"Waorani indigenous communities still live in traditional ways in harmony with the forest"

You are in the planets largest remaining tropical rainforest which extends over most of the 6 million square kilometers of the Amazon basin. This, the world's greatest network of rivers and lakes, contains about 20% of the worlds freshwater and more than one tenth of all the creatures on Earth today !!!

About 2% of this Amazon Rainforest lies within Ecuador's borders in the foothills of the Andes, and you are currently in this 2% (which although it is a small proportion, it contains about a third of its diversity!) at approximately 300m altitude in the community of Quehueri'ono - Huaorani territory - on the banks of the `Rio Shiripuno`.

Our hosts have inhabited these Amazon headwaters for millennia living as hunters and gathers. But the first official Huaorani protectorate was created in 1983 and the current much larger Huaorani Ethnic Reserve was established in 1990.

Among the indigenous nationalities the Huaorani have the least densely populated territory, currently numbering about 3000 people. Their territory traditionally extended all the way from the Napo River in the North (which you will see from the town of Coca when you depart) to the Curary River in the South. Nowadays, however the territory, some 680.000 hectares, covers only approximately one third of this traditional land and the Huaorani have no rights to the oil and mineral deposits in their area.

"Where are the animals?" many ask when they first arrive, but the rainforest does not provide easy views of its wildlife, unlike the open African savanna. Many animals are camouflaged, and the forest foliage creates such a dense wall of green that it takes patience and a practiced eye to be rewarded with a sighting. To make things more difficult, many creatures remain perfectly still in the forest shade or high in the dense canopy when they hear you coming, and many are nocturnal or crepuscular.

The vegetation is endlessly fascinating, however, with different types and species of plants galore, from towering canopy trees to ground cover, from a variety of palm trees to vines and creepers that wind their way up and around. Adding to the mélange are the epiphytes, plants that grow on other plants, creating a myriad of microhabitats for the tiny denizens of the rainforest. Even if you do not see a large number of creatures, their signs are everywhere, including gnawed fruit, nesting holes, and leaves chewed in many patterns. Smells and sounds too contribute to the assurance that, while seemingly invisible, the rainforest's inhabitants are no doubt getting a good look at you