Charlie

Welcome to the Jungle

This Earth Day, we’re bringing you ecotourism.

Imagine selling your beloved Jaguar, and just about everything you own, to buy a remote and rustic piece of property in Ecuador.

Local Charlestonite Eric Schwartz knows exactly how that feels.

He and his wife, Maggie, did just that almost 30 years ago, and that rustic piece of property is now La Selva Jungle Lodge in Quito, Ecuador.

Now comfortably settled in Charleston, it’s a bit hard to imagine them battling through 4 hours of mud and a sinking canoe to find the perfect spot for the eco-lodge. (Don’t worry, transportation is much easier now, and includes beverages.) While the Holy City’s steamy summers may be the only humid reminder of Quito, the Schwartz’s downtown home is embellished with remnants of their Amazon adventure, from the clay pots in the kitchen to the rare stones dotting the hallways.

So, why Ecuador? Schwartz was a journalist in Hollywood who was often sent on dangerous assignments to remote locations across the globe. He ventured into the Amazon, where he was amazed at the variety and abundance of new species (see little furball monkey squirrel thing above). It took 6 months to find the perfect space for the eco-lodge. But find it he did, and he opened La Selva Jungle Lodge “to be on the cusp of discovery every day.”

So it’s a little further than Kiawah, but there you’ll find 16 bungalows, dining (culinary creations draw from the bounty of the Ecuadorian earth, from fresh vegetables to exotic fruits), bar, hammock hut, butterfly farm, and the “Indigenous Rainforest Spa,” incorporating medicinal herbs native to the Amazon. The “Amazonian Treatment,” which includes energy cleaning, a heated footbath, head massage, hydrating mask, full-body massage and rainforest bath, isn’t exactly your norm spa treatment. And apparently the Amazon is cheap…2 hours of bliss runs you about a $70 tab.

Canopy breakfasts, candlelit dockside dinners, sunset cruises, jungle expeditions, Amazon night expeditions. (No ghost tours.) Excursions led by native guides venture into the neighboring International Rainforest Park – 300,000 feet of pure and untouched land. You’ll see more than 650 types of birds and a wide variety of species only found there (again, see little furball monkey squirrel thing above). Nature as Mother Nature intended.

And the beloved Jaguar that was sold? Guess it doesn’t compare to the sensual experience of the Amazon.

Welcome to the jungle. With a touch of sweetgrass.

LaSelvaJungleLodge.com

Story by: Katie Strumpf