Ham

What are some of the upgrades?

So, a few years ago I read about an isopod parasite that attacks fish and makes them its permanent host. The female cuts off blood flow to the tongue and grows in its place actions as a prosthetic tongue of sorts. The males stay much smaller and eventually migrate into the gills, but they stay close to female to breed when she is ready. That is a crazy crazy form of evolution. I Never expected to see any, but I had a painful run in with one when it gripped my finger as I was throwing it overboard while fishing in British Columbia. Stomp them suckers. Well, fast forward to Brazil and a lot of the peopcock bass had them. I was told they are heavy numbers of them early in the fishing season, but they thin out as time goes on #idoubtitThats nasty but fascinating.

I had told a few people that the dish I wanted the most on this trip was a Wolf Fish. I was going to be disappointed if I did not manage one. The problems facing me were two fold. I didn’t really get to control the search for them and I did not have a great understanding of how to fly fish for them. so, I mentioned to my guides each morning how important a wolf fish was to me and I watched for bowfin like fish near bottom. On Day 2 our guide for the day was Prey Tou called out Wolf fish. There was a quartet of wolf fish swimming slowly left to right at two o clock 30 feet away. I actually made a good cat with the first cast and one of the wolf fish powered over there and ate the fly. I was using a Flashtail Whistler fly about 5 inches long and lightly weighed. I did a good job fighting the fish. I’m always overly concerned the first time I hook a species wanting to make sure I catch it. So, I get it boatside and my partner Kevin grabs the leader (40 lb fluro) 18 inches above the fish and just freezes. The wolf fish is very displeased to be halfway out of the water and thrashes wildly. Kevin holds fast. I’m expecting him to yeet it into the boat. well, the wolf fish cut thru the loop knot 40 lb fluro and was gone. I was not Happy. I got pretty butthurt about it. I am mostly over it now, but I was not Happy. I had a couple fleeting shorts at other wolf fish that were spooking away, but I did not convert those. The good news is that Bacaba put us on a pile of them a few days later and I was able to catch several and get pics. I would catch them every day I was down there if possible. A very fun visual eat. Decent pull. Scary teeth. there was one Wolf fish that was sitting out there on the Mud flat. I threw the fly in there to the right and bumped it across his bow. No reaction. I threw to the left and bumped it across his bow again. Nothing. I threw right over the top of him and dropped 3 inches in front of his nose. Nothing. The guide said, “ I think it’s dead”. Lol

As far as the wagers, I had 26 species so I hope y’all took the over. my biggest peacock landed was a 12 lber so that’s a push. I lost one that I will always believe was larger to piranha chopping the fly line. I lost another really big one boatside right before he was caught. I relaxed just a little bit and he shook the hook with a late Big head shake. I wouldn’t swear he was over 12 lbs, but he was a Big Knotheaded Male that I would have wanted weighed None of my flyrods were broken, but other people broke them. One unfortunate guy broke two. I was Super careful not to high stick fish and I was exceedingly careful about which fish I lifted with the rod. so, by my count, I used up or lost 45 flys. That would be well under, but I gave a couple dozen flys away so I’m out 65 or so. That’s y’all’s call on that one. I should have picked a line on fish caught. I likely would have set the line at 225, but I just had no idea what to expect. I ended up well over 225 and honestly species hunting hurt my numbers. Thursday was our hardest day. We were BIG fish hunting and the heavy rain seemed to put them in a real funk. I cast 15 foot of a trio of plus sized Temensis Peacock Bass. I waited until they got within about 7 foot and gave my fly a pull to get their attention. They freaking Bolted away from the area. we caught a lot of fish the other days.

I miss him a lot and I barely got to know him. I’m Sure it was heartbreaking to lose him. He had his flaws as we all do, but I wish I had gotten to take more trips with him.

