6 Days- Marowijne, Lawa, and Tapanahony Voyage, Camping and Sightseeing Adventure
Travel deep into Suriname’s mighty Amazon jungle for an experience on the wild side, including exciting camping on river beaches, overnight sleeping under the starlit skies or in jungle sheds, in swinging hammocks just like the local Maroons and Amer-Indians.
Our starting point is Albina, from where we head upriver in motorized dugout river canoes deep into the jungle. We will be crossing awesomely fierce rapids and splendid waterfalls.
After 6 hours of cruising we will reach our base camp, at Gakaba along the river banks. Starting from there the group will travel farther upriver visiting various Maroon villages, both on the French side of the river, as well as the Suriname side of the Marowijne and Lawa rivers.
At times when impressive waterfalls and shallow parts of the rivers needs to be crossed, you will experience the excitement of getting out of the boat and help pull it across the shallow stretches. For your enjoyment, the driver will at times also decent the wild rapids back-first. You will be blown away from excitement. Fun stuff. This, you will never experience anywhere else. The rivers are the only way the local Maroons and Amer-Indians are able to travel to the various villages strewn along the river banks.
We will visit villages such as Stoelmanseiland, Gran Santie and numerous other villages along the Marowijne, Lawa and Tapanahony rivers.
Travel Dates: March 24- 29, 2019
Trip duration: 6 days ()
When to book: We recommend to book at least 10 weeks in advance.
Group size: 15-20
Contribution: Transport costs and accommodations are covered by your friend, but you can make a voluntary contribution to help cover the cost of food
Accommodation Type: You will spend 5 nights of this adventure voyage at a riverside lodge at Gakaba in your own private swinging hammock! You don’t get to do that every day.
Internet Access: Not Guaranteed. And you probably will be happy if there is no access. No calls from pesky and jealous coworkers :). After all you came to escape the daily grind, and be one with nature for a bit:)
Who is this trip for:
- For adventurous individuals who have an interest in the rugged outdoors and nature at its purest
- For those who do not mind to get wet and dirty, enjoy jungle trekking and camping on river beaches and banks
- For those who want to experience living with the bare minimum in the jungle, but still comfortable enough to enjoy it
- And finally, it is for those who want to experience sleeping overnight in hammocks, in sheds on river banks deep into the Amazon jungle.
| DEPARTURE/RETURN LOCATION | Paramaribo | |||||
| DEPARTURE TIME | Please arrive by 6:45 AM for a prompt departure at 7:00 AM. | |||||
| RETURN TIME | End of Day 6 at approximately 8:00 PM. | |||||
| WEAR | Comfortable athletic clothing, sport shoes, hat, jacket and sunscreen. | |||||
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| NOT INCLUDED |
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This is an adventure for people who love the rugged outdoors.
ITINERARY
Day 1: Trip Paramaribo, Albina, Gakaba
At 7 AM we board the bus in Paramaribo to travel to Albina. A boat will be waiting to take us to base camp at Gakaba. We will make several sightseeing stops along the way including:
- Apatou, a French village on the right bank of the Marowijne river
- Langa Tabiki, a large island in the middle of the Marowijne river
- Gostoe, an island in the middle of the Marowijne river
Around 5 PM we should arrive at our base camp at Gakaba where we will have dinner. We party till late into the night with the locals to celebrate your arrival.
Day 2: Crossing Major Waterfalls and Rapids: Destination Grand Santi
After breakfast we will leave Gakaba to continue our beautiful adventure. We will cross large waterfalls and rapids such as Singatete, Manbari and Poeloegoedoe. After that we will cruise to the French village of Grand Santi where we will go on a sightseeing tour around the village and have lunch. After Grand Santi, we will make stops at a few large waterfalls to enjoy a swim and massage by the rushing water. After some fun in the water we will make our way back to our base camp at Gakaba. If the water conditions are right, the driver will decent some rapids stern-side first, for your enjoyment. Around 6 PM we should arrive at base camp where we will have dinner. We will party till late into the night around a massive campfire where you can roast potatoes, fish, meat and what ever else you want to roast.
Day 3: Destination Karmel and Gran Holo Waterfalls
After breakfast,we will leave base camp for the voyage to the islands of Karmel and Poeketie in the Tapanahony river. We will cross several large waterfalls and rapids, and the adrenaline rushing excitement of taming these fierce waves never gets old. We will go on sightseeing visits of the various Maroon villages such as Tabiki, Malobie and Clementie and have some local drinks and snacks. We’ll stop at a few beautiful waterfalls to enjoy a swim and massage by the rushing water and of course enjoy a delicious picnic. In the early afternoon, we arrive at the village of Karmel, where we will visit the locals, including the medical facilities and nurses. After Karmel we will cruise to Poeketie where we will enjoy viewing the mighty Gran Holo, a waterfall which completely traverses the Tapanahony river. In the late afternoon, we return to the base camp at Gakaba where we will have dinner and relax.
Day 4:Visiting Stoelmanseiland, including Surrounding Villages
Day 5: Inside the Ndyuka Creek, Destination Ampoma
After breakfast we will depart base camp and travel inside the nearby Ndyuka Creek, where we will visit/view some of the small gold miners at work. After viewing the gold miners, we will leave the Ndyuka Creek and head downstream to the village of Ampoma. We will hike to a waterfall and have a delicious picnic on the beach. After lunch we will enjoy a swim and massage by the rushing water, or just lay down on the beach and have a mellow afternoon. Around 5 PM we will return back at our base camp at Gakaba where we will have dinner. We will party throughout the night with a local band to celebrate your visit.
Day 6: Return Trip
Today (you are probably a little bit hung over), we travel back to Albina, after enjoying a last breakfast with the base camp team. Along the way we will stop at several beautiful uninhabited islands to relax and have lunch. If the water conditions are right, the driver will decent most rapids stern-side first, for your enjoyment. By 5 PM we should be back in Albina, where we will board the waiting bus to Paramaribo. Around 8PM we will be back in Paramaribo.