Finally: the one and only Amazon Jungle!

Oi folks!

Still in Brazil, we were not far from the city of Manaus, in the Amazon lowlands. We’d just finished exploring the anabranches of the Rio Negro, so now it was time for our next course of amazing Amazonia – the Amazon Jungle!…

There’s so much of it here that nobody really knows how much remains unexplored. Sure, they’re cutting it down mercilessly, but looking at a map, you get the sense the loggers will run out of steam before the jungle does. And out here in the middle of nowhere there are still tribes living without any contact with the outside world. Yep, really. They’re called uncontacted peoples. The internet says there are several such groups in the Amazon, but precisely how many is hard to work out. Maybe nobody really knows. Anyway, we were heading into perfectly civilized – even fairly touristy – parts of the Amazon jungle:

It’s hot and humid (who knew?!), but at least you’re almost always in the shade – with a few exceptions:

But first – a visit to a local tribe. Here’s the chief:

He spoke to us in a local language while our guide translated everything – about traditions, customs, and so on. I’m always a little skeptical of translations like that, so I didn’t try too hard to commit any of it to memory. Then came some seriously loud blasts from this horn! ->

And the locals burst into dance! ->

Nearby sat some local women. No, she’s not staring at her phone! We didn’t spot any phones there at all (maybe no signal?:). Anyway, she’s just looking at her hands – no phone in sight :)

And around we go!

Then the girls joined in, pulling tourists onto the dancefloor.

Let’s be honest – this isn’t really a traditional indigenous community anymore; it’s pure tourism. The more a tourist dances, the more freely they part with their money!

I, meanwhile, managed to talk the chief out of his own ceremonial rattle – for free. It now has a permanent spot in my office :)

A tourist attraction through and through! A group photo is absolutely non-negotiable. Still, it was fun!

The tribe’s living quarters:

And since this is Brazil, naturally there’s a soccer field!

Next up – a jungle walk, led by someone who was, if the introductions were to be believed, the son of one of the tribe’s respected elders:

Alright, off we go! …

The excursion was fantastic! We learned so much that… I’ve already forgotten nearly all of it :)

Just kidding. For example, they showed us how locals climb trees – straight, smooth-trunked trees at that. First, you take a local shrub, strip off the branches, and twist them into a rope. Then wrap it around your feet. And shimmy up the tree!

Kind of like the climbing spurs electricians use – only made from plants instead of metal.

We were also told: what to rub on yourself before a hunt so animals can’t catch your scent; which vines you can drink from if you’re thirsty; how to track a jaguar if you want to hunt one; and plenty more extremely useful information should we ever want to move here!

Shooting a bow is harder than it looks – it definitely takes practice.

Especially if from a hiding spot:

They also showed us how to find special moss that burns slowly and keeps insects at bay (though he lit it with a perfectly ordinary lighter):

We were told which plants are safe to touch, and which are best given a wide berth – though if you’re wearing boots, apparently you can walk just about anywhere.

And then – this enormous moth on a tree! Apparently it was a white witch moth – the largest moth species in the world.

Wow. Time flies. Nearly two hours of walking vanished in… no time (that doesn’t make sense does it:). That was a wrap for our jungle excursion; time to he cracking on…

Next up – a hike to the rock formations of Grutas do Madadá (here). Quick spoiler: it was absolutely mind-blowing. A total masterpiece!

Now, the Amazon lowlands are famous not only for the world’s mightiest rivers, but also for their vast tropical jungles – many of them practically impassable. Actually, scratch that: most of them are completely impassable. On our way to Grutas do Madadá we were walking along well-established tourist trails, and didn’t have the slightest temptation to wander off the beaten path (like you might in Russia to look for mushrooms:). Away from the path it’s an impenetrable tangle of vines, trees, shrubs, and every shade of greenery imaginable. But more on that in a bit…

Beyond the town of Novo Airão there are no roads at all – people, cargo, everything moves by water. So we hopped onto motorboats and headed upstream along the Rio Negro…

After about 50 kilometers, we docked:

One thing that caught me off guard was this sign nailed absurdly high up. But then I remembered that the river level here can change by 10–15 meters. During high water, that sign could easily end up underwater :) Anyway – what does it say?

Pedra do Sanduíche = Sandwich Rock! And sure enough, here it is! ->

But that was only the start of the hike – now into the jungle. We strapped on protective gaiters (against snakes!), just in case, and headed off. As mentioned above in my spoiler, the trail winds through terrain that’s not exactly made for a leisurely stroll. Wandering off the path? Not a chance. It’s wall-to-wall tropical Brazilian flora – not always the friendly kind – plus fauna that’s equally unforgiving…

These are the Grutas do Madadá we were told about. And they’re not just some random holes in rocks or vague half-caves – they’re enormous formations that technically aren’t grottos at all; but they are wonderfully spectacular…

Indifferent Mother Nature first laid down marine sediment here – fairly dense sandstone – and then set about washing it away with rivers that carved through the area during seasonal flooding. The result: labyrinths of rocky formations you could wander around for days.

We’d set out in bright sunshine, but while we were inspecting all the crazy rock formations the rain rolled in.

There are several such formations here – we never made it to the farthest one as the round trip added up to way too many kilometers. But the nearer ones were more than impressive enough! These are the second and third grottoes:

Nature really went to town here. Even the rocks are bent out of shape.

The rain stopped, and out came the sun – though it only occasionally broke through the jungle canopy:

One more thing worth mentioning. If you wander through the jungle on your own, you’ll likely never notice what you’ve stepped on or what just bit you. But with a local guide, before such hazards to your life, they always point things out and explain what’s dangerous, what’s useful, and what’s completely pointless – like colonies of tropical termites that live not in dry savannas, but in the permanently damp Amazon rainforest:

A special vine used to make curare poison. The poison-making process itself is pretty involved. The ingredients – bark, roots, young shoots – are boiled for a while, then various additional components are added, and the mixture’s left to settle. And there you have it. Smear it on a dart, whoosh – and the target goes down. Even from the tiniest wound!

Our guide knew absolutely everything – including which burrow his pet tarantula lived in :) Here it is, coaxed out with a simple grass “teaser.” Arachnophobes, look away now!…

Best not to touch the Amazon frogs, either. (I don’t think anyone would willingly:) ->

Who knows how toxic the skin of this little creature might be?

These cute furry guys are also best admired from a distance:

We were also introduced to a particularly nasty ant found in these parts – scientifically known as Dinoponera gigantea, though locally it goes by something that sounded like nulse. Here’s one (rather well-camouflaged) ->

Local tribes use these ants in initiation ceremonies for young men. They first put the colony to sleep with some jungle concoction (how ever did they learn how to make that?!), and pack the drugged ants into what amounts to a glove, which the initiate has to wear. The warmth wakes the ants up, and they immediately start biting. If the young man can tough out the pain, he’s considered a man. If not – he gets another shot at it. (The possible end-scenarios we didn’t find out.) // Thank goodness we weren’t born into an Amazonian tribe!

And then there are perfectly harmless (try telling that to most anyone!) little bats tucked into the deepest corners of the rock labyrinths:

And that was about it – our second Amazon jungle excursion was complete. Very impressive (though, I kinda was expecting that!); highly recommended!

Next – back onto the river: where everything feels wide open, safe and peaceful again. Aaaaaah…

Homes of the locals:

When we asked what kind of animals made it necessary to put protective cages around the satellite dishes…

… The answer was priceless: “The children!” :)

That’s all for now, folks. But more South American adventures coming up!…

The best hi res photos from LatAm-2026 are here.