KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK - JAGUAR SIGHTING with Nicks Adventures Bolivia

Jagaur Sightings in Kaa Iya National Park

A dream acomplished !! 

  19th -22nd of November 2015 

On the 19th of November we departed Santa Cruz towards the Kaa Iya National Park, the aim was to see the Jagaur which was the dream of one of our two lovely French Canadian Tourists. Kaa Iya National Park is internationally famous for its populations of Big Cats and we were hoping to repeat our success of the past in having more sightings of this incredible Ghost Cat.

Our first few days in the Park we were treated with sightings of Brocket Deer,Lowland Tapir, Pumas ,Titi Monkeys and numerous Jaguar tracks yet the Jaguar still remained unsighted, even worse our other group had an amazing sightings of a large Male Jaguar for over 30 minutes which we missed by just an hour. 

The Jaguar which our other group saw and we missed by less than 1 hour !!

We decided that on the last day of the tour we would get up even earlier than normal and try and area on the outskirts of the park where we had seen numerous fresh tracks and Jaguar Scat , we drove for over an hour with no luck and were just about to give up when we turned the corner and saw a beautiful young Jaguar sitting in the middle of the road just 30 metres in front of us, As we got the cameras out another Jaguar a large male which was previously unsighted ran across in front of us and with a lot of luck we were able to take pictures of this Jaguar as well. As Jaguars only come together to breed it was great news and we hope that in a few months the female will give birth to new Jaguar cub which hopefully will be the future of this incredible Big Cat.

The first sighting of this beautiful female Jaguar

NOT ONE BUT TWO JAGUARS !!!

Our final photo before she entered the thick forest for the final time

Over all it was a spectacular trip and we are very happy to have helped our tourists achieve a life long dream of seeing not only a one Jaguar in the wild but a breeding pair !! 

Bolivian Pantanal Tour, Anaconda Sighting with Nicks Adventures Bolivia.

10 REASON WHY TO TRAVEL TO SANTA CRUZ, BOLIVIA

TRAVELING TO BOLIVIA? – then here`s why Santa Cruz Bolivia is not to be missed!!

Time and time again we hear about travelers doing the same old gringo trail through Bolivia, so we have devised a list of reasons why Santa Cruz Bolivia should be an integral part of every travelers itinerary while exploring this amazing country. 

Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia

1 IT'S A STAGING POINT FOR A WIDE RANGE OF ADVENTURES: If you are visiting the City of Santa Cruz then you are just a few hours away from some of the world`s best attractions, some of these places include the Amazon and Cloud Forests of the Amboro National Park, The world’s most pristine Chaco Forests of Kaa Iya National Park which is one the best place to see Jaguars, The Andean Town of Samaipata which is the base for a huge array of trips , Jesuit Missions , Sand-boarding in Lomas de Arena , Sports fishing monster Golden Dorado  in the spectacular River Grande and much much more …

2 CLIMATE:Unlike La Paz where you have day upon day of miserable weather and altitude problems, Santa Cruz is blessed with warm tropical weather year round which makes visiting this city a pleasure.

3 PEOPLE: known as Cambas, the people from Santa Cruz are some of the most welcoming in South America, You have more chance of being invited by locals here to a family BBQ than anywhere in the country. If you worried about the language barrier don`t worry, a large percentage of locals here have learnt English as a 2<sup>nd</sup> language which makes a big difference while trying to communicate. For male travellers this might be of particular interest as Santa Cruz is home to the majority of Bolivia`s Miss World contestants too.

4 FOOD: Santa Cruz is Cattle Country which means for steak lovers this is paradise, The Beef here easily rivals Argentina and Brazil and currently is half the price as well. This city is becoming a truly international City and local as well as international restaurants are everywhere.  You can find anything here from tasty street food to 5 star international standard cuisine.

Cotoca town

5 SLOTHS: The iconic Sloth is found just minutes from the City centre and they can be seen crawling freely in the Jardin Botanico, Zoo and Urban Neighbourhoods. Their never ending smiling faces and slow awkward movements light up the day for anyone who sees them. There is even a tour designed specifically for tourists to see them in the wild.

Sloths

6 CARNAVAL: Ranked in the top 5 Carnivals in the world the Carnival of Santa Cruz is not to be missed and a must on any party revelers bucket list.

7 LOMAS DE ARENA: Just 25 km from the City Centre is a truly spectacular Natural Desert which covers just under 14000 hectares, this beautiful desert is surrounded by tropical forests and colorful lagoons which supports a huge variety of native wildlife. The dunes are excellent for Sand Boarding which is one of the most popular tours in Bolivia.

Lomas de Arena

8 NIGHTLIFE: There is something about the tropical weather that seems to make people go crazy and the nightlife in Santa Cruz is infamous for its wild nights, whether you prefer live rock music, pulsing fancy nightclubs of the rich and famous or singing the night away at a local karaoke bar then Santa Cruz is the place for you.

9 BIOCENTRO GUEMBE: This world class Eco Resort is something that has to be seen to be believed, covering over 24 hectares this beautifully presented resort has over 15 huge swimming pools, artificial waterfalls, lagoons, world’s largest butterfly house , giant walk through Aviary of rescued birds, Natural forests teeming with native wildlife and much more.

10 WILDLIFE: There are not many places in the world where you can drive 5 minutes from the city centre and see Monkeys , Sloths and Toucans or drive  just a few hours from the capital and have the chance to observe Jaguars, Spectacled Bears, Macaws, Mountain Lions, Tapirs and much more roaming freely in their natural environments. Santa Cruz is a nature lovers paradise 

Kaa Iya National Park