Marañon Dec4 trip itinerary

----ITINERARY MARAÑON DEC4 LAUNCH------
 

FAST HIGH-WATER ITINERARY GC AMAZON Dec4 TRIP 

START OF TRIP: Dec4
 The transport will be a private bus for us and a truck for the gear. It's ~2.5 hr to Chavin de Huantar, where we may stop ~1 hr to visit the pre-Incan ruins there.  It's then another ~4 hr further to the put-in, located 6 km downstream of Puente Copuma at a large gravel bar which is also a good place to camp.  We'll arrive late in the afternoon, unload everything, and start inflating rafts and rigging. There are no-see-um bugs at this spot and on much of the trip, so put on some repellent when you arrive and/or cover up!  We will camp at the put-in spot and finish rigging in the morning. To get an idea of this and other access points, see the OVERVIEW MAP. 


PASSENGER EXCHANGES: Dec11, Dec16
There are possible access points at Puente Jitaraxan, Chagual, Balsas and Puerto Malleta. Folks can depart or join the expedition at these points. Chagual can be accessed by an overnight bus from Trujillo (12 hr) or a flight (1 hr ATSA). Balsas can be accessed via Cajamarca, by a ~3 hr drive to Celendin and then a 1.7 hr drive to the river at Balsas. Several of us will be occupied in the food resupply shopping and the passenger exchange the day of the passenger exchange.  Celendín has no specific tourist attractions, but there are a bunch of things to see/do in and around Cajamarca, such as the hot springs at Baños del Inca and various Incan ruins.

Those of you departing from the trip at Balsas/Cajamarca will want to book your flights out of Cajamarca the afternoon of the exchange day or thereafter.  There are flights to Lima on LAN (1 hr; $178) and on LCPeru (1 hr; $120).  A much more economical option is to take a bus back (~14 hr; $20-50). 

Your contribution does not cover the ride, hotel or food on the midway excursion up to Celendín/Cajamarca (or Chachapoyas). The ride up and back costs ~70NS (~$30).  In Celendin, we generally stay in the Hotel Villa Madrid, which is ~70NS($25)/night for a double with wifi and hot water. There will be 2 nights to spend up there if you wish (but you always can hang at the river and camp).  If you're not involved in the food shopping, you might consider going on a little day-trip to some hot springs near Celendín or coming out to Cajamarca with the food shoppers (though it's a 3 hr drive each way to Cajamarca). Some of you might prefer to go up to Chachapoyas - if you prefer this option, let me know. 


END OF TRIP: Dec21
The current plan is to end the trip at Puerto Malleta on Dec21. Please read the detailed discussion of the end of the trip presented on another webpage: TripEnd. This includes the take-out plan, post-trip options to consider, transport from the ending rendezvous city of Bagua Chica, and the considerations about heading further downriver into the Jungle Pongos. On this Dec4 trip, we will plan to end at Puerto Malleta, where we will derig and contract a ride back to Bagua (1.5 hr) for us and our gear. In Bagua the gear will be left at Transportes Linea to be cleaned, dried, and organized the following day, and then sent back to Trujillo or Huaraz. SierraRios service ends in Bagua. Each person must arrange their own hotel and travel from there (see TripEnd for options). This is because folks usually go different ways at the end of the trip.