Kabalebo Jungle Resort

THURSDAY MARCH 5        

Heading out today to Kabalebo Jungle Resort.  Took us awhile practicing before it could roll off our tongue easily.  It is on the Kabalebo River, hence the name, and takes an hour to fly there from the city airport.  Again, we are supposed to only take a small bag with what is needed for two days and nights.  Again, since we weren’t told in advance of this, two group members are going with their entire suitcases.  Glad that for once, it’s not me dragging along a huge amount of luggage.

            We will take two planes and have been split into groups to do so.  My husband and I are in group 2 along with one other couple and Chris, our leader.  The other group will go first.   The planes are the same size but as these flights also take in most of the resort food and other supplies that they need, the guests are encouraged to take as little as possible and are split into groups between the two planes.  Usually, the planes go to the resort on Wed, I think, but since we were a large group, we got to go on the day of our choice.  And even though we will be returning to the same hotel, our suitcases will go into the Kabalebo office in town to be stored.

            Kabalebo workers come to pick us up and take our bags and we climb into the bus to go to the airport where all the bags are weighed along with us.  At least we climbed onto the scales holding our bags this time so my bag was obviously very heavy!  Chris is standing next to the check in desk and informs my hubby and me that we are on plane #2.  Into the lounge area which isn’t much.  There are a few other people there that head out to their plane in a few minutes and take off.  Only small planes here from Gum Air.  Originally, when we had been looking at going diving afterwards and thought we’d have to take our dive equipment with us, I’d talked to Gum Air about flying the gear.  They were quite helpful.  But in the end, when we left Suriname, it was via Suriname Air so would have been flying my dive gear on the wrong plane.

            As we are waiting for our flights, a couple comes into the lounge and talks to Chris who gets everyone’s attention and introduces the couple as the owners of Kabalebo.  He says they would like to talk to us and meet us.  I figured a speech of welcome of some kind but they just walked around the room and introduced themselves to everyone individually and said hello and thanks for coming to our lodge.  They will be on our plane.

            Seems like we had to wait a long time but in the grand scheme of things, it wasn’t too long before most of our group hikes out to their plane and then we hike out to ours.  It is the kind of plane I had expected from the flight over Kaieteur Falls, one aisle with two seats on one side and one seat on the other side.  Since there weren’t going to be many on this flight, I took a single seat on one side and hubby sat in the two seater across from me. Yippee,  lots of space, sort of.  At least I have a good view for photos but I do wish airlines would wash their windows more often. 

            Our first plane has left but we are in the air so closely behind them (was supposed to be 20 minutes and might have been), that we landed only about 5 minutes after they got there.  Guess our pilot was flying faster.  The flight was not exciting which is good.  A few bumps, a few clouds,  and some good views of the forest which is basically nothing but green tops of trees with a windy river through it, and then the lady owner turns around and says, we’ve coming into Kabalebo.  She was excited!  She was coming home and it was obvious that she loved the place.

            It is a grass runway and the landing was fine and we came back up the runway to the main lodge.  Vivian was meeting us – the in charge person at the lodge.  She greets the owners and then organizes us to go to the main lodge and have a welcome drink.  We got welcome drinks at every new place we stayed.   Our other group members are already sitting on the porch/veranda which stretches around the building.  The dining area is here and it is almost time for lunch.  Our bags are unpacked and put up on the porch/veranda and then we are welcomed and invited to eat.  In the meantime, there are a few guests that are climbing into the planes and leaving.   There are also a few guests that are remaining so the resort is full.  

            Vivian is Dutch as are several of the staff but the majority are Surinamese or Amerindians/Amerinidan descendants.  They live at the camp for 6 weeks, I think they said, and then have 2 weeks off.  The nearest village is 160 km downstream by boat and that is the only way to get there and takes several days because there are portages in places.  The resort has been totally built out of the jungle with all supplies for building and running being ferried in by plane.  I asked the owner later how they managed to do it as they had large generators, huge riding lawn mowers, boats, furniture, golf carts, refrigerators, etc.  He said that at the beginning (10 or 15 years ago, I think), they had a big cargo plane where they could load equipment into the back of it and it flew in here but the airline that serviced them went out of business and so now they just have the small planes so to bring in something like a refrigerator or golf cart of generator now, they have to take out all the seats and pretty much take the machine apart to get it in the plane then put it back together once at the resort.  And the resort is open except for July and August which is the rainy season.  Didn’t think to ask if anyone stays there to maintain the runway during that time.  I would think that when they come back after two months, the grass would be thigh high on the runway.

