Guest post by Chris Kilham, medicine hunter

Ricardo, Chris, Marselo

Back when Ricardo Amaringo was apprentice to maestro ayahuasca shaman Guillermo Arevalo at Espiritu de Anaconda, I used to jokingly refer to Ricardo as “the hardest working man in the shaman business.” I could set my watch to his 5:45 a.m. preparation of ayahuasca, the thwhank, thwhank, thwhank of the metal pipe he used to pound the tough, fibrous pieces of caapi vine. Not everybody was comparably enchanted by Ricardo’s work ethic and the ringing of the pipe at sunrise. Some just wanted sleep after a ceremony that lasted until an hour or so past midnight. But there Ricardo would be, making ayahuasca, putting his back into the work, making sure that the brew was made right. He not only got to work early, but he made potent brew that assured a strong journey. At night, he would sing spellbinding icaros, a spirit man cooing and keening and calling the spirits, moving about the malocca from one spot to the next, driving energy, casting a spell. Over a period of several years, I sat in at least twenty-five ceremonies with Ricardo, and was always enchanted by his icaros, his sacred healing songs.

Over a year ago, Ricardo departed from his many years of work with Guillermo, to start his own shamanic healing center south of Iquitos, Nihue Rao. Bill Grimes of Dawn on the Amazon Tours in Iquitos commented wryly “I wish they’d name these places something you can pronounce and remember.” Be that as it may, Nihue Rao  (pron:  nee-hwee-rao), which is the name of a plant whose spirit purportedly connects the user to maestro shamans who have passed on to the spirit world, is the name of Ricardo’s center, which he founded with US doctor Joe Tafur MD, and Canadian visionary artist Cvita Mamic.

“There’s no structure or formal way of an apprentice leaving the maestro,” explained gringo ayahuasca shaman Hamilton Souther, founder of Blue Morpho. “So usually there’s chaos, and it can get pretty weird.” Sitting at the Amazon Bistro restaurant in Iquitos, Hamilton, his wife Wendy and my friends Craig, Sergio and Jim and I discussed Ricardo’s transition from apprentice to maestro in his own right, with his own center. “It’s hard,” says Hamilton. “There is a lot of envy and in-fighting among shamans, so when someone leaves and sets out on their own, there can be a lot of turbulence.”

Turbulence indeed. Ricardo’s departure from Guillermo’s tutelage brought some rough passage for several months, especially when some of the long-time staff people from Espiritu de Anaconda migrated to Nihue Rao to work with Ricardo. That stung. But apparently the roughest period is over, and things have smoothed out appreciably. You would hope so. After all, shouldn’t all that down-home ayahuasca shamanism engender positivity?

To get to Nihue Rao, you head down the Nauta Road (isn’t every shamanic center in the Iquitos area down the Nauta Road?) and turn onto the road to Zungara Cocha. My friends and I would have banged and jolted along for the entire rutted trip in our moto’s, but the massive flooding that has submerged much of Iquitos recently also made the road to Zungara Cocha disappear as if by magic, so we transferred to a small boat, headed a while up the Rio Nanay, and then hiked the last half mile through mud, across a couple of streams, and through fields, to Nihue Rao. Our journey had the feel of a real pilgrimage, a somewhat tougher approach resulting in emergence onto the tidy property of a shamanic center that, to put it mildly, is rocking.

Our happy quartet consisted of middle-aged guys who had previously drunk ayahuasca, except for Jim. This was his first time, and I figured that Nihue Rao would be a great place for him to get booted out into the mysterum tremendum. Correct. Each of us were there for different reasons. In my case, I wanted to dive deeper into the pool of ayahuasca shamanism. As I have participated in ceremonies over the years, I have wondered- where does this road go? Ricardo had been an important part of my first ceremony over five years ago, and the continuity felt right to me. Craig, Sergio and Jim were there to journey, and to tackle health issues. We all had our purposes.

At Nihue Rao, ceremonies are conducted typically three nights weekly, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. When we ran into Joe and Cvita, they informed us that Ricardo would do an additional “private” ceremony for us, so for our week stay we would get in four ceremonies. The new and very lovely Nihue Rao shamanic center looks a lot like Espiritu de Anaconda did during its most healthy times. The centerpiece is the malocca, an exquisitely built , high-roofed ceremonial space with a complex interior beam structure and a friendly, inviting feel. Ricardo is Shipibo, and the malocca reflects the classic Shipibo design for a ceremonial house used for ayahuasca journeying.

