The way back from the Amazon was an exhilarating experience. Full of suspense, mystery, and rain. People were lining up for the three boats that would be taken.
Boat 1 was a canoe with a motor duct taped to the back. Pretty fast with exposure to the elements.
Boat 2 was half a boat that was kinda covered and kinda fast.
Boat 3 was a covered boat with screens on the side to protect passengers from any natural disaster that could be thrown at them.
Everyone got on their boats and we embarked on a nice and sunny morning. Within 20 minutes it was thunder storming and most people began to regret their choice of boat.
Boat 1, the canoe, was assaulted by the rain. They resorted to pulling a tarp over all of the passengers on the boat except the driver who sacrificed his own body to save the gringos. Boat 1 passenger, Abe Hong, said “the guy who drove the boat is such a man. He took a beating throughout the whole thunderstorm.” It has also been reported that Jeff Pang consistently lifted up the tarp to check if conditions had changed. They had not, but more people became wet. Rough ride for boat 1.
Boat 2 only had a small number of people, but they were absolutely wrecked. There was no cover of any kind and the speed of the boat was the only thing giving passengers hope. Semi-local Colombian, Yani Ballesteros, said that due to the rain “we were worried about the students because it was so wet,” but after getting to the vans she realized “it was just us.”
Boat 3 was a comfortable cruise complete with a full roof for everyone and clear tarps that came down on the sides to provide both protection from the rain and a way to laugh at the misery of the other boats. Philip Klafta IV described the boat ride as “luxurious, dry, relaxing, and social.” The passengers of boat 3 arrived at the destination dry and ready for the next step.
The next step was to pack everyone into two vans in which everyone promptly fell asleep, until we ran over the largest pothole known to mankind and everyone woke up again. Halfway through the locally nicknamed Road of 10,000 potholes we stopped at a bar. Jeff got a sandwich which he described as “good.” Then we drove back to the hotel and probably fell asleep again.