Breathtaking moments in the wetlands of Amampare

Breathtaking moments in the wetlands of Amampare

TIMIKA, Irian Jaya (JP): Dolphins broke the misty silence of the swamp. First, one solitary fin sliced through the river's glassy surface, then another, and within five minutes a small group decided it might be fun just to hang out and look cool. Wait a minute, what was going on?

Early morning in the maze of waterways near Amampare, and we are on a swamp tour. Huge mangrove swamps and ancient rain forests pour into a complex network of rivers and creeks. Easy to get lost, we are told, so try and remember landmarks. Yeah right. (Third tree on the left after the crocodile slide, right next to that floating log).

The sun glistens off snow covered mountain peaks in the distance. The scene is breathtaking. This particular morning it had all the makings of a classic nature documentary and in that frame of mind we were half expecting to see some man-eating crocodiles, maybe one or two spine crushing snakes, but where did the cool looking dolphins come from?

The locals that frequent this particular stretch of river in southwest Irian Jaya near Timika, (and there aren't many), had never seen these most beautiful of creatures that far up-river before. This was a very rare event. We kind of knew it all along. So we tried to set up the award winning wildlife shot of the century. There it was; equatorial glaciers shining white against a deep blue sky. Towering over a primeval jungle so packed full of life that you can feel it breathing and taste its moods. And in the foreground a dolphin moving in that classic arc they do so well. Brilliant shot that would have been. Maybe next time.

-- Andy Barski