How are we going to help if we don’t speak Spanish?
Within our team we have a mix of skills, although non spanish speakers will have difficulty explaining and talking with Peruvian participants, they can still help by running safety, demonstrating and hauling gear boats. We will have some bi-lingual team members who will help bridge the gap between the whole team.
What Kind of River is it?
The section starts at Chagual, and finishes near el Muyo, over 400km later. It has a big water drop pool feel, consisting of countless Class II & Class III, interspersed with a couple of class IV; a very manageable section. We will take a very slow pace, in order to practice skills and give instruction along the way.
Itinerary:
This will be a very slow pace, we will have a huge amount of time to practice skills & teach basics of whitewater safety. It is very probable that we could finish earlier than planned if we do not deliberately take time to practice. It will be a very flexible itinerary, mostly dependent on what the group decides it wants to do.
| May 20 | Meet in Lima. | ||
| May 21 | Meet in Lima. Take overnight bus to Trujillo (~8pm). | ||
| May 22 | Organise Gear / Stock up on food | Destination km | River Day |
| May 23 | Organise Gear / Stock up on food. Take overnight bus to Chagual. | ||
| May 24 | Arrive in Chagual in morning (Setup, Introductions) | 0 | |
| May 25 | Launch / Basic Whitewater safety | 10 | 1 |
| May 26 | Paddle / More Basics | 50 | 2 |
| May 27 | Paddle / More Basics | 85 | 3 |
| May 28 | Extra Day – Hiking / Practice Skills / Intro to Rowing/Kayaking | 4 | |
| May 29 | Paddle | 110 | 5 |
| May 30 | Samosierra (Larger Rapid, focus on Hydrology, reading rapids & setting up safety) | 150/0 | 6 |
| May 31 | Pick up food at Balsas? / Hike? | 30 | 7 |
| June 1 | Visit Mendan. Camp at Tupen | 45 | 8 |
| June 2 | Hike to Talap? Visit Cacao plantation in Tupen? Stock Up on Fruit & Veg | 55 | 9 |
| June 3 | Extra Day – Hiking / Exploring / Skills practice | 75 | 10 |
| June 4 | Magdalena Rapid, Focus on safety setup | 11 | |
| June 5 | Rest day at Pools / Swimming, hiking, Skills practice | 115 | 12 |
| June 6 | Explore Sandstone areas | 115 | 13 |
| June 7 | Restock fresh foods in Cumba? | 130 | 14 |
| June 8 | Camp just before, or in Jungle section. | 170 | 15 |
| June 9 | Take out at Montenegro. Get all gear back to Bagua Chica. | 30 or 40 | 16 |
| June 10 | Clean, dry & send all gear back to Trujillo | 75 | 17 |
| June 11 | |||
| June 12 | |||
| June 13 |
Arrival in Lima:
Optimally arrive May 20. Ben will be taking the overnight bus on 21st May Lima – Trujillo. If you arrive before 7pm on the 21st of May you can join him. If you are strapped for time it would be possible to arrive May 22.
Lima – Trujillo: 9 hour Bus (Flights available if you’re in a hurry)
Departure:
The earliest you could definitely plan on departing would be evening June 11, after taking the overnight bus straight back Bagua-Lima. However, it would be great to have more help in the packup/cleaning of gear. I also recommend taking an extra few days and exploring Chachapoyas while you are nearby, there are some great ruins & natural sights around that area.
Bagua – Lima: 22h Bus. (Flights available if you’re in a hurry)
Busses:
If you would like to book your bus in advance for LIma-Trujillo, it will be a little cheaper. There are no problems if you just arrive and buy on the day however. There are a lot of busses in Peru. Two options that accept online bookings are:
http://excluciva.busportal.pe/
On River Information, what to pack & Climate:
No need to reinvent the wheel, Rocky has put together a comprehensive information pack. If you need to know something that is not on this page, let me know.
http://sierrarios.org/GuidedTrips/RaftTripInfo_Maranon.html
Boats and Equipment:
If you are interested in bringing a kayak over, it’s quite possible we can pre-arrange a buyer. Some people down here might be interested in buying a new boat (you pay shipping, they pay for the boat and you get to use it for a few weeks on the river). We can try and pre-arrange this. Or, it is probably a lot easier to sell a used boat over here. If you can buy something around the $500 mark, there is a good chance you will get your money back on it down here. My good friend Pedro Peña is starting up the first real kayaking school in Lunahuaná and is looking to buy 4 boats around the $500 mark; also anyother gear that could be donated would be incredibly helpful.
Fill out this google form and I will try facilitate the process. You will need to call me and arrange it in the coming months.
