During a trip to Bolivia, our guide posed our group of eight on the boat, a seemingly rhetorical question that wasn’t, “Who wants to swim with alligators?” We weren’t as surprised as he thought we would be, most of us being in possession either of a Lonely Planet or a Rough Guide.
About half the right hands on the boat went up. If we had to swim with alligators it meant there were pink dolphins around. The stronger swimmers in the group started stripping down to our swim wear ready to frolic with the playful creatures in the muddy waters of the Rio Yacuma.
Others were still skeptical. Worried frowns furrowed their brows. One woman from Venezuela articulated her concern in fluent Spanish, “The water is literally as clear as mud. I can’t see anything underwater. What if an alligator attacks me from underwater?”
A valid question. The guide was quick to reassure us minus one percent. “You are 99% safe,” he said “The dolphins are protection. They attack the soft underbellies of the alligators. They are natural enemies. Alligators keep away from the middle of the river when pink dolphins are around”
Keeping a wary eye for the alligators on the banks of the river, most of us then cooled off in the hot sun in the murky waters thrilling at the dolphins that seemed to be enjoying with us, its human companions an impossible game of hide and seek.
Water features predominantly on the pampas tours. It is here where most of the action takes place… on the river. A pampas tour will include several boat rides on the river with activities like swimming with pink dolphins, spotting wild life such as giant sloth, yellow squirrel monkeys, fishing with piranhas but the activity that excited us the most was to be on land. We were to venture in to the pampas to look for wait for it…anacondas.
After an early breakfast, we were given rubber rain boots as the brush we were told was quite squelchy. Soon we were back on the boat. We chugged past a tree full of howler monkeys creating a mid-morning racket. The boat dislodged a sleepy eyed bunch in an area known to harbor the serpents that because of popular media are thought of as stuff that make up your worst nightmares.
“Are you sure it is safe to go looking for trouble?” one woman quavered half way into the hunt.
“It is harder than you think, “our guide replied”. The last two groups haven’t been able to find one. It depends on one’s luck. Besides it is almost 9, the sun is out, they are most likely resting in the shade somewhere and unlikely to attack,” he continued.
He was right. After sweltering for three hours in the sun looking high and low, many of us slipping and sliding in the mud, all we had found was a fresh intact piece of snake skin. The heat of the afternoon got almost unbearable in the open fields. We were tired, drenched in sweat and covered in mud. Disappointed we got ready to head back. We had ventured far out. Half an hour into plodding back dragging our feet, at about half way, we heard commotion in the front in the shade of a lone tree.
A second group’s guide had managed to find a dozing anaconda. Its belly was fat with a recent feeding and it looked little inclined to move. The guide trained at handling snakes held the snake for us to touch. This is however not recommended practice. Handling and touching wildlife could impact them adversely with disease and other complications especially if they are to be gawked at by prying humans in their territory on a regular basis. It is best to observe from afar.
That said, many forget themselves and let curiosity get the better of them. The one we found was not very old; barely a few meters long but nonetheless finding an anaconda in the wild was a thrill of a lifetime for most of us.
After about twenty minutes after all the groups had finished taking turns looking at the now not so slithery creature, it was time to head back to the boat, tired but satisfied. On the way to the lodge for lunch and quick siesta, we found another bunch of pink dolphins. We quickly dove in, this time to wash off the mud and grime and to just cool off.
As mentioned in the previous post, Amazonian adventures can be arranged for in many South American countries including Ecuador, Venezuela, Brazil etc but of what we gathered Bolivia is the most affordable.
Featured image – Anaconda in Venezuela (Vadim Petrakov /Shutterstock.com)
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