To add to the overall juice of the place, Ricardo is not the only practicing shaman at Nihue Rao. He is joined by maestro ayahuasceros Marselo and Julian, a triumvirate I rightly assumed would make a potent combination once the night’s festivities got going. Correct.

After a lunch of rice, river fish and plantains, we hung out, got in hammock time, and chatted with others at Nihue Rao until ceremony at 8:00 p.m. Including the shamans, we had about fifteen people, all on mats, all ready to journey into the spirit world. My friends and I sat together, side by side on our mats, enthused about what was to come.

I have never heard anybody remark, even once, at the delicious taste of ayahuasca. Often first-timers will say “That’s not so bad,” but that sentiment usually departs after a few nights of drinking. Ayahuasca is a lot like wheat grass juice. Every time it passes your lips, it gets a bit worse. The ayahuasca, poured by Marselo, was not delicious. It made the skin on my neck crawl. I wanted to vomit it out on the spot. Not delicious indeed, but fuerte’, strong.

In the classic Shipibo ceremonies, everybody sits around in the dark once the ayahuasca has been drunk. Then about forty-five minutes later, just as the air is beginning to sparkle, the shamans begin to sing. Ricardo, Marselo and Julian know how to get the evening going, open up the portals to the spirit landscape, and drive the energy of the room. Each of them sang separate icaros, weaving together their songs in a way that turned the inside of the malocca into a vast territory of visions, spirits, the medicine teachings pouring into us all until we were as full as we could get.

Every evening, the night was punctuated with the spasmodic eruptions of la purga, the purge, as participants not only vomited up what little ayahuasca they had swallowed, but also hurled up fears, grief, toxic feelings, poisons from deep in the body, nasty phlegm contaminated with bad energy. In operatic fashion, the barfing sounded at times like mortal cries induced by torture. At other times, it had a sadness to it, as heads went into plastic buckets and the release of crud was muffled. Since there was also plenty of posterior purging taking place, a steady stream of wobbly ayahuasca pilgrims shuttled back and forth to the conveniently located – and clean- toilets outside near the malocca.

But purging is the least of what took place at Nihue Rao. If most shamans are pilots, these guys are astronauts, hurtling through space like Silver Surfer, finessing their way out through the Milky Way and beyond, banking sharply against black holes, and shooting back to Earth again. They are all medicine, these three, singing the full force of the ayahuasca into the ceremony, driving dark energy to its infinite end, and blasting open the channels within all of us.

On the third night of ceremony, I had one of those radiant, extraordinary nights, when all the work, all the previous years of the medicine, came together in a spectacle of spirit and light. Sitting on my mat, my chest blew open with a gigantic gaping hole, and a tractor beam of pure, clear love blasting from the center, perfusing everybody and everything. The icaros from the shamans made my energy as straight as a nail. The radiance cleansed me to every corner of my being. Busy psychedelic snakes ate up every last crumb of dark energy inside me. At the beginning of the ceremony, I had asked the ayahuasca to fill me with the medicine teachings. Later on as I lay suffused with radiant love, as I felt an infinite and perfect compassion for all beings, the ayahuasca said to me “This is the highest of all the medicine teachings.” Listen well, grasshopper.

When it comes to the medicine at Nihue Rao, descriptions convey only a dim sense of the true grandeur of the work. Just as the map is not the territory, so too any tale only hints at what is taking place out there at night, as the shamans light up the malocca and everybody goes for a ride. The sheer saturation of spirit there reminds me of swimming in the ocean, in a place where the water is thousands of feet deep. But in this case, the water is luminous, an ocean of unbearably beautiful radiance. That ayahuasca has leapt over its previous cultural boundaries is a matter of curious fact. That the medicine has embraced many hundreds of thousands of non-natives is testimony to its profound healing and integrating power. We apparently need this now. And at Nihue Rao, down the rutted road past Zungara Cocha, the canny shamans Ricardo, Marselo and Julian, are fulfilling the true mission of ayahuasca shamanism, saturating those who journey with the profound power of La Medicina.

