MANU
Air
Inclusive "Manu Plus Explorer" program
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| About Rainforests | Rainforest Basics | Rainforest Experiences |
ABOUT MANU WILDLIFE CENTER
Site Inspection & report
by by Michele Shelburne, President, LADATCO TOURS
GETTING THERE: 35 minutes by air from Cuzco by 18-seater Twin Otter aircraft rtakes you to the Boca Manu airstrip, carved out of the thick jungle growth + a 90 minute motorized canoe trip from Boca Manu airstrip to the Manu Wildlife Center.
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ABOUT THE LODGE: It is located on the north bank of the Madre de Dios River, just east of the Manu River. There are 15 double-occupancy fully screened private bungalows, each with private bath as of January 1999. There is also a complex of well maintained, very clean hot showers and toilets. The main dining room is screened, and has a comfortable
seating area and a small library of wildlife articles and books. It is lit by kerosene
lamps and by candles. Though it is located just 150 feet (uphill) from the Madre de Dios River, mosquitoes and pesky no-see-ums are not a major problem precisely because they are up and away from the river banks. |
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WHAT TO DO THERE The lodge boasts more than 30 miles of trails, half in scientific grid systems and the new canopy tower - a huge, all metal circular staircase to the top of a huge tree, level with the forest canopy. It's a great way to while away a hot afternoon birdwatching. But the two true highlights are the Macaw Lick and the Tapir Lick. The Macaw Lick requires a 4:30 AM wakeup for a quick cup of coffee, stroll by flashlight through the forest trails to the river and then a 20 minute boat ride as the mist is rising from the river, to a mobile thatched roof blind that is let out and reeled in as necessary. We drifted to within 100 feet or so of the lick - a giant, long cliff of orange-brown clay. On board the blind are benches directly in front of a two foot tall eye-level viewing area - reservations are required for the blind as they only allow as many people as benches hold, about 20 - 25. Each group brings their own breakfast - we had juice, coffee, tea and pancakes with honey or jam. This Macaw Lick, officially called the Blanquillo Lick, has been rated one of the top four commercial Macaw Licks in the world by leading Macaw expert Charles A. Munn, Senior Conservation Zoologist, Wildlife Conservation Society. |
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Macaw licks host not only Macaws but other parrots as well, in a show of flying, swooping, hovering, landing, hanging, squawking, screeching and general confusion that results in orderly waves of parrots and Macaws visiting the clay wall. Three theories on why they visit the lick: the minerals in the clay are digestive aids and de-toxins; the minerals in the clay are nutrition and vitamin supplements; it is "happy hour", a social event. Probably it is some of all of these. It is indeed an experience to witness. And the lick accessible from Manu Wildlife Center was the best of three I visited primarily because of the mobile blind and proximity to the lick.
| The Tapir Lick requires a
2-mile walk in the dark over jungle trails to get to the lick and the same walk to get
back to the lodge, and there was no guarantee a Tapir would visit the lick. Three of the
four accompanying me did go, and their report was that it was worth it - even after they
walked by a Fer de Lance as it coiled to the side of the jungle path. And they had two
Tapir visits. |
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| At the lick was a raised platform with air mattresses and mosquito netting, adding a level of comfort while awaiting the Tapirs; we were told that many visitors elect to have a box dinner, walk up before dark and stay all night, walking back at dawn - both times afford optimal other wildlife viewing, the night walk is avoided and basic comforts are available at the site. | |
| Packages to Manu, flying Cuzco-Boca Manu-Cuzco using 8 to 12 seater aircraft, operate only on specific days: |
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5-day/4-night program:
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The
Bio Trip - Andes to Amazon
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