tajana_diary_3

6th June 2007 Amazonas Today we are in Amazonas. Amazonas is the largest state of Brazil in area, located in the northern part of the country. Neighboring states are Roraima, Pará, Mato Grosso, Rondônia, Acre. It also borders Peru, Colombia and Venezuela. Amazonas is home to the highest mountain in Brazil; Pico da Neblina, a tepui which stands at 2,994 meters above sea level. Neblina is Portuguese and Spanish for fog. We decided to visit this mountain today. The northern slopes of the mountain, are protected and form part of the Neblina National Park in Venezuela, the southern slopes are also protected and form part of the "Pico da Neblina National Park" in Brazil. This, together with the neighbouring "Parima-Tapirapeco National Park" (Venezuela) form a protected area complex of about 80,000 km², possibly the largest national park system on tropical rainforests in the world.

We have decided to do a 10 hike through the forest. This has been a challenge for many because the conditions are harsh and barely anyone makes it untill the end. The tour costs US$2167 and it lasts 10 days.

Day 1 : Firstly we arrived to Amazonas at 5am after traveling for 5 hours from Acre. We traveled by bus and the roads were really rough so we decided to set up a camp near the mountain and sleep for a few hours. Day 2 : Camping Piedra - Boca de Tucano We woke up early at 5.30am to have breakfast. We resumed our river trip on the Cauburis River. At midday we stopped to have lunch, then sail the remainder of the day to the mouth of the Maturuca River. After 7 hours of navigation, we reached Boca de Tucano, our second campsite. We had a short sleep there. Day 3 : Boca de Tucano - Bebedouro Velho After breakfast, we begun the trek towards the roof of Brazil. During this day we walked approximately 12 kilometres in 6 hours, with a climb of 200 meters. We crossed Cachoeira and had lunch in Serrinha. Then, we continued our walk to Bebedouro Velho, where we set up our campsite

Day 4. Trekking Bebedouro Velho - Bebedouro Novo After breakfast, we packed our gear once again and started our 11 kilometre walk to Bebedouro Novo. We climbed approximately 400 meters crossing many areas such as Cutia, Macaco and Romualdo. We had our first lunch inside the Amazon Rainforest. We arrived at Bebedouro Novo after a 6 hours and set up our campsite.

Day 5: Trekking - Base Camp Today, we climbed about 1,200 meters in 7 hours. We passed by Lage where we had lunch. From there, we were on our way to the base camp where we enjoyed awesome views over the largest mountain of Brazil.

Day 6 At the top of Neblina Peak As a ritual, we continued our progression after breakfast. Today's walk lasted approximately 5 hours with a climb of approximately 1,000 meters. After our lunch, we reached the aim of our expedition, Neblina Peak and its 3.040 meters. We set up our campsite and explore thoroughly this remote and scarcely visited area.

Days 7& 8 Trekking Neblina Peak - Base camp Sadly, we begin our trek back. This is a 5 hours hike to reach the base camp

Day 9. Base camp - Bebedouro Velho We start our walk at daybreak progressing for about 15 kilometers, crossing Bebedouro de Novo where we have lunch. This 10th day, we walk approximately 9 hours before reaching our campsite at about 5 pm

P.S I think i will stay away from mountain and forests, this hike exhausted me completely.


 * http://www.condorjourneys-adventures.com/brazil_neblina.asp**