For a deep dip into the pool at Nihue Rao, visit www.nihuerao.com

Chris Kilham is a medicine hunter, author and TV commentator. He is the FOX News Medicine Hunter, and is the founder of Ayahuasca Test Pilots, a group dedicated to safe and healthy journeying with ayahuasca. He lives in western Massachusetts with his wife Zoe and their dog Boo. Check out Chris’s fascinating web site www.medicinehunter.com

Bill Grimes publishes the Captain’s Blog for you.

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XIV Great River Amazon Raft Race 2012 Information

The most prize money ever

Prize money totaling S/. 52,000 nuevos soles = $19,600+ US dollars

Foreign Teams
Men Category:

1°  Place  S/. 6,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $2,250+ US dollars
2°  Place  S/. 4,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,500+ US dollars

Women category:
1°  Place  S/. 5,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,800+ US dollars
2°  Place  S/. 3,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,130+ US dollars

Mixed category:
1°  Lugar  S/. 5,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,800+ US dollars
2°  Lugar  S/. 3,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,130+ US dollars

National Teams
Men Category:
1°  Place  S/. 6,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $2,250+ US dollars
2°  Place  S/. 4,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,500+ US dollars

Women category:
1°  Place  S/. 5,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,800+ US dollars
2°  Place  S/. 3,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,130+ US dollars

Mixed category:
1°  Lugar  S/. 5,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,800+ US dollars
2°  Lugar  S/. 3,000.00 nuevos soles  =  $1,130+ US dollars

Schedule

20 Sept 2012

08:00 a.m.    All competitors leave by bus from 28 de Julio square in Iquitos to Nauta.
10:30 a.m.     Civic reception in the Manuel Pacaya Square in Nauta.
12:00 m.        Lunch.
01:30 p.m.    The teams across the river by boat to Pescadores Island (Fisherman’s Island)
02:00 p.m.    Each captain of every team receive their materials for the raft constructions
02:45 p.m.    Each team makes the construction of their rafts, with local help if required.
06:00 p.m.   Dinner – music and dancing on the beach.

All participants will spend the night in tents.

21 Sept 2012
06:30 a.m.    Breakfast.
07:30 a.m.    Raft race start for first leg to Pescadores island – Nueva Esperanza Village
58 kilometres away (36 miles), five hours approximately.
01:30 p.m.    Lunch (according the arrival of the participants)
06:00 p.m.   Dinner.
07:30 p.m.    Welcome to participants.

All participants will spend the night in tents or in another location in the village.

22 Sept 2012
06:00 a.m.   Breakfast
07:30 a.m.    Raft race continue for second leg from Nueva Esperanza village – Tamshiyacu.
66 kilometres away (41 milles), six hours approximately.
01:30 p.m.    Lunch
06:00 p.m.   Dinner
08:00 p.m.   Welcome to participants

All participants will sleep on mattresses at schools in the city of Tamshiyacu.

23 Sept 2012
06:00 a.m.     Breakfast
07:30 a.m.     Raft race finish for the last leg to Caza y Pesca Club (Fishing Club)
01:30 p.m.     Lunch.
03:30 p.m.     Ceremony and Prize Giving.

End of Program

Please, read carefully the information and  general rules…

Raft Rules

All other relevant information and possible changes will be announced on official web

• Maximum 4 participants for a team.

• Substitution is allowed but with a penalty of two hours per substitution. Each team is entitled to a maximum of three substitutes.

• Rafts will be constructed by each team with a minimum of 8 balsawood logs and not less than 5 meters in length.

• Only the first meter and the last meter of the logs can be carved in the points.

• Only single-bladed paddle (not the doubles) may be used; no oars, no motors, no sails, no towing (paddles will be provided or you can use professional paddles)

• Life jackets must be worn at all times while on the raft.

• Teams must not interfere with or impede the progress of other teams.

• Alcoholic drinks or toxic substances are not allowed on board rafts.

• Every raft that is more than 5 km to reach the goal and past 5 in the afternoon will be towed to the finish line, with a penalty of 2 hours. If any team refuses to be towed, they will not be allowed to compete the following day

• Each team will be assigned a serial number which must be displayed on the raft at all times.

• Each participant must sign a document of contract risk prior to participating in the race.

