Untitled - The Alfred Russel Wallace Website

22 NOTES OF A BOTANIST CHAP.
1 8. We slept in a chacra (shed) just
below the worst fall, called Yurac-yacu (white
water), because the water here bursts into foam
over rocks strewed in the river at a narrow curve.
An hour farther there is another similar mal paso
(called Curi-yacu), where a stream comes in on the
left bank, said to contain gold. Some way below
Chasuta we passed, on the left bank, a considerable
ravine with still black water called Yanacana-yacu
(Ladder River), from its running over steps
upper part
in its
as it comes down from Curi-yacu. This
mountain, whenever we came in sight of it, had its
summit wrapped in mists and showers, from which
it is said to be never free.
After passing the rapid of Curi-yacu the river
gradually opens out wider, but still in many places
runs rapidly over sharp gravel. Mountains appear
on every side Curi-yacu on the right, the low,
rounded, acute-edged cerros of Chasuta nearly in
front, and the lofty Morillo (yielding only to Curiyacu
in height) in front and rather to the left. On
our left, directly across the river, are only lower hills.
Alligators, turtles, and pirarucu exist in the
Huallaga as far as the rapids of Yurac-yacu. The
small alligator is found all the way up to Huanuco,
as is also the fresh-water dolphin of the Amazon.
Electric eels are frequent in the Huallaga and
Ucayali, and still more in the lakes connected with
these rivers.
June 23. \Ve reached Chasuta on the evening
of the 1 8th. It is a considerable village on the
lett bank of the Huallaga, at the mouth of a rather
large ravine, and from being situated at the very
foot of abrupt rocky hills, while loftier ones appear