At around 7:00 am the Woarani tribe came to the lodge we were staying at bright and early so we could meet them. A Woarani family walked up the stairs with different patterns of red paint on their faces.  I didn’t know what I was going to see, but I definitely didn’t anticipate that. As they introduced their names, I noticed that some of them knew Spanish and some only spoke Woa, the native language of the Woarani tribe. 

Everyone introduced themselves with their Woa, Spanish, and symbolic name. Once all the indigenous people went, it was the our turn to introduce ourselves. Some of them laughed as we introduced ourselves, probably because our names meant something different in Woa. Once we went around, the Woaroni tribe gave us all nick names.  Mine was “Boyotai”, which is the Grandfather of the tribe and the direct translation is river dolphin.  

After introductions, we got suited for the jungle and hopped into the canoes. We made it to a slim and hidden creek off the river which shows how well the Woarani know the jungle. All we could hear was the sounds of nature and machete swings as we went further into the narrow creek.  We stopped, got off, and the Woaroni took us about 60 yards through the thick jungle to get us to our destination, a vine. After testing the strength of the vine and clearing out the greenery around us, it was our turn swing from the trees.  Everyone successfully made it across the creek, some with superhero type landings, and some enjoyed the taste of fresh Ecuadorian mud.  

After more vine swinging techniques that the Woarani taught us, we headed back to the lodge. As everyone walked up, I asked if I could go fishing with them and the Woarani welcomed me into the canoe again.  With just me, my buddy Wyatt, and 5 Woarani men, I knew this was truly going to be a one of a kind fishing trip.  We went just down the river and stopped at a bank where the oldest Woarani man got off.  He came back about 10 seconds later with a small palm branch which confused me.  Then I realized that this was his fishing pole for the day.  He tied on the line to the end with a hook, leader, and weight.  I had the same set up, but with a real fishing rod, except no reel and the about 10 feet of line was tied to the tip.  The others had hand lines and then we all dropped our lines in.  Within seconds we had bites and I even caught a few catfish.  I’ve never seen catfish with such shiny colors and stripes before. One of the catfish we caught was a shovel nose catfish which are usually a rare aquarium fish in the United States.  No matter the size, we didn’t throw any fish back because even the little ones can be eaten or used for bait for the bigger fish.  Luckily one of the Woarani men knew Spanish so I could somewhat communicate with him.  After catching a few fish, we moved onto a new spot in the shade and did the same thing.  After I felt another bite, I flicked the rod tip up to hook the fish, but accidentally snagged the line on something at the bottom of the river. It was very interesting to see one man carve a notch into a long wooden stick to try and guide the line down and get it out from wherever it was stuck.  After that didn’t work and the line snapped, I thought we would move on and accept the lost hook, but not the Woarani.  The same man stuck the stick into the mud within the proximity of where the hook was and jumped into the water.  I’ve fished all my life and I’ve never gone into the water to retrieve a lure, let alone just a hook.  The man grabbed onto the stick he previously placed in the water and dived down into the muddy water.  He came up multiple times with giant logs and sticks which he thought might have the hook in it.  After about 5 minutes of diving and then resting to catch his breath, he finally brought up the right price of wood with my hook.  We smiled and celebrated for a brief second and then made our way back to the lodge.  

The experience of meeting the tribe and learning a few fun jungle activities was special and something I’ll never forget.  However, being given the privilege to spend time with the Woarani alone is even more unique.  What I consider a hobby, is their means of food and in turn, survival, for not only themselves, but for their families and communities. The new techniques and dedication to their fishing equipment, gave me a new perspective on fishing that I haven’t seen before. With only half the day gone, there was so much more to experience with the Woarani tribe.