Fulfilling my dream: Collecting in Peru!

[YoungAquaticPhotos]

I have been asked by a few people here to talk about my collecting trip to Peru in August 2005. I know a lot of you have read my article but I figure I would post a bit of it at a time then answer questions. I will start with How it came to happen, Preparing for it and Day 1 the flight there. I will post a day or two after that every day til the end. At the end I will list all the creeks, tributaries & rivers we collected in, along with the fish list.

FULFILLING MY DREAM:
Collecting in Peru
Since I was around 30 years old I had always dreamed of going collecting tropical fish in South America and swore by my 50th birthday I would do this. Well I turn 50 in January of 2006 and on August 13, 2005 I went on the vacation of a lifetime! I always read articles in magazines and online, sit through speakers talking about their collecting trips and watch their slide shows. I was very intrigued by this and really wanted to go.
About 2 years ago Luis Morales came up to me and asked me if I would be interested in going collecting in Peru. He was at the beginning stages of putting the trip together and would email information on further details to me. A few months later he sent an email with all the prices and locations where we would collect. There was a tour on the first week of the trip to the Visit Cuzco, capital of the Inca Empire and principal city of the Spanish colonial era. The second week would be for collecting with another week to follow for collecting in different locations. I chose the first fish collecting week. According to the itinerary, we would board a boat on the Amazon at Iquitos & stop at various creeks, lakes, & streams along the way heading north or travel up the Amazon.
Well for the next 6 months I bugged Luis with emails monthly asking when I could send in my deposit. Finally in January of 2005 it was due. I think I was the first deposit paid. I sent it into Margarita Tours, Inc., and so my quest began to collect Tropical Fish.
Luis had a website with a lot of helpful hints on preparing for the trip. Margarita Tours also had a website with a document center that gives you everything you need to know. Check it out at: http://amazon-ecotours.com/expeditions.htm
Preparing for the Expedition
The first thing I needed to do was to obtain was a passport. Next I went to a travel medicine doctor for shots. It was great how prepared the doctors were. When I made the appointment they asked where I was going. Even though I knew what I needed for my appointment they had a list of required medications printed out from websites. I received shots for yellow fever and tetanus and pills for malaria and typhoid fever. Hepatitis shots are also required but I already had all of them.
Next I started gathering things I needed on my lists. Dip nets are a must item and even though I could have borrowed them, I ordered online from the Sterling Company. Gathering everything took quite a while and I procrastinated until the last couple weeks for a few items such as boots, hats, long pants, shorts, batteries, flashlights, etc. I never realized how much stuff was needed until I had collected it all.
Day 1
Saturday evening
I was driven by my fiancée Marianne (now wife) for the 40 minute ride to Philadelphia airport. I checked my luggage through and my flight departed Philadelphia at 7:30 p.m. for a 2.5 hour flight to Miami. After arriving in Miami I had about an hour 45 minutes until my next flight at 12 midnight. I retrieved my luggage but did not notice that the automated catwalk was upstairs. I ended up walking the whole way carrying my entire luggage. It was about a mile walk! As I walked down the hallway there were signs saying 30 minutes from here, 22 minutes from here, etc. It wasn’t that bad of a walk and I arrived in plenty of time for my midnight flight. The flight from Miami left on time and took 5.5 hours to Lima, Peru. I tried to sleep but my anticipation to collect fish kept me awake most of the flight.

LIMA, PERU Hotel & View of City:

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[YoungAquaticPhotos]

Day 2
Sunday
When the plane arrived around 5:30 a.m. we had to go through Customs. The line was really long and no one spoke English well. When I got to the counter they told me I needed to get another form to fill out. After this I was finally cleared through Customs. I then rushed to make my next flight that was scheduled to leave at 7:30 a.m. When I got up to the counter they told me my flight to Iquitos was delayed and to wait off to the side with a woman while they searched for more info on it. I spoke to her and she told me she was going on a nature sightseeing tour from Iquitos.
The airline representative told us that the flight would be delayed until 1:00pm and that they would put us up in a hotel until 12:30 p.m. At this point I think my heart stopped beating and I wondered how I was going to make the first day of collecting since the boat was leaving at 10:30 a.m. I remembered that I brought the instructions from the website and found a number to call Margarita Tours in Peru. Of course I got a voicemail and left the name of the hotel and when we would arrive in Iquitos.
The hotel was really nice but again I could not sleep. I did however get a shower and freshen up. At 12:30 p.m. a taxi picked us up and brought us back to the airport. When we arrived at the counter again they told us the flight was delayed due to engine trouble but would depart at 4:30 p.m. They gave both the woman and me calling cards, one local and one international. They also gave us vouchers for the food court in the airport. We found an internet café where, for about 2 bucks an hour, we could send emails and surf the web. Also in the café there were phones where we could use the calling cards. I used the local card and called Margarita Tours and again got the voicemail. I told them our next tentative arrival time. Then I used the international card to call my fiancée back home in Pennsylvania. I expressed my nervousness to her in not knowing what to do if they weren’t there to meet me when my flight arrived in Iquitos.
Time went pretty quickly and our flight finally took off at 4:30 p.m. We arrived at 6:15 p.m. It was kind of weird getting off the plane and walking onto the tarmac. When I went inside to get my luggage I noticed a guy with a sign with my name on it. Whew! I was relieved to see him! When we walked outside there was Devon (Owner of Margarita) & his driver. We loaded my luggage onto the VW bus and off we went through town.
The road was paved but covered with dust. Everyone drove very fast and pedestrians had no right of way. There were lots of small cars, motorcycles and 3 wheeled tricycles that were used as taxis. We passed many shacks, huts, tiny stores, & houses along the way. There were several trinket shops located in the center of the city. We stopped off at Devon’s apartment so he could run in and pick up a photo tank that he borrowed. He told me it was another few minutes ride to the water where we would get on a speed boat and head up river to catch up with the tour boat.
I was amazed at how far the tour boat had already traveled. Devon told me it would take us 1.5 hours to catch up. I loaded myself and the luggage into a 25’ long and about 7’ wide speed boat equipped a 145 hp engine. Finally here! I was on the Amazon in pitch black darkness with only the moon for light. Occasionally the driver’s son would shine a spot light onto the water so we could avoid debris.
We arrived at the tour boat at 8:30 p.m.! I was greeted by John Luckshire, Jaap-Jan de Greef & son Willem, Marilyn Weitzman, Claudia Dickinson, Scott Jacobson, Dr. David Schleser, Warren van Varick, Luis Morales, along with 5 crew members. The boat was 75’ long and 20’ wide. It had upper and lower decks. There was a canopy covering the seating area and it had a Captains bunk. The lower level had 2 bathrooms with showers, a kitchen, bunk area and a dining room. I was told the bunk under John Luckshire’s bed was open and that I could have it. I unpacked and was called into the galley where they held dinner for Devon and me. My first meal was catfish (Delrado steaks) with rice and it was really tasty. After dinner I went up to the deck to relax and drank an ice cold beer. I was told that I missed a day of collecting but I could take anything I wanted from the community tank. I fished out a few apisto’s and Loricaria and went for another beer. It was great to sit out on the deck under the moonlight. It was a cool night and there were very few mosquitoes. Once I sprayed OFF on my arms and legs even they went away. So, there I was finally at my destination, throwing back a few beers and relaxing on the Amazon.

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