• The judges’ decision is final.

• Foreign teams may receive assistance from the inhabitants to construct their rafts if necessary.

Please let us know if you have any medical concerns or restrictions in the diet.

Items Needed on  Raft

• Raincoats/ponchos

• Long trousers

• Torch

• Foam rubber for seats

• wide-brimmed hat

• Long-sleeved shirt (s)

• Gardening gloves or similar

• First Aid Kit

• Insect  repellent

• Machete

• Snacks

The above items can be purchased in Iquitos. Life jackets are provided but you can use your own if you prefer.

Entry Fee

• $600 per team up to 31st May

• $700 per team up to 07th September

• $800 per team up to the day before the race

To Join

contact, Marjorie Sifuentes Blanch
Communicationes – Raft Race
DIRCETURA – Region of Loreto
965692480    RPM #965692480

Email; amazonriverraftrace2012@regionloreto.gob.pe

The Entry Fee includes

• Transport to Nauta by bus.

• 8 balsawood logs and other construction materials.

• Life jackets, paddles, treated drinking water.

• Meals according itinerary:

• 04 Lunches

• 03 Breakfasts

• 03 Dinners

• Mattresses and tents provided for the Thursday 20 – Saturday 22 September.

Organizer reserves the right to change schedule of the race for reasons of force majeure or for the sake of an improvement to the event. All other relevant information and possible changes will be announced on official web

XIV Carrera Internacional de Balsas por el Río Amazonas 2012

Jueves 20 de Setiembre

8.00  a.m.  Los participantes partirán de la Plaza 28 de Julio en bus de Iquitos a la Ciudad de
Nauta.
10:30 a.m. Recepción a los participantes en la Plaza Manuel Pacaya de la ciudad de Nauta.
12:00 m.    Almuerzo.
01:30 p.m. Los competidores cruzan el río en transporte fluvial a la Playa – Isla Pescadores.
02:00 p.m. Cada capitán de equipo recepcionará sus materiales para la construcción de sus
embarcaciones (balsas).
02:45 p.m. Cada equipo construye su balsa, si fuese necesario puede contar con la ayuda local.
06:00 p.m. Cena – música y baile en la playa.
Se pernoctará en la playa en tiendas de campaña.

Viernes 21 de Setiembre Primera Etapa: Isla Pescadores – Comunidad de Nueva Esperanza

6:30 a.m. Desayuno
7:30 am: Primera partida de la carrera – distancia 58 kilómetros (36 millas), tiempo promedio
de 5 horas.
1:30 p.m. Almuerzo
6:00 p.m. Cena
7:30 p.m. Ceremonia de Bienvenida.

Se pernoctará en la comunidad de Nueva esperanza en tiendas de campaña y local comunal.

Sábado 22 de Setiembre Segunda Etapa: Comunidad de Nueva Esperanza – Tamshiyacu.

6:00 am: Desayuno.
7:30 am: Segunda Partida de la carrera – distancia 66 kilómetros (41 millas), tiempo promedio
de 6 horas.
1:30 p.m. Almuerzo
6:00 pm: Cena
8:00 pm: Ceremonia de Bienvenida

Se pernoctará en las escuelas de la ciudad de Tamshiyacu – en colchonetas.

Domingo 23 de Setiembre Última Etapa: Tamshiyacu – Club Caza y Pesca.

6:00 am: Desayuno
7:30 am: Ultima partida de la carrera – 66 kilómetros (41 millas) tiempo promedio de 6 horas.
1:30 p.m. Almuerzo
3:30 p.m. Ceremonia  y entrega premios.

Fin del Programa

Bases de la Carrera de Balsas

Por favor, lea cuidadosamente la información y normas generales a continuación:

• Cada equipo debe consistir de 4 personas.

• La sustitución es permitida, pero con una penalización de tiempo de 2 horas a la sustitución.

• Las balsas se construirán por cada equipo * con un mínimo de 8  maderas de balsa (topas) no menos de 5 metros de longitud.

• Sólo el primer metro y el último de las topas pueden ser grabados en los puntos.

• Sólo paletas (sin palas de doble hoja), sin remos, sin motor, sin velas, sin remolque.

• Los chalecos salvavidas se deben usar en todo momento, durante la navegación.

