Droning Onward

My night of reflection has passed, and it is now mid-afternoon of my first day of shaman-incanted energy. I am back in my same spot on the upper deck, once again alone with my thoughts. 

The shamana’s blessing seems to be working so far. This morning we take a second trek through the jungle following another long ride in the skiff. No rain this morning (thanks, Carola!) and the high rubber boots seem unnecessary. No so the long pants and long sleeves required to supplement the frequent DEET applications to fend off the incessant mosquito attacks. 

My fellow travelers remain silent on our outbound journey. The sounds of the vibrant forest can still be heard over the drone of the skiff’s engine. We are told that the number of species of birds seen every hour is exceeded only by the number of species of fish unseen below us. Our skiff plows ahead through thick fields of water lettuce. The tree trunks we pass all show the mark of last season’s high water. A fainter mark stripes the trees another meter higher, evidence of the record flood level seen five years ago.

There is at least another meter left to rise between now and the end of the wet season in April. That is four more feet of water over an expense of millions of square miles of Amazonas, representing a significant fraction of the world’s total non-frozen fresh water. Mind-boggling!

Our jungle walk is not much different from yesterday’s until about an hour in. Now we are climbing into a network of suspended walkways in the upper tree canopy. We space ourselves to allow opportunities to pause and reflect and listen to the incredible sounds—symphonies played by cicadas, parrots, frogs and monkeys.

I am in the middle of the highest bridge, perhaps two hundred feet or more above the jungle floor. I am bathing in sounds. Suddenly I recognize a disconsonant whirr. I know that one!  Then I spot it—a Chinese Phantom 4 hovering above me. A video drone recording my jungle reverie for the marketing company that has joined us on our cruise. Such is life in the twenty-first century jungle.