So my days at Agua Boa Lodge went like this 0525 alarm goes off. Take Morning meds. Some of the time I would apply sunscreen to my face first thing, but if we had a long boat run coming, I did that during the boat ride. Throw on long pants, long sleeve shirt, buff, fishing gloves, socks and shoes, and spray some Skin So Soft. All this was to keep the no see ema at bay. The bite didn’t hurt, but I was warned the itching could last for days. I think I avoided getting bitten. Ideally, I got down to the dock by 0545, but often I was a few minutes after that. There was a Good bite by the larger Pacu on foam beetles. Size 10 was best. My 12’s sank and they didn’t like that. 8’s are too large. They get hit, but their mouths are too small. I used up or gave away all my foam beetles. If I visit again, I’ll start with 2 dozen. The other hoppers got ignored with was surprising and aggravating. by 0615 that bite was winding down and I would have to run to put stuff away before getting my breakfast. Breakfast was great. I’d start with fresh fruit and finished with eggs and bacon. You make your lunch from a buffet line. You can make sandwiches which I did a couple of times, but then I switched to hard boiled eggs, cheese, and cold cuts. I think Richard Button would have been proud of me, but sadly no Pecan Sandiea to take along. You could pack fruit as well, but I mostly didn’t. I would take a couple of Hogie rolls every day. I chummed at lunch with them to create a feeding frenzy. Meet the guides at the boats at 0700. The guides would grab your rods and have them in the boats. Fish hard. Try to remember to force fluids. Pull on Peacock freight trains all day. The guides know their beats and know when it is time to head in. The boats would be back at the dock at 1700 usually within a minute or two either way. Like clockwork. I was impressed. I would run to the room and shower and grab a fresh shirt and long pants again. Hustle back to the dock to fish from 1730 until 1815. Back to the room to do a little tackle prep and then to Supper at 1900. Supper was Great. Started with a soup. Then a buffet line. Always had some version of rice and beans. Usually had chicken, fish, and with beef/pork/ lamb options. Veggies and fruit options. after everyone was done, they would come offer you dessert at the table. The table was a long table set for 16. Lots of after fishing action reports and opinion sharing. I usually was needing to rest by 2030 and would go back to the room. I would do a little tackle prep and Internet accessing IF the WiFi was functioning. At some point, I would pass out. Now, having forced fluids all day and having a Liquid IV before bed as well as a big supper I was up and down all night getting rid of water. Unfortunately, a couple of nights I still had Leg cramps. I will bring Liquid Magnesium next time. A teaspoon of that in a pint of water relived leg cramps for me quickly. I couldn’t figure out how to bring it, But I will find a way next time

So, I won’t Sugar coat it, this trip was hella expensive. The Lodge is very nice and it’s in the middle of the jungle. Kinda expensive to get nice stuff there. A lot of staff probably more than one employee for every guest that is there at any given time. My cabin was center of frame. They are numbered and have a local fish image as well. There are hangers on the wall facing the camera for you to hang your rods on at the end of the day. So, you rig them once and forget about it. if you can zoom in, I was in the Redtail Cat bungalow. The river is really beautiful and so FULL of Life. There is NO garbage. None. I did not see a single piece of garbage the entire week at the lodge. Manaus is a different story. People ruin everything. The travel to and from has been brutal. It would be better if I had a travel buddy like @FishnDave. Going solo has been not great. Long and arduous. And not cheap. Everybody wants their pound of flesh. I thought originally this was a one and done deal, but …… now I am not sure. I did a lot of heavy lifting with species caught, but there are so many more that taunted me. I’ll have to see how it goes. I probably should not go back until after my wife retires.

I still have lots of photos to come, but I got this one in.

