Peruwhitewater » Class 3

Ocobamba

kurt — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 03:18:26 +0000

The Ocobamba is a major tributary of the Yanatile. It flows from the North of the flanks of Nevado Chicon and joins the Yanatile below Quebrada Honda

Dogs going for swim Ocobamba put-in

To reach the river you can come from the Sacred Valley and town of Calca or from below from Quillabamba. KM markers along the road are measured in distance from Calca.

We ran the river on October 25, 2005. We camped the night ebfore on a beach on river right below Quebrada Honda. We reached the campsite by taking a side road towards Puente Tinchuay (km 146).

To reach the Ocobamba take out and put in continue downstream to village of Quesquento and follow a side road to a new bridge over the Yantile River. this is the takeout of the lower stretch of river.

To reach put in continue upstream until the confluence with Ocobamba and then drive up the Ocobamba valley. We were short on time and put in at town of Toldeo which is at 1000 meters elevation. the 10 km stretch of river we ran to takeout (875 meters) drop 125 meters in 10 km or averaged 12.5 m/km. It was a class 3 run with 5 km on Ocobamba that had around 600 CFS and then 5 km of bigger water boating on Yanatile with some 3000 CFS.

The road continued above Toledo to town of Ocobamba 24 km upstream at 1500 m of elevation. although I did not see this section of river I assume it was good class 4-5 boating with average of 21 m/km or 105 FPM.

Map Quebrada Honda 2445 series J631

Cosñipata

kurt — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 03:11:03 +0000

The Rio Cosñipata is one of the princiapal tributaries of the Alto Madre de Dios River in the Department of Cuzco. It is a high jungle run of incredible beauty with good bird watching.

It is now commercially rafted in an enjoyable 9 km, class 3-4 stretch. Trips start in Cuzco and usually encompass several days of multi-sport activities such as mountain biking, bird watching, and whitewater. If interested in commercial trip contact Pepe Lopez of Apumayou Expediciones of Cuzco http://www.apumayo.com

Trips normally start at or above the town of Patria elevation approximately 650 meters and takeout 9 or more km downstream at Pillcopata elevation 527 meters. 3 Km below town of Patria the river join the Pilcomayo then another 2 km downstream the Rio Queros enters and from this point the river is called Madre de Dios.

One can take out in Pillcopata, but if well planned, a logistically more challenging option is to continue downstream at least two more days to the Manu National park. Here one can visit the park and possibly return by small plane to Cuzco or put all gear in a pecky pecky motorized river boat and begin long trek downstream to Puerto Maldonado.

To reach put in or takeout from Cuzco take main road south towards Sicuani 15 km and turn east on gravel road for 17 km to Huancarani then another 49 km to Paucartambo. From here it is an arduous 25 km climb up to Tres Cruces which at sunrise offers spectacular colors in the sky due to refractions of light coming off the jungle canopy thousands of meters below.

Tumbes

kurt — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 03:09:47 +0000

The Rio Tumbes is an journey through an ecological paradise. Forming the border between Southern Ecuador and Peru’s Northern frontier, the river meanders through two national parks on both sides of the river before plunging through the Canyon Del Tigre.

On many people’s wish list for years -this class2-3 whitewater gem was not run until November 2001. It was at this point that a long running border dispute between the two countries had finally simmered down.

The section is now occasionally commercial rafted and/or kayaked. You can get information and possibly a shuttle from Ursula Behr of Iguana’s trips. She works out of a bar/restaurant on the south side of Mancora along the main road. Their phone, e-mail and web page are found by clicking on the link for Iguana Trips at main page.

The 60 KM stretch is often run in one 6 hour day but a more leisurely trip is suggested to combine with side hikes and good camping.

The best time to run the river is in the rainy season of December-March but the roads to the put can be treachorous and require a good four wheel drive and an aggressive driver.

To reach the put-in take the road from Bocapan to cabo Inca

The takeout is at Playa Rica which can can be reached on the road from Tumbes to Corales.

Tambopata

kurt — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 03:06:59 +0000

Colonel P.H Fawcett was the first to run Tambopata River in 1911. His craft was a raft made of lashed logs. Tales of this incredible explorer can be found in a hard to find autobiography called “Exploration Fawcett”. This same individual made the first descent of the nearby Rio Tuichi in Bolivia during the same time period.

In 1981 Alejandro (Chando) Gonzalez made the first complete navigation of the river from Putina Punko (900 meters) to Puerto Maldonado.

The logistics of arriving to and leaving from the Tambopata are challenging. Most trips originate out of Cuzco and involve raft support. Commercial outfitters such as Mayuc or Apumayo Expediciones can arrange the transportation and provide raft support. Our trip in early July 1994 had four kayakers, one shredder and two rafts. We started in Cuzco in a four-wheel drive Mercedes bus hired from a company called Explorers. An overnight trip brought us to Puno on the shores of Lake Titicaca where we spent the day and early evening visiting The Uros people who live on floating islands of reeds. The next day we set off on a 24 hour journey that back tracked us to Juliaca and then up and over a 5000 meter pass, through a snowstorm and down into the high jungle of Sandia. From here the road to San Juan de Oro (Putina Punko) deteriorated considerably. With recent rains the mud was deep and the switchbacks slippery and dangerous. Putina Punko is a small but busy village at the end of the road. Upon our arrival we witnessed bulldozers blazing the road ever deeper into the jungle.

