Dear Friend
We Kindly invite you to spend a week in a unique joint venture with Huaorani communities in Ecuador.
Introduction
The Huaorani people have inhabited the headwaters of the Amazon for millennia and have lived as hunters and gatherers, entirely without contact from outsiders right up until the end of the 1950's.
Indeed, at least one Huaorani clan continues to shun all contact from the outside world. Numbering approximately 1,200 individuals, they continue to maintain a largely traditional lifestyle, living from the rainforest, though missionaries and oil companies have had some influence.
 Huaorani leader, Moi Enomenga, made famous by articles in the New Yorker magazine that told about the Huaorani and their struggle against oil companies and for his appearance as the main character in the book Savages by Joe Kane. We will visit his community, Quehueri'ono, our counterpart in this joint venture. In addition, his struggle to protect Huaorani land from oil companies is showcased in an NBC documentary. If Moi is not taking care of his people struggle he might join us during the tour as our local guide.
Our programme involves the exploration of both primary and secondary rainforest in the company of our local guide and our own bilingual naturalist guides. We stay in tents close to the community. Visitors thus experience and learn about the Huaorani culture and their close relationship with the forest, with the possibility of observing Amazon wildlife in the hikes and different activities, and receive a conservationist interpretation of the ecology and actual situation of the Ecuadorian Amazon rainforest.
In summary, this programme creates a very unique experience which will take you to one of the most ecologically important areas on the planet in the company of a unique rainforest culture.
Making a Difference
As a company committed to the principles of sustainability, we ensure that the community and ONHAE, the Huaorani Federation, receive proper economic benefit from the tourism operation. A fee is paid per visitor to the community and to the Huaorani Federation. The local inhabitants are remunerated for their work in the operation. In addition they are trained in all the different areas related to socially and ecologically responsible tourism.
Your visit will help encourage the Huaorani to support responsible ecotourism as a viable alternative to sustainability rather than surrendering to the destructive appetites of the petroleum industry. Your visit will provide an important income which will reinforce and promote the long term conservation of their cultural identity and their nurturing environment.
2006 Itinerary
Day 1.- Quito-Shell-Quehueri'ono
 Our journey begins at 6 am, one of our top bilingual naturalist guide will pick you up at your hotel in Quito and drive East, through the Avenue of the Volcanoes, then descend along the Quijos and Cosanga river valleys into the Amazon Basin. At the small town of Shell we will have lunch at a local restaurant before boarding a light aircraft for the breathtaking 45 minute flight over the seemingly endless rainforest canopy until the tiny clearing that's Quehueri'ono appears. Here the entire community appears from their homes to greet us. We will overnight in a campsite located near the community.
Day 2.- Quehueri'ono
 Today we will visit the community for a meeting where representatives will officially welcome us and talk about their environment, history and social situation. They will be interested to know of your personal motivations for visiting their territory.
After lunch, we will hike into the hilly terra firma rainforest in the company of our guides, who will show us a range of medicinal plants, arriving back at the camp before sunset.
Day 3.- Quehueri'ono
 A rainforest walk to seek wildlife. While the jaguar certainly lives in the area they are very discrete and elusive. If we are lucky, we may see their footprints along the trail. We will also learn about the Huaorani's practical and spiritual relationship with their rainforest environment.
In the afternoon, we visit community members in their homes to talk and learn about their traditional handicrafts.
Day 4.- Shiripuno river
 Today, after breakfast we leave the camp and begin pure adventure by poling down the Shiripuno river in dugout canoes. The absence of noisy outboard motors allows us to really appreciate the sounds, smells and sights of the rainforest. We will make camp on a beach on the river in the afternoon or in Nenquepare, a small Huaorani community and visit an ox-bow lake. There's a good chance we will spot the unique hoatzin flapping on riverside bushes, or maybe a caiman lurking on the bank.
