  Nonetheless, they were very cool and our boat went right up to the falls so we got some great pictures.  Venezuela has 2 seasons, dry and rainy and we are travelling during the dry season.  As such, the water is a bit shallower and the falls a bit weaker.  This also gave us the opportunity to do some exploration around the falls where we could walk behind the falls as well as get to a point where we are actually on top of the falls.  Pretty cool stuff.  The walk behind the falls was great – very tropical and very refreshing given the heat.  We also got to a point where we reached a lagoon where one could go swimming and/or cliff diving.  I decided to do both.  After Miguel showed us how to cliff dive and another tourist took the plunge I decided it was my turn.  From at least 20 meters high, I took the plunge without a thought of danger or worry – just the sheer rush of feeling free and empowered.  I hit the water, feet first, going about 10 meters into the water, while holding my breath.  Coming to the top and finally getting the air was just amazing.  What an experience and something I will always remember.  Following the cliff diving, we did some swimming in the lagoon and even got a chance to sit underneath some waterfalls and feel the power and rush of the water, against a beautiful backdrop in a temperature that was so comfortable.  The conditions were perfect.

Following our cliff diving we did some more trekking where we got to the top of the waterfalls and had an amazing view of the surrounding area.  Soon night was going to fall so we made our way back to camp to get our rooms and have dinner.

Rubes and I lucked out as we learned that there were 4 rooms but they tried to ensure that couples got their own rooms.  Everyone thought that Rubes and I were married so we kinda played along to take advantage of the simple fact we got our own room and even more important our own bathroom; and in this case the bathroom was a lot more functional than the ones we experienced in the afternoon, even though we still had no hot water.

The next day our day started very early as we were going to do hiking, swimming, and boating and ultimately some camping.  We took a boat around Caniama (14 of us in total which included one very strange Japanese dude).  We went all over the place with the boat and our luggage seeing different sites and sounds, stopping for a swim here and there.  We swam, walked, had lunch, hopped back into a boat, swam again, got back into the boat, checked out an indigenous village and then again swam in the well of happiness, back in a boat, trekked, sat on a beach, swam and then trekked to our campsite.  Amazing day, with amazing water and even with the walking, and heat, those swims made everything amazing again. Water is such a powerful thing – and it’s something we take for granted I think. 

The highlight of this day ended up being close to the end where we had to cross the river by foot with our cameras and daypacks in hand.  Imagine the challenge of crossing a river with all of these belongings, your slippers and the rocks are covered in moss making it very slippery.  Even though the hike across was no more than 15-20 meters that was likely the most challenging part of our day.

We finally made camp where we saw the hammocks we were going to sleep in.  Not the best hammocks but hey, at that point it was a bed and it was one night.  Nature was our bathroom and if we felt like showering then all you had to do was swim in the lake.  Ruby decided to check out the shower (some reconnaissance mission) and she came back a bit shocked given at the bed of the river she stepped on a long black snake, which promptly whipped her with its tail across her leg.  She vowed not to take a shower or brush her teeth in the river as who know what other animals lurked in the area.  I decided to do the same.....

Our dinner was actually quite good....chicken cooked over a fire with some fresh juice (we were told fresh juice but we all knew this was tang/kool-aid mix with water.  Dinner was in the dark because with our luck the rain had come just after we had arrived and it came with some force.  Winds blew out the candles and some areas of our site were not covered so obviously those areas became quite wet.  It rained and rained with no end in sight.  After dinner, we ended up having a great conversation with Miguel who was our guide.  He was constantly trying to improve his English with Ruby and I there and the good thing was that he was learning and applying.  We spent hours talking about Peru, Chavez, politics, constitutions, poetry (sex and pessimism being central), the kama sutra, the art of love (falling in and falling out) to name a couple of topics.  Let’s say that by the time we were halfway through our conversations the rest of our group had decided to hit the hammocks and call it a night.  We had great laughs with Miguel and at the end we decided it would be great to be facebook friends. 

Miguel had the tour guide life.  Swimming at every opportunity he got, hanging with locals and tourists alike, and more importantly, lived a quite simple life.  His passion was music and when he got bored he would play music off his mobile and keep himself entertained. 

After a cold night in the hammock, with no mosquito net, and all the bites to prove it, we got up and got ready for breakfast.  No shower, no brushing of our teeth.  Just some food, juice and the inner voice of please let me find a shower when we get back to our base camp.  Covered in fluff because of our blankets and smelling like mosquito spray, we packed up our stuff after breakfast and made the trek back.  It took 2.5 hours to get back and for the most part this was a quiet trip home.  Time was spent in a boat, walking and again back in the boat.  A reflective trip back as we were all tired, hungry and of course feeling very dirty. 

Upon arriving back at base camp, we all used the very crappy bathrooms to freshen up before lunch.   Now even thought these bathrooms weren’t great, they satisfied the need to just feel a little clean and better about the next part of our journey.  I end this note just before finally sitting down for lunch.  Up next is our fly over to Angel Falls and our journey to Margarita Island.  The last days of our trip are coming up and some serious R&R are on the agenda.