Lake Titicaca is situated between Peru and Bolivia, its cobalt coloured waters are stunning.

At 12,500 Ft it is the highest commericially navigable lake in the World. The extra-ordinary isolas Flotantes are a major tourist attraction.

Lake Titicaca is fed by rainfall and meltwater from glaciers on the sierras that abut the Altiplano. Five major river systems feed into Lake Titicaca—in order of their relative flow volumes these are: Ramis, Coata, Ilave, Huancané, and Suchez. More than 20 other smaller rivers empty into Titicaca, and the lake has 41 islands, some of which are densely populated.

The Pantanal ranching country is the largest wetland area in the World. Its a bowl shaped depression covering 96,500 square miles.

The wetlands slowly releases the water through the Paraguay River and tributaries. The formation is a result of the large concave pre-Andean depression of the earth’s crust, related to the Andean orogeny of the Tertiary.

During the rainy season the rivers burst their banks flooding the surrounding plain, provides nutrition for the Worlds largest collection of plants.

The name “Pantanal” stems from the Portuguese word pântano which is synonymous with wetland, bog, swamp or marsh. In comparison, the Brazilian uplands are … Continue Reading

Parc National das Emas is a savanna plain of some 500 sq miles in Central Brazil, it is a Unesco Bioshere Reserve.

The Park divides the Amazon and the Parana River Basins, its a haven for nature lovers with monkeys, anteaters, wolves and cougars.

The termite mounds sprout out of the ground up to 6 ft high. They shelter the Cumpinzeiro beetle which due to bioluminescence which light up the mounds.

Sugarloaf Mountain is the icon of Rio, its name is said to have come from the fact that its shape resembles that of a sugarloaf. However, it is believed by some that the name actually derives from Pau-nh-acuqua or “high hill” in the Tupi-Guarani language, as used by the indigenous Tamoios.

The mountain is only one of several monolithic morros of granite and quartz that rise straight from the water’s edge around Rio de Janeiro.

A cable car was first built in 1912, the ride is a great experience and the views from the summit are incredible. It is worth … Continue Reading

Ecuadors Galapagos islands are a small archipelago around the equator and are best known for being the location that led Charles Darwin to devise his theory of evolution.

The islands include 13 main islands all of which are volcanic in orgin.

Galapago is an old Spanish word, meaning saddle. The large Galapagos Tortoises on some of the islands had a shell that resembled an old Spanish saddle, thus the name. The tortoise is a unique animal found only in the Galapagos Islands.

Although located on the Equator, the Humboldt Current brings cold water to the islands, causing frequent drizzles during most of the … Continue Reading

Sangay national park is over 1930 sq miles in size it contains volcanoes and lagoons, Sangay itself is one of the Worlds most active volcanoes.

The remote location has allowed the survival of many endangered species, including red monkey and tapir.

Roraima is the highest of the Venezuelan table mountains, its part of a World Heritage Site. Tributaries run to three great rivers, the Orinoco, Amazon and Essequibo.

Despite the fact the steep sides of the plateau make it difficult to access, it was the first major tepui to be climbed: Sir Everard im Thurn walked up a forested ramp in December 1884 to scale the strangely wind-and-water sculpted plateau. This is the same route hikers take today.

It is thought that the reports from early Victorian expeditions to the mountain inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to write his classic adventure yarn, … Continue Reading

Cocos is an uninhabited island off the coast of Costa Rica, some have described it as the most beautiful island in the world.

Cocos Island is an oceanic island of both volcanic and tectonic origin. It is the only emergent island of the Cocos Plate, one of the minor tectonic plates. An Argon–Potassium radiometric determination established the age of the oldest rocks between 1.91 and 2.44 million years and is composed primarily of basalt, which is formed by cooling lava. The landscape is mountainous and irregular and the summit is Cerro Iglesias at 575.5 m . In spite of its mountainous … Continue Reading

Mosquitia is a wilderness in the east of Hunduras, it is a huge area covering 32,000 square miles, including swamps, rainforest and savannahs.

There are no roads into the region and very basic accomodation and food. Travel is by river in canoe, there are five seperate reserves in Mosquitia, the area around Rio Platano is a World Heritage Biosphere Reserve.

Mosquitia is inhabited by Amerindians but their way of life is threatened by economic pressure from the outside World.

Semuc Champey means sacred water in Mayan, its a idyllic mountain setting of tropical forest, wildlife and butterflies. Semuc Champey is a natural monument in the department of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, near the Q’eqchi’ Maya town of Lanquín. It consists of a natural 300m limestone bridge, under which passes the Cahabòn River. Atop the bridge is a series of stepped, turquoise pools, a popular swimming attraction.

The river spins widly down as it sucks water into a limestone tunnel.

There are very few tourists which makes it particularly worth the journey to what is possibly the most attractive site in Guatemala.