The region of South America called the Amazon is huge. It is roughly 2/3 the size of the entire United States. So when you look closely at the small remote villages that are scattered around it, you can see the remoteness and just how isolated a small village of 30 families on a tiny tributary really is. Imaging growing up in this area and spending 99% of your life only seeing your family and your friends living around you. The outside world probably looks very strange and far away. When we visit the people of these areas it is easy to take for granted coming and going so freely and the impact we have had on these people’s lives by simply being there. 

You can imagine how a brave Amazonian man that spends days in the jungle alone, hunting and fishing and commonly runs into wild animals, can be really people shy. Especially outsiders.  So imagine getting a knock on the door in the middle of the night by your friend and asked to spend the week taking a couple of gringo’s fishing on your river where you live. To carry out the duties of a fishing guide before you really even know what one is or does. Would you be scared?

For one of our fishing guides on our Amazon operation this is how it all began. Meet Charlie Vasconcelos, a local in the village of Terra Preta on the Xeruini River. Charlie is a younger brother of Doca, one of our top guides. They have a typical family with quite a few kids. They plant, harvest and make farinha. It took the two brothers a few minutes to count all the siblings, 6 boys and 5 girls. Charlie liked to follow his grandfather on hunting outings and learned shooting as early as he learned sneaking out of school to fish with Doca. They are the closest brothers in the family. Together, the two figured they could catch peacock bass and arowana with a piece of red cloth. And that you can find tons of fish right behind Chandoca beach across the river from the village. Harvesting nuts in the groves of Brazil Nut Trees on the Upper Xeruini is his favorite adventure since both boys were strong enough to carry a bag with 60 kg of precious castanhas (Brazil Nuts). They did sink their father’s boat once and did their best to save it before getting hit by something heavier than a flip-flop. With no doubt both enjoy living in Terra Preta and wouldn’t trade it for anything.