Mysteries of the Ecuadorian Amazon Revealed on Tofino Expeditions’ Kayaking Adventure

The star is water, the elusive elixir of life to this most biodiverse region on Earth, Yasuni National Park in the Ecuadorian Amazon.  Here water is also a partner, a tributary, large or small, a lake or a lagoon, that kayaks maneuver in silence. Only nature breaks the quiet to reveal secrets along the shore or overhead.

Sea kayak adventure specialist Tofino Expeditions guides guest kayakers, just 10 at a time, from one spectacle to another in this water-bound theater, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve.  Kayaking the Amazon of Ecuador is a 10-day exploration available in 2017 Oct. 27-Nov. 5 and Dec. 14-23. Trips are scheduled again in 2018 in April and May.  See: https://www.tofino.com/amazon/amazon-kayaking-trip/.

The rate from $4,990 per person double includes the services of a veteran tour leader and local naturalist guides, Feathercraft® tropical expedition sea kayaks, all accommodations, most meals, motorboat transportation to access kayaking sites, kayaking instruction as needed, safety equipment, attractions, airport transfers and ample bottled water.

Guests come well-fed and rested to each day’s adventure. Along this isolated route three deluxe jungle ecolodges share hospitality, hot showers, cold drinks, dinners and breakfasts and linen-draped beds. Guests are at leisure to savor the day’s highlights before sitting down to a dinner featuring local ingredients served with international flair.

This adventure, typical of Tofino Expeditions’ programs (http://www.tofino.com/), is all about water, discovering from the silence and intimacy of a kayak, worlds in and around rivers, creeks and tributaries that otherwise remain hidden.

“Our silent kayaks make for exceptional wildlife viewing,” says Grant Thompson, Founder/Owner of Tofino Expeditions. “The brightly colored butterflies are one unexpected thrills of this trip. At certain places where we stop along the river bank, they seemed attracted by the kayaks and literally immerse us in a spiraling cloud of color.”

The gateway city is Quito, Ecuador. A short fight from here transports guests to the town of Coca and the Napo River, the largest tributary of the Amazon in Ecuador. Guests board a motorized dugout canoe for a two-hour ride to Sacha Lodge, an internationally renowned birding location set amidst jungle canopy and accessed from the river by hiking through the rainforest to Lake Pilchicocha. Afternoon kayaking and a night walk through the rainforest begin to stamp this foreign territory indelibly on reality.

The next river explored is the Indillana River that flows out of Yasuni National Park, a vibrant ecosystem which boasts the highest concentration of flora and fauna species in the world. A creek near Sacha Lodge reveals squirrel and white-bellied spider monkeys while guests are enroute to the lodge’s 100-foot-high and 900-foot-long canopy walkway. Later, a paddle down a small black-water tributary may showcase the shy and elusive river otter and the well camouflaged three-toed sloth.

Amazon Dolphin Ecolodge accesses Pañacocha Lake and Pañayacu River. Here guests paddle through sections of forest that are actually floating, slip across mirror-calm lakes to look for pink freshwater river dolphins, and scan the jungle for over 12 species of primates. At the headwaters of this river guests paddle into a pristine black-water lagoon and riverine system in the narrow gap between Ecuador’s two largest rainforest protected areas: the 982,000-hectare Yasuni National Park and the 600,000-hectare Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve. Descending the Pañayacu brings guests to Garzacoha Lake and La Selva Lodge. Here is an exploration of indigenous culture including herbal medicines, foods and ornaments. A tour of a garden chacra (small farm) is followed by a visit to the house to experience the Kichwa tradition of hospitality and open a window into the everyday lives of the people who make their homes in Amazonia.

However, nothing compares to one of the most remarkable wildlife displays in the world -- a clay lick where hundreds of parrots and parakeets perch in the treetops and then descend to a clay bank to ingest the mineral-rich soil.

Returning from the jungle for a tour of Quito’s Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, may jar the senses. But it is comforting to see that some of the faces met at the jungle lodges and along the rivers are also familiar here in the bustle of street life. Guests lodge at Quito Hotel Patio Andaluz, an elegantly renovated colonial home near the historic district; and for early and late arrivals/departures at Wyndham Quito Airport near the terminal.

For information on all of Tofino’s world-wide tours, availability and reservations please contact Tofino Expeditions by phone: 800-677-0877 or 541-389-6091; email: [email protected]; or visit online at http://www.tofino.com/. Request or download a catalog online at: https://www.tofino.com/#catalog.

About Tofino Expeditions

Grant Thompson, owner/director, founded this family company in 1988 as a single fleet sea kayaking tour company in the small fishing town of Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada. Today this family owned and operated active adventure travel company offers a selection of the world’s finest sea kayaking destinations and tours. Its team, many of whom hold degrees in natural sciences, embrace sustainable wilderness ethics and authentic cultural discoveries. Luxury comes in the form of local connections, intimate knowledge and special access thanks to local guides who also educate clients on safety and kayaking skills that allow even the inexperienced to feel confident and secure on the water. The vast majority of Tofino’s trips include immersive visits into UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Norway, Sardinia, the Amazon rainforest, the Costa Verde, Brazil, Cinque Terre and the Italian Riviera, Venice, Halong Bay in Vietnam, Croatia's Dalmatian Coast and the Galapagos Islands.