THE “WILD COAST”

A map of the North Coast of South America reveals that the Atlantic Ocean lies above Brazil and French Guiana, while the Caribbean Sea is to the north of Suriname, Guyana, & Venezuela. Yet, none of these countries has a real beach on its north, even those bordered by the Caribbean That is very strange considering that Trinidad, Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire and the other nearby islands all boast beautiful and tourist-attracting seashores Those beaches have given a fair degree of economic stability to those island countries because of the tourist industry. The poor Guianas cannot promote tourism in this way and really Venezuela does not have this resource either Why? At least part of the reason lies with those really big rivers I have been describing. Because they all bring so much silt along with their enormous tidal flows into the sea and because of their huge deltas/estuaries, there are no beaches formed by ocean tides depositing relatively stable sand. The coast is instead marshy, unstable, constantly changing shape, choked with vegetation always in a state of flux itself Nothing exists there which would make for an appealing golden sand beach for sunbathing and certainly not for swimming! Therefore, the wild coast is not really a tourist asset to the countries of the north coast Furthermore, even navigation is tricky along that coast because of the shifting deltas and coastal configurations.

Itinerary

Our “Jungle Rivers” expedition was fascinating, entertaining, educational, awe-inspiring, and just plain fun However, a day by day approach in this journal would reveal that on most days we did pretty much the same things: hop on board zodiacs for rides in the early mornings down small tributaries, then in the late afternoons back into the zodiacs for another exploration, and at night do it again so we could experience the jungles at night. Interspersed with these zodiac rides were lectures on the plants, animals, peoples, history, and cultures of Amazonia, delicious meals, a few walks in the riverside jungles, even some flights to spots farther away, like two big falls (Kaieteur in Guyana and Angel in Venezuela) We had a couple of days at sea as well while we traveled from one country’s big river to another’s. But do not get the idea that any of this was boring in its sameness: the creatures, the birds, insects, flowers, trees and peoples we saw prevented any kind of ennui from setting in. Occasionally, we visited fairly good-sized cities and towns and we even had an “up close and personal” look at the infamous Devil’s Island prison complex.

With that preparation, I will offer a typical day on the expedition, visits to a couple of interesting towns, a night exploration by zodiac, impressions of the Amazonian peoples, the Falls trips, Devil’s Island, some observations on culture, a couple of digressions on the flora & fauna, an interesting dinner experience, and the final piece de resistance for the whole trip. When you have read all the sections, I am sure you will agree that this was an amazing trip!