            It is a very peaceful spot and place.  They have numerous bird feeders around the main lodge and also several caged song birds that they bring out each morning and water stations for the birds as well.  They work hard at being ecologically sound as well but unlike the Baganara Resort, they had plenty of power and didn’t turn off the power at night plus we did have air conditioning in the rooms.  Unfortunately, internet was available but only at the main lodge and only at the cost of $50 for a connection that would probably be pretty poor, at best.  We saw them sitting at the desk trying to conduct business and just sitting and sitting and sitting waiting for connections. 

            After lunch we are assigned to our rooms.   Some of the group will remain in the main lodge.  Most of the group will be in the building called Inspiration Point – no idea why the name – which is a building with rooms about 200 yards away from the main lodge and past the swimming pool (yes, there is a swimming pool).  Two couples are in the pavilions which are the nicest accommodations. And two couples, including my husband and I, will be in the cabanas which are cabins by the river.  These cabins are also at the far end of the runway!   The pavilions are more like small apartments apparently.  The owners live in the one furthest from the main lodge.  As one couple who was assigned a pavilion was the couple that had so much trouble with rooms in Paramaribo, guess they got a bonus prize for getting the nicest rooms here.

            The other couple and we are ready to hit our rooms so we are packed into a golf cart with our small bags and driven down to the end of the runway where there is a small path into the jungle.  We turn down this path and drive to our cabins.  There are three cabins, one of which is in use already.  We get cabin #2 in the middle and the other couple get cabin #3 on the end.   Our Kabalebo guide stops and turns on the power for us.  During the day when we are not here, the power is turned off.  If we want to come in during the day, just let them know so someone can turn on the power.  We get out of the golf cart and walk across a bridge over a ravine to get to the cabins.  The cabins are on stilts.  They are taller than the usual “first story”.  There are around 25 stairs to climb to the room from the jungle side and about 30 stairs that go down the other side to the river.   We are told we can swim in the river here but to watch out for caimans as we don’t want to disturb them.  At the docks at the main lodge, there is no swimming because they throw the food garbage in the water there for the piranhas.  I look for caiman during our entire stay and never see any but still choose not to go swimming.

            The cabin has a shower room, a toilet room, a small refrigerator, an A/C. and windows all around.  Water and drinks have been supplied as well as small snacks.  Quite the set up.  We had hoped to keep the windows open all the time but it was still just a bit too warm at night so we did shut them down at night to sleep and turned on the A/C.  There is also an emergency radio in case we need help OR in case we want to call for a pick up.  She says she’ll be down in about an hour to pick us up anyway for the afternoon activities.

            So we settle into our little cabin and then decide to walk back.  As we had come into the cabin area, we had seen a lot of small lizards.  We see some going back and hear a lot of animals and birds in the woods but don’t see a lot.  There are two drives that start together and then meet together.  On each drive is a spot where they put out small fruit for the tapirs.  Maybe we’ll get lucky.  We think we hear some monkeys but see nothing.  Here is what the itinerary says about going to Kabalebo.   “”Today we fly to the Kabalebo Nature Resort, a luxurious lodge lying in one of the most beautiful areas of Suriname, deep in the untouched (and malaria free) Amazon jungle.

Within a range of hundreds of kilometers, you will see nothing except for the flora and fauna of the splendid Amazon rainforest. Where playful monkeys leap through the treetops, the colourful parrots glide above your head and unusual fish leap and quickly swim away down a secluded creek...

Besides the numerous unusual birds, colourful butterflies and many dazzling types of fish, you may also come across a member of the cat family, the jaguar. You may spend hours on exploratory trips together with your guide. But you may also see many animals even if you decide to remain in the vicinity of the lodge.

