15 March 1998
Amazon River, Iquitos, Peru

9:30 AM
Right now I am sitting in a speed boat on the Amazon River! This is indescribably beautiful. I can distinctly see the different layers of the jungle. The underbrush layers seem to be very clear; most of foliage is in the canopy.

We are passing small villages and houses; they can be seen sporadically along the riverside. The houses are small, hut-like, and raised about 10 feet for possible river flooding. The poverty of the homes is very easy to see.

9:30 PM
We arrived at Yacumama Lodge at 1:15, and began our day with lunch, free time and a tour of the Lodge. At around 5 we went swimming in the Rio Yarapa, with leeches, piranha, and River Dolphins!

After dinner we took a two-hour hike into the jungle which was amazing! There was so much Biodiversity; it was amazing how many species we observed! Octavio, our guide is great, he is funny and knows so much!

9:45 PM
We started the day with a 6 AM bird float. We saw so many birds:

• Black Collared Hawk
• Boat billed Flycatcher
• Black headed Parrot
• Blue Crowned Trogon
• Mealy Parrots
• Greater Ani
• Oropendola
• Hook Billed Kite
• Amazon Kingfisher
• Swallows
• Tanagers
• Aracari (Toucan)
• Parakeets
• Woodpeckers

At around 7:30 we had a discussion about the canopy, and headed to the Yacumama Preservation Canopy Tower. We did some research and exploration, and then returned to the lodge for lunch. Shortly after lunch we went back to the Tower to do “rapid assessments” of each of the Tower’s platforms, and to go on the Zip Line. After dinner we had a presentation from H. Bruce Rinker about Canopy Access.

Thinking about everything I’ve learned about and experienced, I am so grateful for the support of everyone—my Mom, Dad, my friends, and especially Mrs. Marta Nottabaum at the Henriquez Memorial Fund, who made this expedition possible for me.

—Michaela D.