• Los equipos no deben interferir o impedir el progreso de otros equipos.

• No está permitido bebidas alcohólicas ni sustancias tóxicas.

• Pasada las 5 p.m. toda balsa será remolcado a la línea de meta, con una penalización de tiempo de 2 horas. Cualquier equipo al rechazar el remolque, no se le permitirá competir al día siguiente.

• A cada equipo se le asignará un número de serie que se debe mostrar en la balsa en todo momento.

• Cada participante deberá firmar un documento de contrato de riesgo antes que se les permita participar en la carrera.

• La decisión del jurado será inapelable.

• * Está permitido que los equipos extranjeros busquen ayuda local para la construcción de las balsas  si fuera  necesario

Por favor, háganos saber si usted tiene alguna preocupación médica o restricciones en la dieta.
Elementos necesarios en la balsa

• Ponchos

• Pantalones largos

• Linterna

• Goma espuma para los asientos de las balsas

• Sombrero de ala ancha

• Camisa (s) manga larga

• Guantes de jardinería o similares

• Botiquín de primeros auxilios

• Repelente de insectos

• Machete

• Snacks

Los elementos arriba mencionados se pueden comprar en la ciudad de Iquitos. Los chalecos salvavidas son proporcionados por el Organizador pero está permitido utilizar los propios.

Costo de la inscripción

• $600 hasta el 31 de Mayo

• $700 hosta el 7 Setiembre (cierre de inscripción)

• $800 Extemporáneo

El precio incluye:

• Transporte en autobús a Nauta.

• Madera balsa (topa) y otros materiales de construcción.

• Chalecos salvavidas, remos, agua mineral diario.

• Alimentación según precisiones itinerario:

• 04 almuerzos

• 03 desayunos

• 03 cenas

• Colchones y tiendas de campaña proporcionadas para el jueves 20, viernes 21  y  sábado 22  de Setiembre.

El organizador se reserva el derecho de modificar la programación de  la  competencia por razones de fuerza mayor o en bien de una mejora al evento. Cualquier información relevante y posibles cambios serán comunicadas con anticipación.

XIV Competencia Internacional de Balsas 2012

Great River Amazon Raft Race 2012

Marjorie Sifuentes Blanch
Communicationes – Raft Race
DIRCETURA – Region of Loreto
965692480    RPM #965692480

amazonriverraftrace2012@regionloreto.gob.pe

Teléfono : +51 065 23 3472 /  065 23 4609,    Dirección : Condamine 173,         Iquitos – Perú
Telephone : +51 065 23 3472 /  065 23 4609,    Address : 173  Condamine  street,         Iquitos – Peru

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A guest post by Frank Perkins

The Iquitos Plaza de Armas in 1980

Iquitos is one of the more out of the way cities of the world and one of the few of its size with absolutely no road access. The only means of reaching it are by Amazon River boat, or by air. By air, it is hardly out of the way at all. It lies on an almost direct path between Lima and Miami. Some scheduled flights land there, offering a chance for a layover, and I seized on this opportunity on a business trip to Lima. The flight passes over miles of impenetrable jungle. Finally a few huts are visible just before the landing. Few outsiders visit Iquitos; when you get there you realize you are in a really isolated area.

I had arrived without a hotel reservation, or without much of an idea of what I was getting into, as my stopover was a last minute idea. I found a helpful cab driver who spoke a little English. He promised to help me locate a room, and we headed for the city. The cab didn’t have a trunk lid, but we loaded my bag anyway and were off. (Apparently there is a rule in Iquitos requiring missing body panels on taxisómy return cab was missing an entire fender.) The second try at a hotel turned up a quite acceptable room near the center of the city, small and not plush, but with the requisite air conditioner.

One thing you notice immediately is that Iquitos is very hot and humid. Once you accept the languid attitude the weather induces, it really isn’t bad, but it is definitely not invigorating. Iquitos was started as a rubber town, and thrived in its day. Now, many of its once-grand buildings are empty or only partially occupied. It is built on a bluff overlooking a huge sweeping curve in the Amazon, a good mile wide here, some 1000 miles from the mouth. Atop this bluff stands a little bar with big open windows overlooking the river and the bustling boat docks. The beer is cold, the atmosphere is relaxed, and the bar has what must be one of the oldest operating juke boxes in the world. I have a delightful photo of the smiling proprietor and the staff, standing in front of a colorful jaguar painted on the back-bar wall.

