A Visit to Tambopata National Reserve in the Peruvian Amazon

Travelers visit the Amazonian city of Puerto Maldonado in order to use it as a gateway into the famously diverse Amazon rainforest. From Puerto Maldonado, they have a choice of three protected national reserves whose buffer zones are open to tourism. Tambopata National Reserve is popular mainly because of Lake Sandoval, which teems with life and can be visited in a short daytrip, and because of its parrot and macaw clay licks. There’s plenty to see in Tambopata, if you have a few days to spare. 

To reach Tambopata, one heads up the Madre de Dios River by boat- if you’re lucky, a covered boat to block the sun, perhaps equipped with some fans. Traveling along the river is slow, but always entertaining. Locals make a living on riverside farmhouses propped up on sticks, motorboating back and forth with produce, fish, and items for sale. Mammals, mainly monkeys, gather at the waterside to drink. Tropical birds are often seen and never not heard. The sights and sounds of the Amazon, as seen by one of the large rivers that gives it life.

Lodging is always in a licensed eco-lodge, most of which offer separate bungalows for guests. On your first day, you are likely to be led along the area trails so that your guide can teach you about the medicinal and historical uses of different plants which are important to Amazonian cultures. The fall of night means more hiking, so that you can learn about the nocturnal Amazon, with its noisy insects and bats, the musmuqui (the world’s only nocturnal monkey), the glow-in-the-dark eyes of the caiman.

A visit to Sandoval Lake generally comes next. It’s a trip highlight thanks to the barking giant otters, the strange hoatzin birds and numerous monkeys (howler, capuchin, spider, tamarin, etc). There’s even a waterfall.

After Sandoval Lake, the other unmissable stop in Tambopata is one of its many parrot and macaw clay licks. As the day dawns, hundreds of birds (of up to seven species) gather to feed on mineral-rich clay, bringing certain cliff walls to life. They socialize and search for mates, lick the clay, and flutter and fly. It’s a colorful, unforgettable spectacle. Bird enthusiasts especially enjoy the rare blue-headed macaw.

If you’re spending more than three days within Tambopata National Reserve, you’re likely to fit in some additional experiences, including:

• a visit to a local family to learn about life in the Amazon
• piranha fishing, if it’s the dry season.
• Kayaking
• Exploring a canopy walk, a hanging bridge at tree-top level that allows you to observe the toucans and geckos at close range.
• Zip-lining