So, Kevin has an appropriate fly on a 9 wt and I am getting ready to try for a bigger Arapaima, but the guide is poking us out. Time gentlemen. We took running shots at stuff on the way out and caught a few. I think I had a 4 or 5 lber which was a beatdown and some Fun Size ones. The walk back to the big boat was tough. Hot and humid and a Big Lizard startled me badly. We ran down river and stopped for Lunch beside Renando and his guys for the day. It did bit seem to be a good fishing spot, but it was shady and had a breeze. I was in no way prepared for how windy it is at Aguaboa. I assumed very little wind. I was very wrong. I could see clouds building so I ate my lunch quickly and made sure my gear was in the dry bag before the downpour hit. It did not rain as hard or for as long as it did at lunch on Thursday. On Thursday, out guide Cloboco out a massive garbage bag over his entire body. Just his feet stuck out. It didn’t seem healthy, but he smokes sooooo anywho, when the rain quit I tied on the last of my mini craft fur Clousers. First cast got me a small peacock bass. The other boat pushed off and said their goodbyes. I kept working the immediate area. Watching for stingrays. So many stingrays. I got a take and a set. This fish went crazy. Up down and all around. I got a look and it was a Big Leporonis species. I wanted this fish! He went around wood and I would get him back and he would jump 2 ft out of the water. He got me back in the wood and wrapped. I got to him and had him in my hand. I was taking him to land but my land was still wrapped in the tree which I was unaware of and when I ran out of slack, it yanked the fish out of my hand and he threw the hook. Many f bombs later I finally get squared away. My mini Clouser is toast. The guide wants to pick the fly. He saw the struggle and spotted more behind the boat. I bushwhacked around the boat and got a better casting lane. A size 16 pink beadhead scud was his choice. First fish was a big matrinxa. It went crazy, but I caught it. Second fish was a big Pinktail Chalceus (or whatever they really are).This fish fought like crazy! I was standing up to my knees and it jumped to my head height twice. I just had to laugh out loud and be amazed. It took a while, but I caught him. Finally, I got the hook into another Leporonis. It took fought like hell. In wood, back and forth, jumping, rapid runs in random directions. But I got him in the end. All good things came to an end. I had to get back in the boat and go back to catching peacock bass. We caught a few more and some of them were nice ones. Kevin got an 8 lber that kicked his butt. He was sure it was gonna be over 10. We made a run back up river for one more kick at the can. i made a routine cast and a couple of strips in I cane tight to this. I have no idea what that is, but ai knew I couldn’t do better. So, I sat down. I was done. Kevin took the bow and like two minutes later the guide told him where to cast and told him to let it sink. Short strip. Wait. Short strip. Wait. Bang Kevin sets into a determined fish. Lucas says “Red Tail”. Kevin fought it well and landed a Red Tail Catfish. Amazing! He sat down and we headed up river. The fishing part of our trip was finished. I could have fished the dock last night and this morning and maybe added a species, but ai decided to take the time to pack and relax rather than be rushed. What a trip. there will be extra posts about some of the details. Thanks!

