Tour
Brazil – Jaguars and More, 2023
| Starts | Sep 3rd 2023 |
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| Ends | Sep 13th 2023 |
| Leader | Steve Gettle & Nicole Sudduth |
| Price | $8,675 |
| Deposit | $1,000 |
| Participants | 8 (FULL- returning 2024! Email us to be on the pre-announcement list) |
The Pantanal is the best place on earth to photograph Jaguars and we will take you up river via boat to experience them in their natural habitat far away from the large crowds that this place is becoming known for. The pure muscle and raw power of these cats will impress you as you see them hunt, swim, and even interact with each other often just yards from us. We timed this trip for the dry season when wildlife is concentrated along the river. Giant River Otters, Hyacinth macaws, Jabiru storks, jacanas, herons, kingfishers and more will also be in our sights. Our group size is limited to just 6 participants allowing us to be in just one boat.
Logistics
We designed this trip to give you the best, most intimate jaguar experience possible. We work with the premier eco-lodge and conservationist in the area who not only played a key role in conservation of jaguar habitat for the Pantanal but also founded a series of intimate lodges that support the local community. His lodges put us into the best position to enjoy “private” jaguar sightings and a wild array of bird and other wildlife.
The lodges we stay at offer not only comfort but also great access to incredible wildlife. To make the most of this great river network and have the best experiences possible with Jaguars, we stay at two different lodges in the heart of jaguar habitat. One is upriver, away from the crowds of “Jaguarland.” By being upriver, we are often able to spend time alone as the only boat with jaguars as they hunt and rest along the shores of the river. This is so much better than other situations where there can be as many as 30 boats all trying to jockey for position in front of a jaguar. The other is in a “flotel” on another part of the river network with more wildlife and river areas to explore.
In addition to this, because the Pantanal has such diverse wildlife, we also added two different land-based lodges for bird and other mammal photography.
This tour gets you into the best situations and best locations to make this once in a lifetime trip a real winner!
Itinerary
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Travel Day
Saturday, September 2 – Travel Day
Depart for Brazil. Most flights require an overnight flight that flies into one of the main cities (Sao Paulo, Brasilia) and connects to a domestic flight in order to fly into Cuiaba.
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Day 1
Sunday, September 3 – Arrive in Cuiaba, Brazil
Arrive in Cuiaba, Brazil. Transfer to our hotel.
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Days 2 and 3
Monday, September 4 and Tuesday September 5 – First steps into the Pantanal
We will transfer via a closed, air-conditioned vehicle into the Pantanal. We will spend our first two days at a special lodge known for its bird life as well as the possibility for Giant Anteaters and Crab-eating foxes!! This lodge is also known as one of the best places for Hyacynth Macaws! The habitat here is a mix of pasture, wetlands, forest islands and scrub, giving us a wide variety of species to stalk and photograph. Often seen here are Blue-fronted parrots, Southern screamers, Savannah Hawks, Red-legged Seriemas, Snail Kite, Great-Rufous Woodcreeper, Long-tailed Ground dove, Buff-necked Ibis and more.
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Days 4 and 5
Wednesday, September 6 and Thursday, September 7 – Going “Up River” – Jaguars, Giant River Otters, Birds and more!
We will transfer to our lodge located “up river” well away from crowds in the heart of the Pantanal. Our transfer will be our first boat safari ride in search of jaguars and more, so we will be in photography mode.
Each day, we will have both morning and afternoon boat rides to find and photograph jaguars, caiman, capybara, and an array of exotic birds and other wildlife that call the Pantanal home. Giant River otters are often seen in this area and will be another species that we will work to photograph.
After dinner each evening, the local biologist will provide a special natural history program on the wildlife we encountered and will share life history and other information about the jaguars that we encountered during the day.
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Days 6 thru 8
Friday, September 7 through Sunday, September 10 – Jaguars, Giant River Otters, Birds and more!
To have yet another experience in this amazing river network, we will transfer to another lodge – one of the most wonderful “flotels” on the river!
Each day, we will have morning and afternoon boat rides along the river, photographing Jaguars, birds, caiman, capybara and other wildlife that we encounter.
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Day 9
Monday, September 11 – Return downriver
We will have a final boat safari ride this morning as we return to Porto Joffre. We will explore some new areas of the river as we head back to land.
From Porto Joffre, we will transfer via vehicle back to our lodge where we will have the rest of the day to photograph around the lodge, enjoy a photography boat ride in the Paxaim River to photograph kingfishers fishing this river and other species and check the blinds at night for Ocelots and Tapirs.
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Day 10
Tuesday, September 12 – Kingfishers, Jaribu Storks, Parrots, Ocelots and more
Today we will enjoy all that our last lodge, located on the Paxim River, has to offer. We will take a small boat to photograph agame herons, sunbitterns, sungrebes and scores of other beautiful birds and experience as many as five different species of Kingfishers as they dive into the water and hunt for fish. Mammals are also prevalent at this lodge with capybaras, marsh deer, three species of monkeys, Brazilian tapirs and even ocelots coming to the property. We will visit night blinds once again to try to photograph ocelots and tapirs that come close to the lodge.
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Day 11
Wednesday, September 13 – Travel day
Transfer to Cuiaba for flights home. Please make sure your flight out of Cuiaba does not depart before 1:00pm.
Please note you will actually arrive home on September 14th
Booking
Deposit of $1000 due with registration
Payment #2 of $4,675 due February 1, 2023
Final Payment of $3,000 due June 1, 2023
* Pricing based on double occupancy
*** Single supplement (if available) add $1,400
* Please inquire about potential non-photographer spouse/partner discount
Included
– All lodging while in Brazil
– All meals while at the lodges
– All ground transportation
– All boat safaris
– Air travel to and from Cuiaba, Brazil
– First night’s meal in Cuiaba since everyone arrives at different times
– Gratuities
– Travel Insurance
– Any alcoholic beverages