The Amazon River in front of Iquitos in 1980

The town square of Iquitos is a delight at sunset. It is built in the Spanish style, with a fountain in the center and walks crisscrossing the whole area. Rows of benches are available for the people who turn up to enjoy the relative coolness of the evening. Children play, families stroll, and lovers talk quietly. The low rays of the sun catch the church tower and turn it a beautiful shade of yellow-gold. Over it all the sky is a pale blue, speckled with clouds whose hue changes with the setting sun. Gradually the light fades and eventually you realize that it is dark and that the magic of sunset is over for the day.

Below the faded elegance of the transplanted European city on the bluff lies a completely different world, that of the native quarter on the lowlands by the river. The level of the Amazon River in the area varies by 15 or 20 feet over the course of the year, and the Indians live in the flood plain, in houses perched on stilts. In flood, the area is like a rustic Venice, with boats moored at the doors of the houses. In dry season, as during my visit, the water recedes to a few stagnant canals, and the area reeks of the mud flats and worse. Boats are unloaded over narrow planks laid on the mud, or sometimes by men wading through the soupy mixture. When they have heavy loads, they are guided and supported by helpers as they stagger through the mud. Pigs are unloaded by flinging them into the mud alongside the boat and letting them flounder ashore as best they can.

The port of the village of Belen in 1980

The houses have a curious charm. They are rough and mostly unpainted, but clearly bear a certain pride of ownership. Many have pots of colorful flowers hung on rickety railings; others have faded but attractively painted trim here and there.

Varied activity flows through the area. Children play, chickens scratch busily, and dogs lope along on dog business. On one corner, I watched while a group of men struggled to weigh a trussed and squealing pig on a suspended lever-type scale.
The market areas, on a level slightly above the residential district, have an assortment of fresh vegetables, strange looking fish from the river, and pots of bubbling stews.

I wandered through all this as a camera-toting tourist, trying to be unobtrusive. Of course this was impossible, as I was usually the only Caucasian in sight, but mostly I was granted the happy privilege of being ignored as I watched and photographed. I did not feel threatened, although I was clearly in an area not often frequented by outsiders.

It was incredible to think how quick and easy my physical transition had been from a jet plane plying between two major cities of the world and this place. Just as incredible was the huge distance this transition covered, measured in cultural differences. I suppose this warping of relative distances is one of the major characteristics of the modern world.

A Brief History Of Iquitos In 1980

Guest post by Frank Perkins

Hello, Bill Grimes here, reporting from Iquitos Peru in 2012. Frank emailed me the other day, surprised that the Amazon River was not where he had left it, churning along in front of Iquitos. I emailed him back that “That big muddy river meandered off on another course and let the Itaya River come through in it’s channel, but not before it’s erosion wore off at least two blocks on the waterfront of the city.”

I asked, “Would you consider posting an article in my blog with old photos about the history of Iquitos as you remember it?” This exert is from one of his books. To read more about Frank Perkins travels, click this link to his web site, www.frankperkins.com, and to purchase his ebooks, click this link to Smashwords-About Frank Perkins.

To learn more about the history of Iquitos and the upper Amazon click these links and read on…

The mysterious life and death of Dr. George Mott, in Iquitos, 1927

Follow The Course Of History on the restored Amazon River Boat Calvero, Since 1876

Steamships of the Rubber Boom, Recovering History In The Peruvian Amazon

The Oldest Boat In The Amazon

The Grand Tour, Loreto Peru, October 3rd, 1853

Franciso Orellana At The Confluence Of The Napo And Amazon Rivers

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A Visit with the Elders-Matses

A guest post by Gary Lighthall

Preparing the campfire for the Elders-Matses

To sit around the camp fire with the tribal elders and hear about the time before they came out of the forest was truly an amazing experience.

Several years ago a friend who had traveled with me brought a friend of his to my house for a visit. The young man was from the Matses tribe and said if I was interested he would guide me to his uncle’s village on the upper end of the Galvez River.  Amazon Beaming (Petru Popescu) was the story was sent to me by my friend Mike Lee and it dealt with Loren McIntyre’s adventure with the Matses in 1969.