Too much happened today to put in one post so Please indulge me. Lucas was our guide today. Young and soft spoken. Like all the other guides, he was very knowledgeable. I thought my Spanish knowledge would be helpful. It was not. Communicating was difficult. we had the second longest run downriver today. Bacaba has the longest run downriver. I did not get to fish with Daniel who has the longest run upriver. We started with a hike through the jungle to a lagoon. it was kinda long and had a rough uphill section. a jaguar track from that had to have happened after yesterdays rain. a pic of Kevin at the lagoon boat. I knew the clock was ticking because we didn’t bring Lunch which happens at 12:30 pm ish. Sadly, we spent a lot of that time fishing for peacock bass. I caught all three species here this morning (again). a word of explanation, my brand new Rio Outbound fly line fell apart on me Wednesday. I should have just fished it, but I tried to cut out the worse piece and then tie it back together, but the resulting knot would not go through my guides. Sucked. I swapped to my usual home fly line Wednesday night. Well, that sucked worse. I could not cast as far as I needed to cast. I struggled with it so Badly Thursday that I left the 8 wt at home on Friday. I caught a 9 lb Temensis Peacock Bass lb my 6 weight. It was a challenging struggle. An 8 Wt is the right rod. I finally spotted some Oscars and caught a couple of those little tanks. No pics on my phone. I will get them eventually. A Large Arapaima rolled by the boat and the guy never blinked. I confirmed that it was an arapaima with the guide and he said yeah. Well, he poles us the way back of a finger and I was looking for Wolf Fish. The finger had a tiny cut that ran to another lagoon. This lagoon was STUFFED WITH ARAPAIMA. All sizes. Everywhere. It was dumb. I let my partner have the first shot. It was his turn on the bow, but I would have my chances. Now normally the Rule of Thumb is you need a large, heavy dark colored fly. This water was so shallow and grassy that you actually needed a lightly weighted fly. Kevin gave it a while with a fly that was too heavy. he did hook one. My turn. The guide had suggested a popper and I went with the popper that @FishnDave caught all of fish Arkansas Snakehead on. The arapaima showed some interest, but no takes. I grabbed Kevin’s rod with a largish chartreuse fly that settled slowly. I had to yank it away to keep from catching a juvi peacock bass on the first cast. It looked good and was easy to manipulate. I worked several groups of arapaima that weaving in and out of each other. They never spooked and they would just move along if they got the ick from my fly. They muddy stuff out while they are doing their thing. I spotted one and made the right cast. Dirty water. The fish noses down and I feel a take. I set! Fish on! Butttttt it was another Big Oscar. Bummer, but I laughed it off. A few minutes later one was swimming right at us. I threw past him and stripped it back and dropped it in front of him. As he got closer, the guide said slow strip. The fish speed up and looked. Another long slow strip. Another quick little more to catch up. I’m running out of room. The fly is gonna be in some grass soon. One more long slow strip and the arapaima rushed in and eats it when it starts falling towards to bottom. Hard Strip Set! Fish On! Now, it super exciting and super stressful as I am strip setting again and again to make sure the hook is set. They are manageable for their size. The small ones don’t overpower you. They pull! But not scary hard.I have more and better pics coming. I just have to be patient. So, I’m on Cloud 9. Kevin has the guide move the boat to try for a big one. I had him use my 10 WT. I heavier darker fly because the water was deeper. Several adults were rolling. The guide poled the boat close and Kevin would cast ahead of where the fish was moving and so long slow strips after the fly reached bottom. I was busy rigging a rod with wire and a flashy fly because some piranha were around. In just a few minutes, Kevin says “ I got one” and sets into a 5 foot fish. It clears the water and bolts off. Kevin was doing Great. The fish was running and he would get line back and it would run again, But Kevin is gaining on him. Then - slack line -. Bummer. Kevin pulls the line in and the fly line has been cut by a piranha. Sucked. Kevin started rigging another Bug rod for me to try. I went to the bow to cast for piranha to get some payback and maybe a new species of piranha. I tossed the fly in by hand and stepped into the bow. I started to make a cast and felt a hit. I set and expected a piranha, but it was another arapaima! I fought it carefully since I had it on like a #4 hook that I was worried about using on piranha. I prevailed. End of part one.

Yes! We saw both pink and grey ones. One angler in the group lost a peacock bass to one. we got a pretty good scolding from a family of Giant River otters.

I have no idea

Another Fun day, but the fish were in a bit of a funk. Spooky spooky spooky. My good eight weight line died on me yesterday and I struggled to cast the distances required. I never saw the arapaima I was hoping for. I never got a look from an arrowana. i did get a new piranha species. We caught some peacock bass. None over 6 pounds. I had one about 3 lbs on my 6 weight. It was a chore getting it in. I had a nice lunch session getting a bunch of big matrinxa and another pink tail chalceusit freaking poured on us. Fishing was worse afterwards for some reason. we finished with a frat party of little peacock bass. I got another lobe tooth piranha at the dock I finished with 40 fish caught and 7 flys lost or destroyed.

