Brazil

Search the Rio Cuiabá surroundings by boat

Oct 10-13

The best chances to spot jaguar are on the Rio Cuiabá. The jaguars in this region are protected and have become accustomed to boats full of photographers pointing lenses at them. You’ll ride in boats that can quickly reach the various tributaries of the Rio Cuiabá where the cats may be lounging or hunting.

You'll enjoy morning and late afternoon private boat trips when the sun isn’t directly overhead. Besides the beautifully colored birds, keep an eye out for mammals, including black-striped tufted capuchins, the crab-eating fox, South American tapir, and the enigmatic ocelot. You may encounter the most noteworthy reptiles throughout the Pantanal, including hundreds of Yacaré caimans and some green iguanas, and if you are lucky, you may come across a rare yellow anaconda.

Morning boat ride then drive to Araras

Oct 14

After an early morning boat ride and lunch at the hotel, you’ll journey north up the Transpantaneira Highway to Araras, making stops along the way. Water lingers alongside the Transpantaneira, concentrating a wide variety of wildlife. Diogo is very familiar with this area and knows some excellent places to stop to stretch your legs and take photographic opportunities.

The principal avian emblems of the Pantanal are the jabiru stork standing five feet tall and the hyacinth macaw, the world´s largest parrot. The hyacinth macaw is usually near lodges where they easily steal the show while feeding on palm seeds. You can sometimes see two species of brocket deer, plus pampas and marsh deer, in the tall grassland.

Explore Araras

Oct 15

Explore the grounds of the Araras Eco Lodge, which include 7,413 hectares of wetlands, forest, and savannah. You can find birds, such as the cinereous-breasted spinetails and Mato Grosso antbirds, in the woodlands around the lodge and along an elevated boardwalk. The Araras property extends east of the Transpantaneira into the dry grasslands where you have a great chance to view both lesser and giant anteaters. After dinner, you will go on a night drive, the best time to encounter tamandua (also known as the lesser anteater) and perhaps a South American tapir.

Morning safari then fly to Pousada Aguapé

Oct 16

Start today with an early morning game drive. After lunch, take a charter flight to Pousada Aguapé, a remote working ranch with abundant opportunities for wildlife encounters.

Search for wildlife at Pousada Aguapé

Oct 17

With a base near Pousada Aguapé, the Peccary Project (Projeto Queixada) has partnered with the surrounding rural community to protect the Pantanal’s biodiversity. The ranch’s sustainable practices have contributed to the high wildlife diversity you will see as you tour the area. Local researchers from the Peccary Project will show you their conservation work in the region, including their work on the critically endangered white-lipped peccary.

Morning search for wildlife, then drive to Fazenda San Francisco

Oct 18

Continue your search for more magnificent birds and charismatic mammals of the southern Pantanal region. In the afternoon, you will travel to nearby Fazenda San Francisco.

Explore the Pantanal around Fazenda San Francisco

Oct 19

Here, you’ll have your best chances of finding giant anteater and ocelot on game drives and during nightspotting, and sometimes you may even see jaguar, maned wolf, and South American tapir. Fazenda San Francisco has extensive native forest, wetlands, and grasslands, but it’s also a working ranch with cattle pastures and vast rice fields. The owner and staff work very hard to preserve wildlife, particularly to protect the rare mammals. Blue-and-yellow macaws, parrots, parakeets, toucans, and toucanets are plentiful right around the lodge and are extremely habituated. You’ll game drive in the evening and at dawn for the best action, and enjoy breaks on the lodge grounds during the warm part of the day.

Fazenda San Francisco game drive, then travel to Caiman Lodge

Oct 20

Take another early morning game drive before heading to the famous Caiman Lodge.

Explore wildlife around Caiman Lodge

Oct 21-22

Caiman Lodge, which is best of the best of nature lodges in South America, has charming accommodations, a very experienced friendly staff, delicious food, very high-quality service, and best of all, amazing wildlife! This is our favorite location in all of the Pantanal. You’ll begin your explorations in the beautiful surroundings for birds and other wildlife. You’ll also enjoy night drives to spot nocturnal wildlife in action. You have good chances for locating jaguars, but the overall wildlife experience while immersed in beautiful native habitat is the highlight here at Caiman, named for the plethora of Yacaré caimans, who peer with their gleaming, beady eyes at night. With luck, you will encounter mother giant anteaters with young on their backs, gray brocket deer, pampas deer, two species of armadillos, tapeti (Brazilian rabbit), and crab-eating raccoon. Elusive wildlife is very challenging to photograph, so you’ll spend ample time in nature to be sure to get some great images.

Morning at Caiman Lodge, then depart to Campo Grande

Oct 23

Spend the last morning photographing the resident macaws and other species. If the light is not ideal, or the group prefers, you can take a drive to the river for some action there!

Travel homeward

Oct 24

You’ll transfer as a group to the Campo Grande Airport for your flight to São Paulo and then homeward.

Arrive home

Oct 25