Suggested itinerary
1st day: Quito - Tena - Rio Blanco community
On the first day, we meet in the RICANCIE central office. After receiving detailed instructions about the program, we travel by car for 1.5 hours to the point at Ahuano. We take a 20-minute trip up the Napo River to Misicocha, where we begin the hike to Rio Blanco. After a 2.5-hour hike through primary forest, we arrive at the cabins of the community. We have dinner, and with a welcome cocktail we listen to the history of Rio Blanco and the cosmovision of the Napo Runa people, as told by a shaman.
2nd day: Rio Blanco community
After breakfast we begin our adventure with a one-hour walk through virgin forest, where we are told about Kichwa ethnobotany and the relationship between the forest and the people. We arrive at the Waterfall of the Boa (Amarun Paccha) to swim in the natural pools and rest. We descend the Huambuno River by dugout canoe until we arrive at the cabins, where we have lunch. In the afternoon, we visit the community and the botanical garden, where we can see a great variety of medicinal plants. After returning to the cabins, we have dinner and then watch a cleansing ceremony, in which the shaman takes ayahuasca – the vine of the soul – which is used to acquire vision and diagnose illnesses.
3rd day: Galeras community
In the morning we visit a family farm to learn about traditional agricultural technology and participate in making chicha, an integral food for the Kichwa, which is made of yucca, the chonta fruit, or plantain. We have lunch in the cabins. In the afternoon, we say goodbye to the people of Rio Blanco and board a dugout canoe, heading downriver for an hour to the cabins at Galeras. There, we will learn about how forest materials are used to make handicrafts and tools. We have dinner at the cabins in Galeras, and listen to Kichwa stories and myths around a campfire.
4th day: Galeras community
We eat breakfast, and then visit the center of the community, where we are taught how to make traditional traps. We have lunch in the cabins. In the afternoon, we can swim in the Huambuno River, or practice canoeing. After dinner, we go on a night hike through the forest, listening to its many sounds. We end the day with a goodbye party.
5th day: Galeras community - Tena - Quito or Baños
After breakfast we begin a three-hour hike to Misicocha, where a canoe will take us to the point at Ahuano. From there, we return by car to the RICANCIE office, arriving by 2 p.m. (sufficient time to catch a bus to Quito or Baños).
Tour operators offering this tour:
Ecuador tours and Galapagos cruises : www.latintrails.com