STOP PRESS:
Just found out from Glenn, our local driver throughout French Guiana that Jeff Bezos, Amazon Founder & CEO, will be the next major customer of the European Space Centre to launch a number of satellites that will provide Amazon Internet and Voice all over the world at guaranteed super-fast speeds (up to 1,000,000Mbps) !!! Jeff is planning around 350 geo-stationary satellites at a total launch cost of $USD13 billion. This is what I had suggested Australia do way back in 2009, instead of digging up the ground with the NBN, that has cost $USD40 billion and gave us a meagre 2,000Mbps maximum and not everywhere. Imagine what we would have now for just $USD125 million per launch !!!
Welcome back to Suriname, which was a base for me visiting French Guiana in the last 3 days. This post covers my journey deep into the rainforest jungle of Suriname staying on a riverside eco-lodge accessible only by boat. Started the day at 615am with my second run of Paramaribo – I need to keep my quads in shape for my run(s) in Paraguay. Picked up by Harold at 845am to join 4 others on our 185km, 3.5hr drive to the village of Atjoni where we would catch a small river boat for another hour to the lodge. Our driver Harold was born in the jungle – this explains our multiple stops to pick up supplies for his family in the jungle. Downside is that Harold had no concept of time and took too long to shop and stopped to talk to everyone he saw on the road. Upside was I could stretch my legs after this mornings run. The first two hours of driving revealed unexciting dead-flat topography with lush thick forest but not quite rainforest. At the 2-hour mark we turned off the straight, flat road and the forest suddenly engulfed us along hilly curvy roads. Noticed a lot of logging trucks pass us. There goes the Amazon !!! We made a lunch stop at Brownsweg, which is near a newly discovered gold mine run 50-50 by USA and Brazil. They are building homes and a new school which is a good sign that locals are working in the mine but as for profits that is probably a whole other story. As we got closer to Atjoni the forest turned into rainforest and the humidity shot up as we approached the river. We entered Atjoni at 12:30pm amidst a flurry of activity since from here on are long wooden boats only travelling to many villages upstream on the Upper Suriname River.
It took only 30min to sail the odd 20km upstream to the village of Jaw Jaw. The river is wide with a steady flow and not a lot of rapids. Lush, thick rainforest with huge trees form a guard of honour on both sides. Some rocky islands in the middle, every now and then and no rapids. Boat is the only means of transport here, much like the Mekong in South East Asia. Clyde, the young manager of the lodge met us when we arrived. The lodge was only 5min walk from the small beach landing. The resort is called “Atela” and comprises several stand-alone wooden cabins with thatched roofs with a canopy of trees overhead creating a lovely cool haven away from the heat and humidity of the jungle. There is a large common area with couches, dining tables, coffee/tea stands and even a cold and hot water dispenser. The lodge is owned by a local man who started it in 2012 and grown it to accommodate 44 guests. 600 Maroons live in Jaw Jaw village and it has its own mini solar farm with batteries provided by the government and not an NGO. Impressive. Clyde explained that the village is never out of power. Even though there is a mobile tower nearby, the lodge has no WiFi on purpose to force guests to talk to one another. We were shown to our cabins which featured a separate toilet, basin, pedestal fan and huge bed covered in a giant mosquito net. Excellent. Lunch was waiting for us showcasing local rice, stewed beans and a Cajun-style chicken thighs. After lunch we unpacked and relaxed and headed down to the river for a swim around 4pm. The water temperature was a surprising 25C and coloured like tea because of all the jungle vegetation that falls into it. We swam in a group of rocks that had rapids flowing through them like a jacuzzi – spent ages in there and came out squeaky clean – no need for the outdoor wooden cubicle shower !!! Clyde then took me on a personal tour of the village. Most families have 3 dwellings: a store room, a covered but open on all side outdoor kitchen and a closed cabin with high pitched roof to sleep in – pitch is to ensure rain runs straight off and into a water tank instead of soaking into the dried plant thatched roof. Dinner was at 7pm with a noodle-like spaghetti, thinly sliced green beans and more Cajun chicken thighs. Delicious. Add to that some wine and a movie and I cannot even remember going to sleep amongst the orchestra of insect sounds of the jungle.
Sleep that night was sublime. The jungle cools down rapidly and the humidity turns to moisture offering a comfortable sleep. Up at 730am and after a morning coffee set out alone with Clyde to walk 1.2km through the jungle to the next upstream village called Lespaansi. Along the way we saw a myriad of birds and lizards and flowers and fruits. Clyde explained the various plants that offered various medicinal benefits from headaches to infections. Only 100 people live in Lespaansi. The houses are all together and they even have their own mini solar farm. If only African villages could see this. The highlight was visiting 80yr old David who is a wood sculptor and wood worker. He makes wooden human statues, model boats, animals and even utensils. He showed me his instruments and even gave me a demonstration. Another highlight was me making a brick. Yes, what looked like a breeze-block. Sand is removed from the river bottom, dried in mounds and mixed with cement and water. The mixture is shoveled into open rectangular mold, compacted and then the mold detached and removed to leave a brick which is dried in the sun. No oven needed. Clyde explained that the Maroons are descendants of Nigerian and Ghanian Africans brought to Suriname as slaves by the Dutch then English in the early 1700s. They managed to escape into the jungle where they could easily hide and live off the land (casava) and river (fish). They stayed here and developed villages after slavery was abolished in the late 1800s. They also developed their own language but most speak Dutch as well. Clyde is a Maroon born in a village another hour upstream. His English was terrific and he was easily the best guide to date. I returned to another delicious lunch – this time featuring fried locally caught fish with rice and sliced green beans. A great way to end the visit. At about 1245pm I farewelled Clyde and rode the boat with two others back to Atjoni. Harold was almost an hour late. Unsurprising. This guy is fat and lazy. The worst driver to date. The drive back to Paramaribo took 3hrs. So glad to be back in air-conditioned room with wine, cheese and olives flowing. I felt a bit sad. This was my last night in the so-called “3 Guianas” since Brazil was waiting for me the following day en-route to my last country of Paraguay. In the mean-time, marvel at the fabulous sights of the Maroon-occupied jungle of the Upper Suriname river… (don't forget to read about the jungle after the pictures below).
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SURINAME JUNGLE AT ATJONI IN A NUTSHELL:
· Atjoni serves as the primary "gateway" where the road from Paramaribo ends and the Upper Suriname River begins.
· Pristine Rainforest: This area is part of the Amazon biome, with 93% of Suriname covered by dense, largely untouched tropical rainforest.
· Dynamic Waterways: The landscape is defined by the Upper Suriname River, featuring winding dark-water channels, rugged rapids (sulas) and secluded creeks.
· Diverse Flora: Iconic species include the 70-meter-tall Kapok tree, giant bromeliads, colourful heliconias, and various medicinal plants used by local communities.
· Rich Wildlife: The canopy and banks are home to howler monkeys, toucans, macaws, and the blue morpho butterfly. Predators like jaguars and caimans also inhabit the deeper brush and river edges.
· Humid Tropical Climate: constant heat (average 27°C) and high humidity (70–90%) with heavy seasonal rainfall that dramatically shifts river levels.
· Cultural Landscape: This is the heart of Saramaccan Maroon territory; the jungle is dotted with traditional villages where people live in close harmony with the forest environment.
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