Kabalebo Jungle Resort

Nature Resort Kabalebo lies in one of the most beautiful pieces of jungle in Suriname. Because no people live in the wide surroundings, pure untouched nature is found here.

During our time at the resort, we will have a jungle walk during which we will become acquainted with the extensive flora and fauna of the Amazon forest. Our guide will tell us about the animals making their home in this area, the medicinal qualities of the plants or acquaint you with the colourful beauty of the jungle flowers.

During the hike, you are introduced to the numerous inhabitants of the rainforest. From plants with medicinal qualities to the many brightly coloured birds found up in the tree tops.””

            All sounds idyllic and fantastic, doesn’t it?  While it was an incredible place, a few things wrong with the scenario.  One, all activities were undertaken after breakfast and after lunch.  If you want to see animals, you go before breakfast and at dusk.  We were lucky enough to see a few on our own but only because we were at the cabins by the river.   We saw one moth and one butterfly.  Ha! for trying to see a jaguar.  That doesn’t happen even in dedicated trips to find them, usually.  We heard howler monkeys once but they were far away and no monkeys of any kind around the lodges.  And no jumping fish and couldn’t see the piranhas because the water is too muddy.  Still, we did enjoy ourselves there. 

            We did our first nature walk around 2-ish, I think.  People had an option to either go upriver in the boats for a few hours or to go for a walk in the jungle behind the camp and then a shorter boat ride.  Hubby and I did the walk.   Kiernan was our Amerindian descendent guide.  Quite knowledgeable about the jungle and the plants and happy to share.  We did see the drum tree which is very tall with spread out roots that are as big as house walls.  You hit it with a stick or something and it echoes throughout the surrounding area.  The earlier inhabitants had codes so they could communicate with each other.  We also saw a tree where they would use the nut shell for a pipe bowl.  Saw some army ants quite by accident when someone almost stepped in the line.   And other various trees used for medicines and weapons and building.  As it is not something I am too interested in, it appeals to me briefly, at the time, until I get hot and tired and then I am finished.  I was ready to be done and out of the forest when he showed us the last tree which was bark that he said was used as cigarette paper.  Didn’t think it possible but he pounded the bark until it fluffed into thin sheets exactly like paper.  That was the most impressive, even more than the drum tree.  No animals though, not a single one, until we had come out of the jungle and passed by the kitchen garden where there was a turkey vulture hoping to get some scraps of some kind.

            Off to the boats then.  A couple of the guys, hubby included, had put on their swim trunks just in case.  The boats were kind of a canoe with a motor but folding lawn chairs for everyone to sit along with a life jacket which was over the back of the chair and rather hard to pull off and put on but I managed it.  So off we go upstream to a former fish camp.  It is also a current work camp for the men of the lodge when they have to come upriver to get nature’s supplies or clear the river or take people fishing or whatever.  We stopped here and got out of the boats for a break and for a drink.  I didn’t go up the stairs to the open pavilion up there but Kiernan ran up and found a small brown tarantula which he brought down to show everyone.  My hubby waded into the water and got rather wet. One of the other group guys went swimming totally but said the current was rather strong towards the middle so glad I didn’t go into the water.

            Back in the boats then and back down river.  Not too much on the way except for a few parrots and a few toucans and a few herons.  Don’t see much during the day, really.

Back for some relaxing and then some dinner.  The dinner was good.  At the end of the line was the ubiquitous hot sauce that Guyana and Suriname are fond of having and it truly is quite hot.  The owner was standing there and warning people that it was hot.  Both my husband and I took a spoonful and put it on our plates.  She gasped!  “Americans never eat that much hot sauce!”.  But we could and did and it added to the flavor.  Pretty tasty.

            We were ready to return to our cabin before the other couple so they brought around a golf cart to take us back.  As we turn into the woods and pass the area where they feed the tapirs, there was a tapir standing there!!!  OMG.  They are so big and so quick.  As soon as I said there’s a tapir, it disappeared!  Now we are going to have to wait for it every day and hope to see it again – but we never did.

            Lovely day, lovely evening.