TAMBOPATA NATIONAL RESERVE
Sandoval Lake 4 days / 3 nights
Type of service: Private or Group Location: Southern Peru, Madre de Dios Department, Puerto Maldonado, Tambopata National Reserve, Activities: Macaw clay-lick, piranhas fishing, Altitude: 400 – 3,600 m.a.s.l. Departure: Every day Minimum of participants: 2 Maximum of participants: 10
The Sandoval Lake is located within the Tambopata National Reserve, 10 km from the city of Puerto Maldonado, downstream right bank of the river Madre de Dios to 30 minutes of navigation and an approximate time to walk up to Maloka Sandoval lodge, to reserve banks Sandoval Lake.
This lake is formed by a bend in the river Madre de Dios and is one of the most beautiful lakes in the Peruvian Amazon, exceptional to see a great variety of wildlife place, has great natural scenic beauty as a great ictiológica surrounded wealth of extensive aguajales the same that is protected by Peruvian law.
Maloka Sandoval Lodge, our hostel allows you to have an exclusive visit to the most beautiful and wildlife-rich of all lakes in Tambopata Sandoval Lake, for which we invite you to travel with us and choose one of our programs.
DETAILED ITINERARY FOR THE TRIP SANDOVAL LAKE
Puerto Maldonado Tour Monkey Island and Sandoval Lake
Sandoval Lake Brazil nut trail – Caiman search night
Sandoval Lake – Palms Clay lick – Flood Plain Forest – Tower.
Sandoval Lake Back to Puerto Maldonado – Airport or Bus station.
Tours Day 1:
Puerto Maldonado Tour Monkey Island and Sandoval Lake
Upon arrival to Puerto Maldonado, at the airport or bus station, you will meet your guide, who will be waiting for you and will transfer you to our office located in downtown, where you will be able to re-pack and to leave the baggage that you won’t need to take to the tour.
Then we will go to the Touristic port (Puerto capitania), from where we will go aboard in a motorized boat, that will take us for 45 minutes downstream until the port Sandoval, and we will enter to the lake Sandoval located inside the Tambopata National Reserve, to arrive to the lake Sandoval we will have to walk 3 Km. (muddy in the wet season) in one hour approximately and we will arrive at a small port, where we will take a rowing canoe, and after half hour of rowing we will arrive at the port of the Maloka Sandoval Lodge, when we will arrive to the lodge we will have a hot welcome with a flavorful typical juice, and after a brief explanation above the lodge you will be lodging in a comfortable room.
After a rest, equipped with a flash light or head light we will take a night walk in the forest to go in search of the night monkey (Musmuqui), frogs, snakes and insects that are active during the night.
Return to the Lodge to has dinner and spend the night.
Tours Day 2:
Sandoval Lake – Brazil nut trail – Caiman search night
Very early on board of a canoe we will go around the lake Sandoval trying to see some of the most important conserved species in the lake, considered as flag species, ones of the endanger animal that lives in small and very territorial family groups: the giant river otters or river wolves (the biggest in the world) that feed and fish around the lake early morning, the giant otther feed up to 4 kilos of fish a day.
We will return to the Lodge for the breakfast, brief rest.
After the necessary resting, we will leave the lodge and we will going to walk in the Terra Firme forest trying to know more about the medicinal plants and diurnal mammals like monkeys, wild cats, peccaries and birds like toucans. Also we will try to know about the ecology of the Brazil nut tree or chestnut tree that is considered like a umbrella species, because helps to protect other flora and fauna species.
Return to the Lodge for the lunch and nap time.
In the afternoon we will leave again the lodge to take a canoe to go around the lake Sandoval lo look for monkeys (cappuccinos, squirrels, red howler), herons, kingfishers, cormorants, shanshos that live and they feed in the forest around the lake, at time that we will go back to the lodge, helped with flash light we will be able to see the reflection of the black caiman eyes that usually hunt at night in the shore of the lake, we will approach them, we will take them photos and we will talk about their natural history.
Return to the Lodge to have dinner and spend the night.
Tours Day 3:
Sandoval Lake – Palms Clay lick – Flood Plain Forest – Tower.
We will get up very early to cross the lake Sandoval and to walk about 20 minutes to visit the Collpa de Palmeras or palms clay lick, this is a special place where different species of macaws (blue and yellow, scarlet, red bellied, chestnut fronted) and parrots(yellow crowned, mealy, white bellied) meet to eat the dead wood of the palms trees that is rich in salts and minerals (calcium, sodium, potassium, aluminum, magnesium and iron.) that is a very important mineral supplement for the digestion of these birds and to counteract the bad effects of the toxins that they ingest feeding on un-ripe fruits.
Return to the Lodge for the breakfast, brief rest.
Then we will get ready to go by canoe again and to cross the lake Sandoval to get the flood plain forest and we will walk, for 2 hours approximately, where we will see big trees older than 200 years old, like the Shihuahuaco (iron tree), Lupuna (kapok tree) and oje (medicinal ficus tree); trees that grow only in this type of forest.
Return to the Lodge for the lunch. Nap time.
In the afternoon we will leave again the lodge to explore the lake by canoe, but this time we will get a tower of 12 meters high that is located between the limit of the touristic area (2 Km.) as a refuge area (1 km), where we will wait for the sun set.
Return to the Lodge for the dinner and spend the night.
Tours Day 4:
Sandoval Lake Back to Puerto Maldonado – Airport
Very early after breakfast we will leave the Tambopata National Reserve taking the same way to entrance, going back to the Sandoval port in the Madre de Dios River, where will be waiting for us our boat to return to Puerto Maldonado, after re-packing your luggage, the guide will take you to the airport.
End of our services.
The tour Includes
A professional naturalist Tour Guide;
Motorboat transportation:
Private vehicle land transportation;
Meals: 3x Breakfast, 3x Lunch, 3x Dinner and drinking water (Please note: vegetarian option upon request for no extra cost!);
Accommodation: 3Nights in lodges;
First aid kit, including a poison extractor, mosquito bite treatment and an antidote for a snake bite;
Radio communications;
Rubber boots
No Included:
Any flight nor airport departure taxes;
Travel insurance;
Vaccination;
Breakfast on the first day and Lunch on the last day;
Drinks;
Entrance fees to the Tambopata Reserve
Tips to local staff.
What you need Bring to Sandoval Lake 4 days:
Mosquito repellent (DEET 35 recommended as a MINIMUM!!),
Original passport,
Small backpack,
Long sleeved cotton shirts (preferably green coloured),
Long cotton trousers,
Cotton long socks (to be put into your trousers),
Comfortable walking shoes,
Sandals or light shoes,
Rain gear (e.g. rain poncho),
Sweater (for the beginning of the tour in Andes and the cloud forest only),
Swimsuits;
Binoculars (we also rent it),
Camera
Plastic bags to be used for clothes and a camera,
A hat as a protection for Sun or rain,
Toiletries,
Small towel,
Toilet paper,
Sun cream,
Sunglasses,
Flashlight (with spare bulb and batteries),
A bottled water (1 litre as a minimum),
Money (Soles) if you want to buy some beverages and souvenirs.
