Filadelfia, Paraguay

Filadelfia is a town in the Paraguayan Chaco that was founded by Mennonites in 1930. It operates as a cooperative, where everyone sells their agricultural products to the cooperative and  everyone shares the benefits.  The town looks different than other Paraguyan towns and the German influence is obvious in the  look and feel of the town.   There is also a prominent indigenous presence , which is also unique to Paraguay, as there are not many indigenous people left in the  country.

This is a "bottle tree" which is unique to the dry Chaco region. It stores water in the wide bottom part of the trunk. We were also told that the early Mennonite settlers  used them as coffins during a cholera epidemic shortly after the founding of the colony.

We arrived early in the morning after an overnight bus ride. We couldn't check into our hotel so I took a nap in the city park.

One of the many crops growing here were peanuts.  The colony also produces sesame, chia, and dairy products.

This is a "peccari"or wild boar.  They have been hunted extensively in the country.  We visited a project that raises them and then releases them into the wild, attempting to rebuild the population.

An old bunker from the Chaco War (with Bolivia). 

Thorn of the bottle tree

Main street

It's finally Summer!!

We are gearing up for our 2 month summer break, beginning this Friday.  We'll be busing through Bolivia and Peru this year and have a long list of exciting places to visit. While we are missing our family and friends during the holidays, we are continually aware of how lucky we are to have the opportunity to see so much of South America.

 If you would like to see our trip plans, I created a map; just click on the words "our summer travel map" below.  If you have been to these places or have suggestions for things we are missing out on, let us know.  We will try to post pictures along the way as well.

Merry Christmas!

Our summer travel map

Reserva San Rafael Paraguay

Over our Thanksgiving break a group Asunción teachers traveled to San Rafael, a nature reserve in southern Paraguay. The reserve encompasses the largest remaining areas of Atlantic Forest in Paraguay, as well as incredibly beautiful grassland areas. 

The reserve is primarily a destination for scientists and birdwatchers, although they make their facilities available to anyone interested in a visit. Arrangements for visiting the reserve can be made through the Guyra office in Asunción.  

We were expecting to encounter lots of birds and possibly other wildlife, but saw very little of either.  The area is officially protected, but much of it is private land that is used in the typical way by ranchers and indigenous groups who existed there prior to the creation of the reserve. 

Just getting to the reserve was a bit of a trek.  We drove from the city to the small town of Alto Vera,  From there we followed the ranger down 40km of dirt roads which took about two hours.

At the reserve there are several hiking trails through the forest as well as observation towers that look out over the grassland. We also went on a sight seeing drive with the ranger a few km further into the reserve and to a swimming area where the road crosses a small stream.  One full day was plenty of time for us to see the area around the reserve.  Our group had planned to stay a second full day, but with the heat, bugs, and lack of further areas to explore we decided to move on one day early.  

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Monkeys, Zombies, and the Circus...happenings in September and October

We visited a farm near Concepcion in September.  El Roble is run by a German man and his Paraguayan wife and is inhabited by rescued wild animals.  We went river tubing, ate good food, and visited with the myriad of animals they have at the farm.

Dave was the only one brave enough to get into the
cage with the monkey.

In October, we went to a "zombie mud run" about 2 hours away from Asuncion.  The race was 5k or so, but was in over 100 degree heat, which was pretty unpleasant.  Luckily, we had the river to hang out in after.  All but 3 of us were "infected" by the zombies during the run.

The Infected

Our house decided to throw a  Halloween costume party, as Halloween is not really a thing in Paraguay.   We had a circus theme, and all of us dressed up to match the theme. 

We had a costume contest and Erica and Dave were the winners!

I was the ring master and Matt was the strong man!

Volunteering with Hogar Esperanza

Every Thursday afternoon, I volunteer with 2 of my friends from work, Ali and Adrianne, at a small foster home with these adorable kids.  We got connected with "hope house" through a British woman whose church helps to sponsor the home and have been visiting for about 6 months now.  They keep the number of children small so that it truly feels like home.  The house mother, Inocencia, stays with them 5 days a week at the home, sometimes with help.  She goes home one day a week and another woman watches them. 

Visiting Esperanza is often the highlight of my week, especially after hanging out with teenagers for 8 hours a day.  We bring puzzles, games, and crafts, and really just play with them.  We try to bring things for them to practice fine motor skills, since most of the kids are around 2-4 years old and they do not get preschool. They used to be quite shy when we would arrive, but now as soon as they hear us coming, they are all at the window shouting and smiling. We get big hugs and kisses upon arrival and when it's time for us to go. We've seen a set of twins come and go, and now two of the kids (a brother and sister) who have been there the whole time we have been coming are going to a new home next week. 

 

Fly Fishing in Argentina

 We have some more photos from our big break last December and January that never make it to the blog.  A good part of that trip was spent camping and fly fishing in Northern Patagonia.

Kristi and I started our vacation by traveling south along the Paraña River in Argentina.  The highlight of this part of the trip  for me was getting into a couple dorado one day.  I landed two smaller fish like the one pictured below.  One larger fish grabbed my fly and broke the 20lb bite wire on the take.

On our journey south I also was hoping to catch an Argentinian carp.  I tried a few different lakes near Cordoba, Mendoza, and one urban lake in Santiago.  Unfortunately I went totally carpless.  Low water clarity, and bad weather resulted in getting very few good shots at carp working  the extreme shallows or top of the water column. 

Traveling and fishing in Patagonia was a dream come true.  The scenery we encountered every day camping and fishing along the large lake and river systems was unbelievably beautiful. Some of the lakes high up in the drainages had a Pacific Northwest rain forest feel.  The vegetation and animal life was different but the unpredictable weather felt very familiar.  At times the humidity was so high, precipitation  would materialized out of the air and fall from a virtually cloudless sky.  Fishing these large lake systems sometimes required an 8wt with a fast sinking line and aggressive streamer presentation to beat the wind and waves. At calmer times a lighter rod with an intermediate sinking line and a nymph or streamer was very effective.  

Lower in the river valleys the landscape was more reminiscent of arid areas of the American west.

My brother was my fishing companion for much of the trip.  Both Kristi and Ben's girlfriend were very patient of our desire to go fishing while we were traveling together.  We spent several weeks in Chile and Argentina.  Then Ben and his girlfriend left for southern Patagonia, Kristi went back to work, and I struck out on my own.

Pancoras are a crustacean found in many Patagonian waters.  We bought some pancora flies at a local fly shop, but for me, more traditional trout streamers caught a lot more fish.

River scene near Lago Rivadavia in the Chubut Provence

Rental boat, 7 lakes loop Neuquén Province

Mystery fish, urban lake in Santiago

Ben changing his fly on one of our favorite rivers.

Rainbow

Hiking into a boca, Rio Negro province.  River mouths that connect large lakes to their rivers are a common place to seasonally target really large trout.

The aftermath of hooking into a toothy dorado.  This fly was a four inch clouser style fly before the dorado got a hold of it.

The Perca, one of Patagonia's native fish species.

Enjoying a cup of tea in Trevelin

Ben bundled up on a Chilean river.

Monkey puzzle tree.

Brown trout that went after a streamer.

Sunset on a Neuquén river.

Volcán Lanín

Rainbow trout.

My last week I spent camped mostly along a river that had awesome mid-morning mayfly hatch and corresponding  fly action.

Firewood and vino storage area.

Molting pancora and it's imitation

Badly in need of a shower and a shave.

Brook trout from a Neuquén province lake.

The sunset on my last evening of Patagonian fishing before returning to civilization.