First Day
We will take you from Maturín, the capital of Monagas state, for an hour’s drive by car over the alluvial plains through cattle and water buffalo farms to arrive at the port of San José de Buja. Here our tour enters the Orinoco Delta. We will navigate down river through the jungle on our journey to the Orinoco Eco Camp.
When we arrive, there will be a small tour of the camp to familiarize yourself with your surroundings and we will give a talk explaining the aims, goals and achievements of our ecological camp in the delta. After you have made yourselves at home, we can provide you with poles and raw meat bait to fish for piranha. If you catch any, our kitchen can prepare them for a tasty snack.
After lunch we take a boat and explore the surrounding jungle. We will take you through some of the small channels inside the delta where you can get a feel for the natural habitat. There will be many opportunities to observe the wildlife in the area. There are macaws, toucans, howler monkeys, dolphins and butterflies with a variety of colours. There is also a variety of tropical flora including flowering trees and orchids indigenous to the Orinoco delta.
Towards the end of this trip we will stop the boat at a scenic place and serve some refreshments while you enjoy the spectacular sun set of the Orinoco Delta. After sunset we take you back to the camp for dinner and chat. There will be an option for a night expedition to experience the nocturnal world of crocodiles and snakes. This will be available before or after dinner depending on river conditions.
Second Day
In the morning before breakfast we will take you out in an original native dugout canoe through small streams to enjoy the jungle dawn. After breakfast we will tour around the delta by boat, join the Manamo river, the main northern branch of the Orinoco, and follow it down towards the sea where mangroves border the channel and observe the changing variety of animals and plants from the primary jungle to the estuary swamps.
After a light lunch a Warao guide will lead you on a walk along a jungle trail where you will get a feeling for life in this unforgiving environment. You will inhale heavy tropical aromas coming from a lush tapestry of crawling plants and giant trees scrambling towards the sky for sunlight.
After sunset we will stay the night in the Warao community with the indigenous tribe whose origins in the Delta can be traced back for thousands of years.
Third Day
In the morning we will spend more time in the Warao village where we can learn more about the culture of these rain forest dwellers. After lunch while heading back to the camp we will stop to swim at a natural river beach before returning for dinner at the Ecocamp.
Fourth Day
Early in the morning we may be woken by the calls of howler monkeys screeching across the jungle. Now is a good time to go on the river in a hand crafted dugout canoe. We will give you oars and a pilot to guide you in a short venture where you can experience dawn and sunrise in the Orinoco delta. This is the time when the fauna prepares itself for the coming heat of the sun and is often the best time to observe the wildlife.
Our camp is the only camp located on a natural reserve and inside primal virgin jungle. In fact three quarters of the delta is savannah and gallery jungle.
After breakfast we will take you to see this savannah landscape. Here you will visit a small farm and gain an understanding of the delta environment. You will observe a different range of wildlife including egrets, water buffalo, horned screamer birds, black ibis, etc.
After lunch you take the boat back to meet the land transport.
The tour starts and ends in Ciudad Bolívar, Puerto Ordaz, Maturín or Carúpano
The Tour itinerary and program may be subject to change, depending on water- levels, rainfalls and other natural forces.