Itinerary

Day 1, August 17

Arrive in Cuiabá, Brazil. A representative will meet you at the airport and transfer you to your hotel for the evening. Flights typically arrive in the evening.

Holiday Inn Express (D)

Day 2 & 3, August 18 & 19

A two-hour drive takes us to Pousada Piuval at the northern edge of the Pantanal. Piuval is a truly amazing place for bird photography—numbers of both species and individuals can be astronomical, and the wide open nature of the Pantanal makes great shots a given. The habitat is a mosaic of open pasture, wetlands, and scrub interspersed with islands of forest. We'll spend our mornings stalking the likes of Southern Screamer, Plumbeous Ibis, Red-legged Seriema, Bare-faced Curassow, Greater Rhea, Whistling Heron, Blue-fronted Parrot, Long-tailed Ground-Dove, Great Rufous Woodcreeper, White Woodpecker, and Red-crested Cardinal, to name just a few. This is our best spot for Hyacinth Macaw, which can be seen in good numbers every day, and we'll spend time trying to get the perfect shot of these majestic birds. In the afternoons, we can take boat rides to an island with a canopy tower offering eye-level views of Orange-backed Troupial and Gray-crested Cacholote as well as a vista of the surrounding wetlands that are teeming with birds and other wildlife.

(B,L,D)

Day 4, August 20

Traveling south along the Transpantanal Highway can get us some truly great photo opportunities. Some sections of the highway are lined with literally thousands of caimans as well as waterbirds as far as the eye can see. Yellow-billed and Large-billed Terns flit over the isolated pools offering great chances to practice flight shots. Boat trips on the Pixaim River are the undoubted highlight of this trip. Experienced boat drivers know how to get up close and personal with Agami and Boat-billed Heron, Sunbittern, Sungrebe, Pygmy and Green-and-rufous Kingfishers, Giant Otters, and with luck even a Brazilian Tapir. With persistence and the help of your guide you have chances for great birds like Pale-crested Woodpecker and Helmeted Manakin, or monkeys including Brown Capuchin and Silvery Marmoset. After lunch we head south to Porto Joffre. Where we will have an evening boat ride searching for the first of our Jaguars.

(B,L,D)

Days 5–9, August 21–25

For the next five days we'll board our private boat to begin searching for Jaguars. This involves cruising up smaller tributaries of the Cuiabá River, watching carefully for any movement. The boatmen also share information with each other, and if a cooperative jaguar is found by another boat, we'll try to get to the spot as soon as possible. We also won't ignore other photo opportunities, and should encounter the likes of Sungrebes, Black-collared and Great-black Hawks, scores of herons and kingfishers, as well as Giant Otters, Tapirs, Capybara, and possibly even other cat species.

(B,L,D)

Day 10, August 26

After one last search for jaguars, we head north and will arrive in the early evening for night flights out of Cuiabá.

U.S. citizens require a visa to visit Brazil.

Includes:

• All accommodations, based on double occupancy
• All meals
• Services of guides
• Includes 6 full days on a private boat on the Cuiabá River and tributaries (5 full days + 2 half days)
• Includes tips to bus and boat drivers and lodge staff
• All photographic instruction
• Airport transfers to and from hotels

Does Not Include:

• Additional tips for the local guide (may be arranged in advance)
• Fees for passport, immunizations and travel insurance
• Airport taxes
• Alcoholic beverages or soft drinks while on the boat
• Laundry, phone and other items of a personal nature
• Cost of hospitalization and evacuation if necessary