With an Extension to Suriname

Guyana isn’t the kind of place likely to pop up in one of the glossier travel mags. Which, along with its booming beauty and warm culture, is a fine reason to go there, if you don’t mind people asking “Now, where exactly is that?” when you get home.

Larger than Idaho, but with fewer people than San Francisco, Guyana has long been a favorite for a certain kind of venturesome traveler (Anthony Trollope, for instance, said long ago that “When I settle out of England, Guyana shall be the land of my adoption”). It’s a country with a fascinating culture (the only nation in South America where English is the national language), a vast rainforest it’s doing its best to keep pristine (Google Guyana ecology, or Guyana conservation for heart-warming details), and Guyana has one of the Western Hemisphere’s (or the world’s, for that matter) richest collections of doing-quite-nicely wildlife (jaguars, giant river otters, capybaras, tapirs, giant anteaters, harpy eagles, 400-pound arapaimas [one of the largest fresh-water fish extant], and many rather large anacondas, to name just a few species). In short: nature in its least-trodden, most healthy and exuberant abundance.

We begin in Georgetown, Guyana’s neatly-sized capital, and the next day fly into the interior for a visit to the mammoth--it’s five times higher than Niagara--Kaieteur waterfall. The lack of touristic infrastructure at the falls reminds us that we’re spectacularly off the glossy path. The falls themselves are a stunning marvel (they are a major character in Werner Herzog’s wonderful documentary The White Diamond, which is quite likely to inspire you to make this trip). Then we’re off to Orinduik Falls, which flow over terraces of solid jasper, and, in the late afternoon, we pull up to the first of two nights at the Karanambu Ranch, where Diane McTurk has famously been caring for orphaned giant river otters for many years. After a nice stint of otter-visiting and four-wheel driving around the bountiful ranch, we head to the savannah in search of giant anteaters, a float down the Rupununi River (a birdwatcher’s bonanza), and an eye-opening meeting with the Amerindian folks of Aranaputa village. The next few days are filled with more villages, floats, game and birding drives, a nice bit of easy hiking in the Pakariama Mountains, and a nice, airy jaunt on a marvelous jungle canopy walkway in the dense Iwokrama Forest.

For such a short trip Discovering Guyana packs in quite a bounteous bit. For a more detailed description may we advise you to call us (or use the Request button, above right) and ask for our detailed and revelatory itinerary. You will definitely be enchanted to learn about this lovely and gorgeous country.

Note that we have many possibilities for customized Guyana experiences (cricket matches, turtle nesting areas, festivals, etc.) and a crossing into Brazil at the new bridge at Lethem, not far from Manaus and a cavalcade of Brazilian delights. Plus our neatly-dovetailed three-day extension to Suriname (similar to Guyana in many ways, but with a distinct and enthralling culture), is also worth serious thought (its capital, Paramaribo, is a World Heritage City, which many of us were unaware of.)

Day 1: fly to Georgetown, overnight • Day 2: fly to Kaieteur Falls, drive to Karanambu Ranch • Day 3: around Karanambu • Day 4: drive to savannah, village visit, overnight at Rock View Lodge • Day 5: village visit, float on Burro Burro River, Rock View Lodge • Day 6: short hike on Panorama Trail in the Pakariama Mountains, optional horsebacking, jungle trekking, etc., Rock View Lodge • Day 7: dawn drive to Iwokrama Forest for magnificent sunrise from atop the Canopy Walkway, afternoon visit to Iwokrama Field Station, overnight in Guest Cabin • Day 8: exploring the Iwokrama, visit to Fair View village’s butterfly farm • Day 9: morning boat trip on Essequibo River to Stanley Lake, fly back to Georgetown for farewell dinner • Day 10 return to USA.

Optional Suriname Extension
Day 10: short flight to beautiful, engaging Paramaribo (where among much else, we’ll see a mosque and a synagogue side-by-side--in the shadow of a Hindu temple!) • Day 11: fly into rainforest to Kayana and the Awarradam Jungle lodge • Day 12: canoe trips, jungle walks, eco-investigations, wildlife viewing at Awarradam • Day 13: full day’s dugout cruise with walks, late afternoon flight to Paramaribo • Day 14: early morning flights home.

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