Here the river is small around 400 CFS but more than enough to float a raft. For the next ten days we saw no people but lots of animals. Blue Morpho butterflies were almost always dancing around as were the golden tailed birds called Oro Pendulas, which built their vertical hanging nests in the same fashion as a weaver. Mammals witnessed included rare sightings of both the endangered Giant Otter and the Black Caiman, Capybaras, Ronsocos, Tapir and Howler Monkeys. Although we never saw a Jaguar, we did find a set of fresh prints outside the tents one morning.

The whitewater was never intense but one class four canyon came as a surprise and flipped a raft. Beaches are plentiful but I have been told flash floods can force you to slash out campsites under the canopy of the trees. Bugs are brutal and can leave you coated in welts.

On the 8th day we came across our first signs of people (apart from passing a hut occupied by two Bolivian soldiers on day 3). It was one boat with 3 fishermen who had motored upstream from Puerto Maldonado. We traded some of our food for three different types of fish, one of which was called Don Sello and was the best fish I ever ate.

Day nine is the highlight of the trip. We woke before dawn and walked down the bank of the river and hid behind a blind formed by some fallen trees. As the sun rose, a cliff on the opposite side of the river exploded with sights and sounds. We were at one of the few known “Culpas” or clay licks and thousands of parrots and Macaws were arriving in droves. The birds diet consists of seeds and fruits. Many of the seeds contain toxins that can kill the birds. By some sort of biological miracle the birds have learned to eat the clay, which neutralizes the toxins. We thought we were well hidden and were surprised when one particular group of Macaws started to circle above us shouting and shrieking. They descended and landed on our shoulders and heads. Later we found out that these birds had fallen out of their nests as hatchlings and had been raised in a jungle orphanage.

Just down stream are both a jungle research center and the rustic Tambopata eco-lodge. In Cuzco we had booked for cabins for one night so the rafts were pulled onto shore for the evening. A visit to the research center allowed us to meet several volunteers including a herpetologist who just that day had documented two species of frogs previously unknown to science. In all the Tambopata and nearby Manu Biosphere contains some the highest concentrations of special diversity on the planet.

On the tenth day we floated for four hours until Peki- Peki’s (motorized dugouts) met us for the four-hour trip to the booming jungle town of Puerto Maldonado. From here we caught a flight back to Cuzco completing a two-week roundtrip journey.

Useful maps: 29-Y, 29-Z, 28-Z

Apurimac Black Canyon

kurt — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 02:58:20 +0000

The Black Canyon presents a multi-day “warm up” for the action that lies downstream. The traditional Black Canyon run is a three day 60 km stretch beginning at Nayhua (elevation 2400 meters and finishing Puente Haulpachaca elevation 2275 meters). Puente Hualpachaca is also the put-in for the popular, class 4-5, commercial 3 day raft trip. For directions to Puente hulapachaca see description for “Apurimac”

Black Canyon kayaking

To reach Nayhua from Cuzco take the good road towards Paruro. On route you will pass Yaurisque. Get directions for turn to Paccaritambo and then in this town get directions for turn off to Nayhua which is about 5 km outside of town. From here the road descends down to the river.

A nice side trip is to visit the ruinas of Maucallaqta near to the town of Paccaritambo. These well preserved ruinas show what many believe to be the birthplace of the Inca civilization. Paccaritambo might be a modification of Pàchacambo which means “birthplace of gods”

Once on the river, the run is basically class 3-4 with one class 5-ish rapid that is often portaged. The large rapid is found within the first 10 km of the run as are most of the other larger rapids of the trip. It is possible to avoid the first 10 km and have a more mellow 50 km long trip, class 3. To do this one needs to put in at Puente Hualpachaca which is reached by taking the road from Cuzco to Yaurisque then turning to Huanoquite. From there it is a three hour hike to the river. The canyon and camping on this stretch is incredible.

An optional class 5 run lies upstream of the tradition Nayhua put-in. This 7 km day run is best after the high water has receded and is usually from mid to late May onwards. Put-in for this stretch is called Tincoj and is close to where the Vellile River enters the Apurimac at elevation 2525 meters.

If you plan to run the Black Canyon and are looking to join a group contact Pepe Lopez of Apumayo Expediciones in Cuzco. Pepe runs commercial raft trips thru the canyon starting each Sunday from Mid May to end of October. http://www.apumayo.com

Kayaks are welcome to join the raft trip and rental gear can be arranged.

Useful 100:000 scale topo maps for river are titled Tambobamba 28-R and Cuzco 28-S

Chili

kurt — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 02:40:20 +0000

The Rio Chili flows off the snow capped peak of Volcan Misti in Arequipa. This small river is dam controlled and therefore is usually flowing from March to November.

The standard run is relatively short at 5-6 km with the takeout being the entrance to the city with an elevation of 2350 meters (noticeable shortly after one drops over a low headroom dam/weir). The river descends through agricultural terraces with small stretches in mini granite walled canyons. At higher flows you can continue downstream for many more km’s or relatively open boating but make sure you have some way of getting back.

View of takeout as rivers enters Arequipa with Volcan Misti in background

To get to the put in take a taxi or a private car from the heart of town to the outflow of the dam a few km upstream where the elevation is 2550 meters

There is nothing extremely dangerous about the run except for an occasional strainer. At higher flows (> 500 CFS) some juicy holes develop especially in the micro granite canyons. Most of the rapids are class 2-3 but the mini canyon stretches are class 4. The dam releases through most of the dry season providing irrigation water to the fields below. Flows can be very low (approx. 150 CFS) but one can still get down the river and have fun.

If you have no kayak and want to raft this section or if you want to ride in a double kayak you can contact Gian Marco Velutino at Cusipata Viajes in downtown Arequipa. SEE LINK