Puerto Maldonado - a springboard into the primary rain forest - Liebe zur Erde

View of the Madre de Dios, downriver

Puerto Maldonado is only by air or by truck through a jungle road accessible, which can last for 3 days or more, because the ways are extreme in every point of view. (2010 there was newly also a bus running from Cusco). In the area are still large nature reserves where one can find primary rain forest and where hunting (in theory) is prohibited. The Manu National Park is one of them and also the region of the Tambopata and the Lake Sandoval..



In In the rainy season every day flushes lots of water from the sky. However, we are there in August 2010 - in the dry season. For weeks it wasn´t raining, the water levels are low and a huge tropical heat, usually with 37 ° C (!) forms a veil of humidity: one would think it looks like fog elsewhere, see the the picture on the left which shows the approach to Puerto Maldonado.

This misty soup is mixed with the tracks of countless small farmers which slash-and-burn the area - here's a picture of Tambopata, ca 50 km north of Puerto Maldonado:







Puerto Maldonado is to some extent in the middle of nowhere, a dead end - at least until now! The traffic to Bolivia is marginal. For Brazil, one must cross the Madre de Dios River on a ferry and the road is still not finished. That is changing, however, because the bridge will soon be ready and will connect the road which cross the continent, connecting Brazil with the Peruvian road network.


 


     







The pier at the  Madre de Dios:










This below is the huge bridge that will transform the region. The locals working in the tourism are concerned that within a radius of 50 kilometers along the road the forest will be cleared:













So far, the trucks with the rain forest on it have to cross the river in difficult ways

And that the tropical wood is a very good deal, shows the used equipment: This truck belongs to the best equipment and newest fashions from all what we have seen regarding trucks. Also on Amazon river, we repeatedly encounter the phenomenon: workers in most rudimentary equipment, without shoes or clothing, but the most expensive machines.



In Puerto Maldonado for the first time I feel really well and enjoy myself since we are in Peru. The people here are sociable, outgoing and the life feels almost Italian. In fact, it is still in a sense a gold mining town with a whole motley mix of people originally of all possible nations. The indigenous population here has an entirely different character and is different in temperament, their way of life is different from the earthy, silent highland Indians. Here you can see middle-aged couples on mopeds, which hold hands in public, converse alive and seem to enjoy life. So far we have seen nothing like this in Peru.





From the smaller tributaries of the environment, especially at Tambopata, the river bed is dug from the gold-seekers in the dry season around the clock. The night of hell and lit machines make noise in the remoteness of the jungle, which is especially at night a ghostly impression. The gold is washed with mercury, which in turn is fed into the stream. Immense quantities of this material is now flowing through the rain forest and pollute the environment. So, fish you should just not eat in that environment.
On the right: the rubble pile plowed river bed with a gold-digger metallurgical machinery raft.
Below is a small specimen at work:






Bridge in the rain forest:




Below: The view from the hotel window is more beautiful than the very dusty place itself:















On the day of our departure rain cleans the air and atmosphere: