Ecuador – Into the Amazon

It is always a good feeling when you see your bags arriving on the conveyor belt of an airport, but when I saw both of my bags in Quito I was exuberant. I had made it without any unpleasant surprises (except for having to rebook all of my flights with two days notice). I was back with the Kayak Academy after a year of absence. I was ready for what was going to be an epic quarter. Soon our travels lead us into the Amazonian jungle where we were greeted by some of the world's finest whitewater rivers. It was an incredible experience. And yet in the heart of the jungle our intrusion did not stay completely unnoticed, leading to an interesting encounter with one of the locals: a deadly Fer de Lance snake, in our camp on the overnighter (unfortunately there are no pictures). This did not stop us from finishing the quarter in the highest of spirits although some of us might have watched our steps more closely ever since.