Useful INFORMATION for your fishing adventure
Manaus was founded in 1669 by the Portuguese as a small fishermen’s village. Its name is of Indian origin and its literal translation is “Mother of God”. Situated just 3 degrees below the equator and over 1000 miles inland, it is one of the busiest ports where cargo ships distribute their goods throughout the Amazon basin. With the discovery of rubber trees in the area in the 1850’s, Manaus flourished for a period of about 20 years, from 1890 – 1910, and was know as “Paris of the Jungle”. During this time, wealthy plantation owners flocked to Manaus and a “belle epoque” splendor prevailed as evidenced by their ornate Opera House, which was built in 1892 with distinct European influence, both in style and materials. Today Manaus is a duty-free zone and center for ecotourism in the Amazon.
Passport
and Visa considerations
A
valid U.S. passport is required for entrance into all
South American countries. Make sure your passport is
valid and does not expire before or while you are out
of the United States. It takes up to a month to process
a new passport, so please plan accordingly.
To obtain a visa, your valid passport must be sent to the nearest Brazilian Consulate
General (your passport cannot expire within three months of entrance into Brazil).
Flight
Information
Plan
to travel to Miami on Friday, to connect with flight
to Manaus around 8:30 p.m. (We suggest you
arrive in Miami by 4:00 p.m.). Flights
arrive in Miami at approximately 7:20 p.m. Connecting
flights home should be planned no sooner than 2 hours
after arriving in Miami. Probably, your flights
home will not be available until next morning, in which
case you should plan to overnight in Miami.
Our US
Agents carefully arrange air travel from home cities to Manaus.
Working in conjunction with their travel agent partners and directly with senior
sales departments of the major international carriers, they block-off plenty
of seats before our fishing season starts providing efficient schedules and ticketing,
and in many cases with prices significantly below published discount fares.
We strongly suggest you check your luggage from your home city to Miami, claim
it there, and re-check it on international carrier to Manaus.
Weather
Mid-day temperatures in the Amazon range from 85º - 95ºF. Generally there is some wind and intense sun during the day, so please be mindful of dehydration and overexposure to the sun. At night the temperature drops to 65º - 75ºF. Although you will be fishing in the dry season, there are occasional rain showers (you are in the rain forest).
Don’t forget to drink plenty of fluids, even if you do not feel thirsty. Water is best. Beer and soda can actually dehydrate you (alcohol and caffeine are diuretics), so drink these liquids in moderation until you become acclimated. For safety reasons; we limit the beer to 8 cans per angler, per day.
Baggage
Packing
There is a strictly-enforced 44-pound weight restriction for the 8 passenger Turbo-prop Caravan float-plane flights and we request that all anglers pack in one duffel bag. Please do not bring coolers or hard luggage. The camp has daily laundry service, so lots of clothes are not necessary.
We recommend wearing loose fitting, lightweight, light-colored cottons or synthetics (Tarpon Wear, Patagonia, etc...). Some fabrics allow passage of UV rays, so don’t just bring any old shirt – we’ve seen people severely sunburned right through their clothes!. Long pants and sleeves are best to protect from sunburn.
 Personal
Items |
 Equipment |
|
We
furnish, free-of-charge, quality baitcasting rods
and reels with braided line.
|
Health
/ Insects
It's
truly a blessing that the rivers we fish have a high tannin
concentration due to the forest’s leaf decay, and
do not encourage the growth of insect eggs and larvae. Although
we have never had an angler with a tropical illness, there
are occasional encounters with bugs. We suggest you contact
your doctor regarding his recommendations, or you can call
the IAMAT (International Association for Medical Assistance
to Travelers – (716) 754.4883)
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