Sandoval Lake is acclaimed as one of the most beautiful lakes in Peru, and it certainly lives up to its reputation. It is also a true surprise so close to major civilization - because of the ease of getting there and the ease of being there, and yet the wildlife experience far exceeds most rainforests.
Sandoval Lake has one of the largest, and most accessible, populations of endangered Giant Otters in Peru. Once widespread throughout South America, the Giant Otter was hunted nearly to extinction and is now one of the most vulnerable mammals on the continent. Yet Sandoval Lake has a thriving and healthy population, and from the comfort and stability of catamarans these powerful predators can be observed as they fish and frolic in the lake.
Enormous Black Caiman and 10-foot-long Paiche, the largest scaled freshwater fish in the world, join the otters as residents of the lake. From a stable catamaran platform, guests have the opportunity to see these, as well as a host of colorful birdlife, as they are paddled around the lake.
Drift through a flooded forest of 100-foot-tall Mauritia palms, as large groups of Red-bellied Macaws swirl overhead in a cacophony of sound. Watch playful Brown Capuchin and Titi monkeys as they forage through the palms along the edge of the lake, and groups of 50 or more Squirrel Monkeys as they chatter and leap through the trees above. And after the sun sets, experience the nocturnal life of the lake beneath a star-filled sky as the Black Caiman emerge to hunt on the lake.