@Johnsfolly you would love it here just for the birding. It’s amazing. Macaws are a noisy bunch.

Another amazing day. Every guide is different, but they are all Good. yesterday we had Joseph who is very knowledgeable, but kinda intense. Today we went out with Bacaba. My partner and I were in agreement that we didn’t want to focus on Peacock Bass. We talked to Pacaba about it and he was Happy to Oblige. It was such a relaxed day. I was much much more relaxed that normal when fishing. We both caught a bunch of peacocks anyway. And we both had a Big one, but we didn’t bother to weigh them. Pacaba had a Black Piranha spots and arrowana spots. We would end up catching both. I had bought 30 lb wire that you can tie knots with. It is absolutely necessary for the piranhas. The Black Piranhas get to 4-5 lbs on this river. They get even larger downstream in a larger tributary. Their teeth are No joke. I was on the bow with a streamer when an arrowana presented itself. I made the shot and a 10 lb Peacock ate it instead. Long fight. When I finally got it in, piranhas had eaten a lot of its tail. That sucked. I kept at it and finally hooked up with a decent black piranha. I fought him down and leadered him. I was trying to get my plastic fish grabber in his mouth when he bit through the clip holding the fly. Again, I had a desired fish caught that I had no pic of. It was my fault. I was hesitant to bring that demon in the boat. it took a while for me to catch another and I promptly yeeted it into the boat. I got my pics and got it back in the water. My partner got one as well. I had another one on for a while, but that’s all of them I got. I had shots at arrowana, but I was unable to cash in. My partner caught two on streamers, but I was trying force feed them on top. we stopped in the shade for lunch. I noticed a great little fish swim by. I had to try. Bingo! I still needed a second species of jucunda. I was able to catch it too! We finished up the lunch break and as we idled away the guide asked me if I wanted a Wolf Fish. Yes Sir! The peacock bass have those isopod parasites that latch on in their mouth. Disgusting. Super Fun Day! Two more to go. 37 fish caught. Ten more flys died for the cause today.

So there are 8 guides and seven boats needing a guide. Every team of anglers misses fishing with one guide. I have been having a Tough time with the portugués nicknames that the guides go by. I can’t even hear the names correctly. On Saturday, we fished with Bou Jo. on Sunday, Prey tou. Monday, Renandu and today was the most senior guide Joseph. Joseph gave the most instruction we have had so far, but he was the most demanding as well. we had an almost 2 hour run upriver in a Merc Jet to get started. I put on sunscreen and watched the river go by. Lots of interesting stuff to see along the way. Giant River otters, capybara, caiman, and so many birds. Storks, a few species of kingfishers, skimmers, terns, egrets, herons, spoonbill, osprey, Macaw, Harpy Eagles, Cara Cara, and more. Finally, we idle down and start fishing along a main river bank. Hard to see the difference as you go along, but occasionally we stumbled across a Peacock Bass biker bar and there would be 10-20 fish with bad attitudes smashing you flys. Fun. I had shots at a school of Oscars, but they said nah. Vivida would run your fly. Dog Fish. Matrinxas would flash it. And occasionally piranha would get you fly a trim to up behind the bend of the hook. Toast. Time for a fly change. i had my peacock flys on an 8 weight with an intermediate line, a cicada pattern on the 6 weight floating, and a #10 white wooly on the 3 weight. I git a shot at an arrowana I put the fly close enough and it camE for a look. Little pops and the fish got closer and closer. It hovered under it and then swam off. Bummer. My partner had a take on his peacock fly from and arrowana, but the hook didn’t find a home: we are catching the usual bruising. Peacocks, but I want some different. Lunch was a shady spot that had the poorest of the lunch fishing yet. Some little minutes really nipped my legs and feet a bunch. It was uncomfortable. The day was running out. We started the run home and he stopped and said we would try for arrowana for a few minutes. I was on the bow. The guide took my 6 weight and cut my #4 cicada off and tied on a 3/0 snakehead fly that I would normally fish on a 9 or 10 weight. I was not at all confident that I could make the casts required but set the hook if I got a take. I try to listen to my guide and trust my guide so here we go. Right away we see some. I somehow get the fly close enough. Gentle pops and the fish come close. then the star down with fish inches under my fly. Boom! And the hook doesn’t stick. We find another group, a pod of 4-6 fish 11 o’clock. “ make a long cast!” I fight it and force the fly there. My line wrapped on the reel. I am trying to clear that and the fish eats without me ever moving the fly. I can’t get the hookset. I am not in a good spot mentally . I think this is my only shot at an arrowana and I’m blowing it with a set up I don’t want to be using. I get one final chance at a group of 6-8 nice sized fish. Their side scales camo up well so you only see about have of their dorsum. I somehow muscled the fly there. Pop, pop, pop and a fish breaks from the group to look. Pop, pop and it comes closer and closer. Pop …and it is right under it. Like 2 inches under my fly. I am thinking of nothing else in the world but that fish under my fly. BIG Eat! Guide and my partner “Set, Set, Set!!!” Like there was anything else I wanted to do. amazingky, I stuck it. I set several times to make sure the hook was buried and tried my very best to hold tension. The fish jumped clear of the water in a loud and flashy way. Bulldoged. Did subsurface cartwheels. Tried to run off, but I held firm. I wore it down and lead it my partner who had been coached to grab the leader and yeet that fish in the boat. When it got close, he grabbed the leader and yanked it into the boat! The weight of the world was off my shoulders. Ode to Joy. I was and am so Happy. One of my absolute favorite moments from the trip. I took one hasty pic, but others were taken. I will post some more later.