I sent the young man and my friend into the village to get permission for a visit. Once I had permission, I called my buddy Mike and the trip was on. Now I needed  to get supplies for a jungle walk and a visit in the village. In the army I spent some time in Southeast Asia and assumed this jungle would be similar-hot and humid and with plenty of mosquitoes. I found some excellent hammocks with their own mosquito nets that would serve as our beds as well our tents. With some backpacking gear we were ready for the trip. We took a lancha to Requena where we picked up our Matses guides, bought some food, 10 gallons of gas and began our walk on the trail to the Galvez.

Hiking to the Matses

The walk was up and down the whole way. We crossed over 25 small creeks on 6 and 9 inch diameter logs and 3 rivers on much larger logs. We stopped at most streams and with my water purifier we filled our water bottles and mixed in some electrolytes. We traveled from 6:30 am until 4 pm thereby giving us time to set up camp and cook dinner during daylight. The strength and walking speed of the Matses was incredible as some of the packs were over 40 kilos. Nothing slowed them down. Something to be said for never riding in motorcars or collectivos to get around. Each evening we would build a fire and have dinner. On several occasion we had armadillo (does not taste like chicken) and turtle supplied by the jungle. We also used this time to dry out our clothes as the humidity caused us to sweat profusely. By the 4th day we were more than ready to get to the river. By late in the afternoon we reached the Rio Lobo and found the boat and the small motor waiting for us. We traveled through the afternoon and finally reached the Matses village on the Galvez later in the evening.

It was great to be out of the jungle and not have to put on rubber boots to begin my day. After breakfast we were introduced to the chief. We gave him the medicines he had requested and also some gifts for the village. We brought enough for 2 villages as the other village is only separated from the one we stayed in by a small bridge. As with most remote tribes that I have visited they are slow to trust or warm up to you, although those who had walked in with us did visit us often. Something I had learned was to bring in items to trade with. Once you start trading, the ice is broken. When word got out that the gringos brought items to trade the house got busy.

Filtering water for drinking with a Matses

Several days into our visit the chief of the adjoining village asked for a meeting with both villages and us. The chief who called the meeting explained that Mike and I and our guides should leave and not return. His reasons were that we were uninvited, we were not Matses and we could be oil engineers. This speech went on for 20 minutes more or less and during this spiel I had to interpret for Mike. Towards the end Mike could stand no more and stood up and told the chief that what he had just said was not true and explained our side. Well of course they had no idea what Mike was saying which was lucky for us. I got Mike to sit down and explained that in a minute or two we would have our opportunity. The fellow running the meeting asked me to speak and so I explained that I had sent my friend and a Matses person into their village to get permission and what would I have to do to be invited. I explained what I had been told and that we did as asked and that we had brought in the medicine for both villages, but if we were not welcome that we would pack up and leave. While some discussion was going on the chief of our village stood up and said we were invited and that we did as requested we were welcome in his village. After our chief gave his speech all agreed that we were welcome to stay as long as we wished. As we left the meeting the chief who was mad said he would stop by later for his village’s medicines and gifts. Hooray for gifts!

Gary Lighthall with his friend Mike Lee, on their adventure to the Matses

As we began trading and meeting others the elders would stop by in the afternoons and evenings and tell stories about the days before they came out of the forest or were forced out, as the case may be. One of the more interesting ones was about how one of the fellows grandfather raided a convent near Requena to acquire some new wives and new blood for the tribe. Wow, what a story as it was common to raid other tribes for wives but (I am sure this did not set well with the pope).  Another Matses told about when his father or grandfather would encounter outsiders. If they killed them they would than take their items such as machetes, axes and sometimes pots and pans.

We watched them make their bow and arrows (6-7ft), they did this with great pride. Their arrows are truly a work of art. Mike wanted to get some used bows and arrows for his collection but they explained that they just would make new ones and discard the old ones. We asked did they have any items from their grandparents, the answer was “no” as when they died they would burn the items as it bothered them to see their items when they were gone.

