Ecotourism Guides
La Mosquitia and The Ecotourist's Guide to the Ecuadorian Amazon
reviewed by Ron Mader

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We are fortunate to be witnessing the start of a golden age in ecotourism publishing. No longer are readers seeking just the where-to-eat and where-to-sleep info.

Travelers are demanding specific information on biosphere reserves and national parks. Canadian authors are finding a special niche in this industry with the publication of two fabulous books on ecotourism in the Americas.

La Mosquitia:
A Guide to the Land of Savannas, Rain Forests and Turtle Hunters
by Derek Parent, Intrepid Traveler Publications, 1995, $14.95

Parent has spent the last three years on this project and intends on continuing to document the natural resources and indigenous peoples of the area. His commitment to locally-controlled ecotourism and the protection of both land and people illuminate an often-mentioned but rarely described region in this exemplary book.

Detailed maps provide travelers with information again found nowhere else. Printed in large scale, they are second to none.

Suggested itineraries provide an array of routes into the region. Want to go by cargo boat? You might have to wait three weeks. Your options include hiking along the beach or arranging to fly into Palacios, where local Miskito Indians can arrange a tour into the famed Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve.

Ready to go? La Mosquitia lists specialized companies providing ecotourism into the region as well as environmental contacts and suggested reading materials.

• The boundaries of the Honduras Mosquitia surround some of the largest, most undisturbed and biologically rich broadleaf rain forests, savannas and mangrove swamps in Central America. (p. 5)
• The Commite Vigilante Tierra is also assuring a place for Miskito and Paya in the participation of the development of tourism in the Mosquitia, including monitoring the proceeds from ecotourism, making sure that a fair share of the money goes into the pockets of local indigenous people. (p. 6)
• The trail melts away into the jungle in certain sections reappearing ten meters further along and at one point in the trail, there is a man-sized hole in the ground which you may fall into if you don't know where it is. The hole is a deep subterranean cavern you will need climbing ropes to get into and out of. (p. 51)

Intrepid Traveler Publications (ITP)
116 Consumer Square, Suite 387
Plattsburgh NY, 12901
Phone: 514-698-2288;
Fax: 514-366-3636

The Ecotourist's Guide to the Ecuadorian Amazon: Napo Province
by Rolf Wesche, 1995, $32

Hotels, restaurants and transportation facilities are listed, and an emphasis is given to those places which are indigenously controlled. The guide was compiled by a 14 member University of Ottawa research team directed by Geography Professor Rolf Wesche, who has conducted research and led study tours in Amazonia since 1965.

• Ecotourism is now widely perceived in Ecuador as a sustainable development alternative to the oil, agriculture and lumber extraction which have dominated the region's economy in the past. (p. 9)
• Because of steepness, high elevation and dense vegetation, the Sumaco Volcano offers a long and extremely difficult but breathtaking excursion up to its perfect solitary cone. The trek allows you to take in stunning vistas of rainforest and offers an interesting transect of differing vegetation. This excursion is typically completed in 5 to 6 days and presents an opportunity for prolonged contact with Quichua guides. (p. 56)
• The Cocaya and Yanayaca rivers, tributaries of the Aguarico, seldom receive visitors due to their remoteness and lack of facilities... Both rivers have a maze of flooded forests so that it is often difficult to distinguish which water bodies qualify as lagoons. These rivers would be ideal destinations for visitors with plenty of time. (p. 89)

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