Archive for the ‘Amazon’ Category

A Reunion, But For The Wrong Reason   1 comment

Three years ago this past August, Matt, Ty, Tom, and I were getting ready to get on the Tuichi River in the Bolivian Amazon.
It was an adventure of a lifetime that was being recalled as we gathered at the Quaker Meeting House in Tucson
for a memorial service for Tom Markey — sharing happy times in a moment of sadness.  (August 20, 2019)– Image by kenne

“Time present and time past
Are both perhaps present in time future,
And time future contained in time past.
If all time is eternally present
All time is unredeemable.
What might have been is an abstraction
Remaining a perpetual possibility
Only in a world of speculation.
What might have been and what has been
Point to one end, which is always present.
Footfalls echo in the memory
Down the passage which we did not take
Towards the door we never opened
Into the rose-garden. My words echo
Thus, in your mind.
But to what purpose
Disturbing the dust on a bowl of rose-leaves
I do not know.
Other echoes
Inhabit the garden. Shall we follow?”

— T. S. Eliot

Tom and I Shared a Tent Each Night On the River

Rurrenabaque Airport Cafe   Leave a comment

Airport Cafe, Rurrenabaque, Bolivia (RBQ)– 08/19/19 Image by kenne

Rurrenabaque, a port city on the Beni River, is one of the main entrances to the Madidi National Park.

 

Madidi National Park Sunset   Leave a comment

Madidi National Park (Bolivia) Sunset Along The Beni River (9/19/19) — Image by kenne

Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road,

Healthy, free, the world before me,

The long brown path before me leading me wherever I choose,

Henceforth I ask not good-fortune, I myself am good-fortune,

Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing,

Done with indoor complaints, libraries, querulous criticisms,

Strong and content I travel the open road.

— from Song of the Open Road by Walt Whitman

 

Building Construction — Rurrenabaque, Bolivia   Leave a comment

Building Construction — Rurrenabaque, Bolivia In The Amazon Forest (08/19/19) — Image by kenne

Rurrenabaque

Sits on the Beni River

Amazon journey.

— kenne

Great Blue Heron   Leave a comment

Great Blue Herons In Madidi National Park, Bolivia (08/23/19) — Images by kenne

Madidi is a national park in the upper Amazon river basin in Bolivia. Established in 1995, it has an area of 18,958 square kilometers, and, along with the nearby protected (though not necessarily contiguous) areas Manuripi-Heath, Apolobamba, and (across the border in Peru) the Manu Biosphere Reserve, Madidi is part of one of the largest protected areas in the world.

Ranging from the glacier-covered peaks of the high Andes Mountains to the tropical rainforests of the Tuichi River, Madidi and its neighbors are recognized as one of the planet’s most biologically diverse regions. In particular, Madidi protects parts of the Bolivian Yungas and Bolivian montane dry forests ecoregions.

Access to the Madidi National Park by flying from La Pez over the Andes to Rurrenabaque. We drove muddy jungle roads to our guide’s Tacana Community, where we boarded balsa wood rafts on the Tuichi River. 

— kenne

Capybara   Leave a comment

Capybaras Near The Tuichi River In The Amazon (08/23/19) — Image by kenne

The capybara has a heavy, barrel-shaped body and short head, with reddish-brown fur on the upper part of its body that turns yellowish-brown underneath. Its sweat glands can be found in the surface of the hairy portions of its skin, an unusual trait among rodents. The animal lacks down hair, and its guard hair differs little from over hair.

Capybaras have slightly webbed feet and vestigial tails. Their hind legs are slightly longer than their forelegs; they have three toes on their rear feet and four toes on their front feet. Their muzzles are blunt, with nostrils, and the eyes and ears are near the top of their heads. Capybaras are herbivores, grazing mainly on grasses and aquatic plants, as well as fruit and tree bark. — Source: Wikipedia

 

Peccaries Near The Tuichi River   1 comment

Peccaries Near The Tuichi River In The Amazon (08/21/19) — Image by kenne

Like a pig, it has a snout ending in a cartilaginous disc and eyes that are small relative to its head. Also, like a pig, it uses only the middle two digits for walking, although, unlike pigs, the other toes may be altogether absent. Finally, its stomach is not ruminating, although it has three chambers and is more complex than pigs.
Peccaries are omnivores and eat insects, grubs, and occasionally small animals, although their preferred foods consist of roots, grasses, seeds, fruit, and cacti—particularly prickly pear. They are found throughout Central and South America and the southwestern United States. — Source: Wikipedia

Downriver On The Amazon Mistress   1 comment

BoliviaTuichi River In The Amazon (August 2019) — Photo-Artistry by kenne

Downriver, the jungle fog slowly lifts
Water still murky from heavy rains
Two days earlier in the upriver hills
Making jungle roads almost impassible
To our reaching an indigenous community.

After a meal prepared by Padro’s family
Under a thatch-covered shelter, we
Walked through a field of cattle
Watching suspiciously at a distance
A quick turn of the head, glancing back.

Arriving at the river shoreline before
Completion of the balsa wood rafts
We watched our indigenous crew
Finish preparing our transportation
On what would be my Amazon mistress.

— kenne

Tacana Family On The Tuichi River   Leave a comment

A Tacana Family Headed Down the Tuichi River to Rurrenabaque in the Amazon — HDR Image by kenne

The Tacana people live along the Beni River in the Madidi National Park, Amazon.

The Tuichi River joins the Beni River upstream from the town Rurrenabaque.

Pedro, our Tacana guide demonstrated the indigenous technique of fishing.

Matt did have some success on our Day 3. — Image by kenne

River Taxi   Leave a comment

River Taxi In the Bolivian Amazon (August 2019) — Image by kenne

Amazon highway
Headed upstream with luggage
Riverboat royalty.

— kenne

Going Down River On A Foggy Amazon Forest Morning   Leave a comment

Going Down the Tuichi River On A Foggy Amazon Morning — Images by kenne

Ansel Adams has stated, “There are always two people in every picture: 

the photographer and the viewer.” By being in the moment, 

the photographer can help the viewer better understand

and better appreciate the moment.

— kenne

Posted December 20, 2021 by kenneturner in Amazon, Bolivia, Information

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White Egret In Bolivian Amazon   Leave a comment

White Egret In Bolivian Amazon Forest (August 2019) — Image by kenne

Macaws In Flight   Leave a comment

Macaws In Flight In The Amazon (August 2019) — Image by kenne

Attractive to see
Always announce their presence
Noisy to the ear.

— kenne

Amazon Rainforest Sunset   Leave a comment

Amazon Rainforest Sunset (August 2019) — Image by kenne

Spending time on the river
walking its banks,
seeing the variety of wildlife,
that lingers there,
makes for beautiful
paintings and photographs,
for people to admire.

— kenne

 

Balsa Wood Raft   Leave a comment

Bolivia

One Of Our Balsa Wood Rafts On The Tuichi River In The Madidi National Forest, Bolivian Amazon (08/20/19)– Image by kenne

“The first virtue of those who seek

the spiritual path is courage.”

— from The Valkyries by Paulo Coelho

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