Eastern Bolivian Rainforest

Camp on Sarah's and Dieter's farm and enjoy hearing their stories of battling the jungle to keep their farm productive. Have a beer in the cantina they own in the tiny nearby village of Casarabe.

Travel in a small boat along rivers past both farms and untouched virgin rainforest watching wildlife in the trees, amazing birds overhead, and alligators, caiman, and pink river dolphins in the river.

Quick Tips:

Bring insect repellant. Make sure it contains DEET as the active ingredient. Also, always wear long sleeve shirts and long pants whenever the boat stops. Finally, buy a pair of cheap rubber boots (make sure they reach at least halfway up your calves!) as protection against insects and snakes.

Best Way To Get Around:

Cheap, a little dirty but quiet and friendly. Only a few dollars a night. A backpacker sort of place. Not bad for passing through on the way to Sarah and Dieter's farm.

This is a chance to see the real Bolivia. When I see the word 'farm', I pictured fields of grains, a big house outfitted in the style Europeans would enjoy, and a beautiful barn full of plump, happy livestock. Alas, like the words 'toilet' or 'hot water' the word 'farm' has a slightly different definition in Bolivia. Our taxi was not even able to enter the grounds of the "farm", as the heavily rutted entrance "road" was partially flooded. Sarah, a tall, voluptuous 33 year-old Phd in Psychology, greeted us with her three somewhat dirty dogs. I surveyed the farm in dismay. A stagnant lagoon overflowed into the jungle behind the dense foliage on our right. Baby pigs nosed through the muddy yard and cows grazed everywhere. Manure of every conceivable flavor was spread throughout the property attracting hordes of frightening insects which descended upon us like flies on you-know-what! An open-air thatch-roofed structure shaded the two tents where Sarah had been living for over a year. The sturdiest structure was a dilapidated hut used as a kitchen and guest quarters, but the mosquito netting around the two dirty beds was torn and poorly sealed. We pitched our tents under the tiled roof of the still wall-less future house and put on the knee-high rubber boots we had been instructed to buy. "Think snakes", said Sarah and we did... constantly. She filled our ears with horror stories of Anacondas and gators, and insects which burrow under your skin and lay their eggs until neither Jen nor I were not quite sure if this adventure didn’t make the Potosi mine tour seem safe. We lay in our tents that first night trying to shut out the sounds of mosquitoes massing for attack, croaking frogs, snorting pigs, barking dogs, mooing cows and worst of all mysterious splashes emanating from the lagoon. Getting up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night took a courage I did not think I had.

As it turned out, the farm was having a bad week and within a few days looked a whole lot better, but just as primitive. Having said all of that, I learned more about Bolivia while staying there for 3 nights than I did in a month's worth of travelling. It is a fun and exciting place to stay. Also, a good jumping off point for exploring a rarely visited region.

The cantina is open to the village on 3 sides with a thatched roof. The villagers gather for drinks and to see video movies on the cantina TV. Dieter is an amazing storyteller. His tales of running the farm filled an entire evening.

For example, one story described how he kept his pigs from being stolen. He made up a parcel, ostensibly from Germany, which he had delivered by taxi to his farm. When it arrived, he gathered all his Bolivian workers together and opened the parcel, which contained a syringe and a vial of veterinary vitamins. He told the staff that in Germany pig theft was so common that farmers injected the animals with a serum, which would render their meat poisonous. His workers assisted as he injected all the pigs. He hasn’t lost one since!

My wife and I are Jewish and were there during the holiday of Passover. Sarah and Dieter went out of there way to put together the most moving Passover Seder we have experienced in their cantina. They even slaughtered one of their sheep for us.

Sarah arranges a boat, pilot, guides and supplies. The boat is not much bigger than a large rowboat and has an outboard motor. The first few days we glided past a thin line of jungle on either side of the river behind which stretched farms owned by rich land owners but manned by peasants. In the jungle we spotted several species of mammals including many species of monkeys. The entire trip is a birdwatchers delight. We even saw one of the rarest birds in the Amazon, the Harpy Eagle!

The first few nights we camped near the peasants' huts and were able to see their incredibly raw and basic way of life. On the way back we picked up a 2-year-old girl who was very ill and took her to the hospital. (We contributed to her hospital bill as her parents were much to poor to afford medical care.) After the first few days we turned up another river into the wildlife reserve where we greeted by massive pink river dolphins playfully surfacing around our boat. The river at this point wasn't more than 15 feet wide, yet these massive dolphins were to be found throughout our journey! We also, saw many other animals including alligators and caiman, capybaras, snakes, more monkeys. We camped each night in the rainforest using a machete to carve out some open space. One afternoon we fished for piranha using raw chicken meat for bait.

Sarah cooked us delicious but basic meals each evening and morning.