I can not possibly explain how fast a Peacock Bass can appear and crush your fly. I caught so many 2-5 pounders today and they pull so much harder than Largemouth Bass. My Forearms are burning. these Pacus are so much fun.

What an amazing Day! Too Much to talk about really. I caught 91 fish today. I think I had like 70 Peacock Bass. The largest was 12 lbs. I think I lost a larger one at boatside, but it wasn’t caught. I also lost a giant Arapaima that I had in for a few seconds. My partner got a 40 inch one though that was 20 lbs. I got two species of Pacu, Butterfly and Spotted Peacock, Matrinxa, and the second species of Bicuda. We saw the giant otters and the freshwater porpoises. Lots and lots of black caiman.

Day 3 early update. Back at the dock at 6 am. I got another red tail tetra for a photo.

Day Two has come and Gone. Another amazing day. We took the long boat ride this morning. 30 miles upriver. We went into a side lagoon and my partner and I each caught Temensis Peacock Bass over 9 lbs in a Boga. They are incredibly quick and strong. We caught plenty of Butterfly Peacock and Spotted Peacock. I had an even larger Peacock on. He powered away taking me into my backing. I fought him really well. I cleared the line when he ran under by he boat. I was keeping the rod down and dirty and switching angles to tire it more quickly. And then it was gone. Because a piranha had bitten my flyline. The welded loop was gone and it was a clean cut. Sucks. I got a pile of Matrinxa. I got a baitfish that I need to ID. The fish that I am happiest about I am also the most upset about. I had asked the guide to help me find a wolf fish. We spotted some in a shallow dead end off the river. there was a wolf pack of four Big ones. I made a good cast and fit a massive eat 1 1/2 strips in. Good Hookset. I hustled the fish in. Wore the fish down. My partner grabbed the leader and didn’t seal the deal. I would have tested it into the boat. He held it halfway out of the water and it thrashed and eventually cut the 40 lb fluro at the loop knot. No pic of my Flyfer Wolf Fish. Maybe I will catch another. I owe you guys pics. Some will have to come later. I caught 56 fish today and burned through 6 flys. I will keep grinding to try to get more species, but I’m playing with house money at this point. Over 1/2 way to my goal of 200 fish caught and sitting at 14 species. mystery fish Matrinxa Big Dog Fish I wanna pet that dawgwe saw a tonne of Bug Creepy Black Caiman I’m sooo tired and my right shoulder is killing me. Hours of 60 foot casts with an 8 wt are beating me down. My casting is improving. Maybe my arm won’t Fall off.