Day 5.- Shiripuno river-Coca
 Continuing down stream the river our Huaorani guide will continue providing detailed explanations of different related things about their daily life. Eventually the forest opens up as the Via Auca and the oil pipeline is reached. Here we disembark and head overland hotel on the banks of the Rio Napo, a major tributary of the amazon.
The road to Coca was built by Texaco to access the oil fields which today present an enormous threat to the Huaorani's survival. We will have ample opportunities to discuss this and to witness first hand some of the impacts of oil drilling and exploration and the consequent colonization on the rain forest. We believe its important that on the last day you witness first hand the nature threats to the Huaorani and we hope your experience will motivate you to continue to be involved in the struggle for their survival. Dinner and overnight in Coca.
Day 6.- Coca-Quito
 In the morning, after breakfast, we will explore the city of Coca before leaving to Quito by plane.
| Fixed Departures for 2007: |
| August |
16 |
| September |
20 |
| October |
18 |
| November |
15 |
| December |
20 |
In Prices are Included:
•All meals
•All activities
•Travel in small groups minimum 4 and maximum 8 people - customized programs for couples available)
•Local guide
•Bilingual naturalist guide
•Camping gear
•Entrance Fee to the Community
•Entrance Fee ONAHE
•Entrance Fee to the Yasuni National Park
Not Included
•Combined transportation Quito - Shell - Quehueri'ono -Coca - Quito
(US$200 per person)
•Accommodation in Quito
•Transfers from and to Airport
•Tips
•Travel insurance
•International flight airport tax (USD 41.- per person)
Ethics in the community
Be open to different appreciations of what is normal. For example, punctuality is not an Amazon concept.
Be polite and respectful. Use por favor, gracias, buenos días a lot.
Don`t take someone´s photo unless you´ve asked their permission first. Don´t be offended if they refuse.
Do not be ostentatious with wealth and material possessions.
Do not bring strong alcohol or give away cigarettes.
Hang on to any trash you generate like plastics, dead batteries etc. until you get back to Quito.
Do buy locally made handicrafts, this is an important source of income in the community, especially for women, but don`t buy those made from feathers or animal parts. Also there´s no need to haggle, everything tends to be inexpensive by Northern hemisphere standards.
Gifts are welcomed but preferred to be scholarly material for the children given to the guide for its distribution.
As regards safety
The rainforest, whilst full of many wonderful and carnivorous creatures is a safe place when one uses a modicum of common sense.
Follow the instructions of your tour leader and guide.
Wear a strong sunblock and a hat or cap when its sunny.
Wear a rain poncho or similar when it rains.
Wear repellant especially around and after sunset.
Avoid putting your hand where you can´t see it, or leaning on a tree trunk without first looking. There may be thorns, biting ants (the 2 cm long conga is quite painful), or prickly caterpillars.
Be open and enjoy the new sights, smells, sounds and experiences which will present themselves to you.
Additional Information
What to bring
Sleeping bag or blanket, sun block, hat, insect repellent, binoculars, cameras, swimming gear, and towel, Washing is done in the river, so don't forget your biodegradable soap!
About the accommodation
Our program is developed in a camp site with tents, sharing bathroom and kitchen area, located near the community. We do not provide such city comforts as hot water and private showers, we do provide the possibility of being intimate with nature at its most exuberance and seeing life in the rainforest through the eyes of people who have lived there forever.
About the food
We do not add to the pressure on the environment by consuming food that the Huaorani hunt and gather from the forest. The majority of the food for the tourist operation is brought from Quito, including drinking water. Remember hunting activities are not allowed for us.
However, we do purchase locally and seasonally abundant crops such as manioc, banana and papaya.
Degree of difficulty
The rainforest hikes are accessible to anyone with a reasonable level of fitness. During the activities, you will have to carry a day pack with your rain poncho, binoculars and camera equipment.
Important
Itineraries may be modified to suit the interests of our clients, given the proper notice, and also in the case of weather problems.  Book this tour now
If you need any additional information please write us:
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South America 
