April is the rainy season in the Amazon but due to a long, hot summer in the Andes (remember, their seasons are flipped) has caused massive glacial melt. Amazonia Expeditions can gauge the high floods based on the acid marks on the trees around the area. Last year the villages experienced a record flood but because the lodge was built higher than the native homes, they remained high and dry and were able to provide aid to the displaced natives. This year not only are the villages flooded but the lodge is under 3 feet of water (as of a few days ago). Schools, colleges and universities in Iquitos have been cancelled and opened up as emergency shelters. The president of Peru has declared a state of emergency for the area. The villages along the Tahuayo River are abandoned, with only a few resilient residents remaining, living in boats or rafts tied to the roofs of their houses.
Unfortunately the waters won't recede till mid-May, which means that repairs to the lodge and village won't occur till June, right before we arrive. While Brandon and I had planned on hosting a breakfast for the village children, we now believe that money and time could be better used to help repair the homes of the native Peruvians. It may not be the ideal Amazonian vacation but I'm sure we'll have fun nonetheless.
If you're interested in helping out the people of the Amazon you can donate to Angels of the Amazon. Donations are tax-deductible and right now their first focus will be to repair the medical clinic they constructed in 2009. Angels of the Amazon was founded by the wife of the owner of our tour company. You can also friend Amazonia Expeditions on Facebook for more updates, since the internet news has not covered any of the current flooding.
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