Day 1 of fishing finally arrived! Not a moment too soon. The planes are both new. The group is split into 7 on each plane. This was the other group that landed a minute or two behind us. The Lodge and the bungelows are sooooo nice. as soon as I could, I beat feet down to the boat dock and caught my first couple fish of the trip. I caught a red tailed tetra and the joker hit out of my hand before I got a pic. second fish was a pacu. I’ll try at some point to get a hard ID. I headed back and got ready to go out in the boat. I brought the 3/6/8. All three did some heavy lifting. we started our day in a lagoon and the trip was amazing. All the fish running by the boat was killing me. A lot of good pics of my fish were taken by my partner and I don’t have access to them yet. This was a dog fish I caught. This is one of the two species of jucunda here. I caught two of them but only ended up with one pic? I need to do better. This is a Pink Tailed Chalcues. A fun little guy that pulled hard. Golden Pacu. Off the boat dock at the end of the day. Lobed Fin Piranha. I caught two! I got a Bicuda! I think there are a couple of species here. I will have to add another post in when I have the rest of the pics later. i got 51 fish to hand and had 11 species today. I said I would be disappointed with less than 10. No worries on that. let’s see if I can get to 15. For those scoring at home, I lost/ had destroyed 5 flys today. It is interesting as I change flys how poorly some of them work and well some just aren’t beefy enough. Thats it for today. I’m wiped out. I did get Butterfly and Spotted Peacock today. The Spotted turn into the mean ole 3 striped BIG peacocks as they mature. I also got a Leporonius species. A pic was taken, I just don’t have it yet.

Today was our group tour of Manaus. I am not sure what I expected, but it was pretty Great. started out with the Opera House Teatro Amazonia. It was built by the Big Players during the runner boon years. They had so much money they could afford to bring in all the materials and artisans to create a baroque style opera house on the shores of the Rio Negro. It has been through restoration and renovation after decades of neglect following the rubber crash. It is heavily used now, but this is the off season. Them to the Big fish market. we stayed almost long enough for me to go nose blind. I was amazed by a guy eating his lunch on top of some “fresh” fish. the to the old market. An open air bazar originally started by some Englishmen. We didn’t have enough time and I got overwhelmed by all the stuff.then we hopped in a pretty good sized aluminum deep V with a 140 hp outboard and headed up the Rio Negro. We went up a tributary and pulled on some Arapaima at a fish farm with natural baits tied onto a cord. They are monsters. we went to a buffet style lunch on a floating structure. Buffets are fun when you don’t know what anything is. then we walked on an elevated walkway into the jungle and were accosted by monkeys. the little guys hit pretty agitated over bananas. We also saw some Howler Monkeys. back to the boat to see the joining of the waters which in some circles is the “true” beginning of the Amazon River. IMG_2732.mov Along the way we saw a boat loaded up with people headed up the tributary. These trips can take over a week. And sometimes the boat waits days to get enough people to make it worthwhile. Everybody sleeps in hammocks. The shorter trips only take 36 hours or so. Pretty neat to see other people carving out their lives so differently.

So, you are strongly recommended to plan an extra day in for travel contingencies. The plane to the lodge makes one flight in for guests a week. It would be soul crushing to miss the trip because of a missed connection or a cancelled flight. we are doing a group tour in Manaus today and a group dinner tonight. I’m trying a local soda that I was told had plenty of caffeine

I got up at 0346 on 1/8. It’s 0346 (Local) on 1/9 and I’m about to sack out. Dang Long Day of travel.

I’m just the subject of the wagers. I know nothing about that game.