They explained that they now live here in Peru, and no longer in Brazil. This is due to the extreme fighting between the tribes and they were basically driven from their home to Peru to find some peace. They explained that the young men (less than 30 years old) would no longer tattoo their face with the traditional tattoo nor do the young women. I remember one time with the Matis, who also tattoo their face. They wanted to trade one of the tattoos on my arm for them to tattoo my face, but I declined. The women used to wear 6 inch spines in and around their mouth but this is no longer practiced in this village either.

Matses elder with tatoo

One evening we were invited for a night hunt, on this hunt we did get a 7 foot long caiman and they chased a tapir for about an hour but lost him in the jungle. Upon our return they invited us to breakfast the next morning for caiman. Mike and I were up by 6:30 am but the caiman was already devoured.

Mike is always ready to try things that are new and the Frog Poison Ceremony was right up his ally. We found a guy that was qualified to do this. Mike prepared himself by eating a small breakfast, as you need something on your stomach. I saw this ceremony done by the Mayoruna (same tribe, different name) in Brazil some years ago. Mike had said he wanted 4 spots of the poison to feel the affect, so they showed up with the poison from the special frog on a stick. They burned 4 spots on mikes arm and then pulled off the scabs and applied the poison. The Matses use this poison to steady their hand for the bow, more energy to go further into the jungle. Mike turned red, stuck out his tongue and passed out. One of our guides who was standing next to him caught him, then put him into a hammock were he slept for the next 4 hours. Evidently the affect is different on gringos and the only effect was Mike was terribly hungry after having had a great nap.

The Matses also use a small wooden tube to blow a tobacco blend called Nu Nu up the nose but Mike declined this one although he traded for the item they use for this. We continued to trade till we ran out of items and made plans to come back home.

We thanked everyone and decided to take a canoe to Angamos on the Yavari River to catch a plane to Iquitos as we both had decided not to do the walk back and Mike need (needed) to get back to work. We packed the canoe with the bows, arrows, lances, burden baskets and some fishing nets plus some items the chief wanted to sell in Angamos and off we went. Once in Angamos we got out on the second day there and made it back to Iquitos much richer in life experiences and having made some new friends.

Gary Lighthall on his adventure expedition to the Matses

A year later I returned all the photos to the Matses that Mike and I had taken of them during our visit.

A Visit with the Elders-Matses

Guest post by Gary Lighthall

To read more of Gary Lighthall’s adventures click this link to Back To A Simpler Way Of Life, Urarinas.

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I’m madder than hell that bush meat is sold illegally in 90% of the restaurants in Iquitos! Travelers pay me to see wild life. Not to eat it! The Dawn on the Amazon Cafe never has and will never serve jungle animal meat, or any endangered species such as paiche. Please support the restaurants that do not serve bush meat or endangered species.

If you read the menu of the restaurant you are in and there are choices such as caiman, lagarto, alligator, turtle, tortuga, tortoise, turtle eggs, majas, agoute, peccary, wild pig, deer, venado, armadillo, carachupa, capybara, ronsoco, tapir, sachavaca, manatee, vacamarina, anteater, oso hormiguero, or God forbid, monkey or mono, stand right up, scold the owner or at least the waitress and cook so they will tell the owner, walk out, and go to a restaurant that does not serve bush meat.

Don’t let that owner tell you those caiman nuggets are farm raised. That is a lie!

Iquitos has a population of 42o,ooo, with another 100,000 rural population in the province of Loreto and add on another 60,000 tourists each year to feed. Do you think feeding 580,000 people consuming jungle meat is sustainable?

On a similar theme, why do you think the Dawn on the Amazon Cafe does not serve heart of palm? Because one palm tree is destroyed for a few salads. It is obvious 580,000 people eating heart of palm is unsustainable.

Take a stand! Don’t support a restaurant that serves bush meat or heart of palm. You can make a difference.

I know for a fact that the Dawn on the Amazon Cafe, and the Amazon Bistro do not serve jungle animals or heart of palm. They deserve your support.

I’m madder than hell that bush meat and heart of palm are served in restaurants in Iquitos. Do you know of any other restaurants that do not serve bush meat and heart of palm? Let us know in the comments below so we can support them. Thanks.

Dawn on the Amazon Cafe does not serve bush meat or endangered species

Bill Grimes, host of the Dawn on the Amazon Cafe, reporting from Iquitos Peru, a popular place to be.

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