After the Upper Jondachi and a night of drinking… most of our group was unmotivated. As noon rolled around Laura, Diane and I motivated to get on an easy float down the Jatunyacu which is a popular rafting run. There are two put-ins for the run, we opted for the lower to keep the run to 12 miles instead of 18. As it turned out through the 12 miles only took a little over an hour so the full run wouldn't have been a bad decision. It went by so fast we were actually really nervous taking off the river thinking we were getting off too early… but “take off at the first bridge” seemed like easy instructions to follow and the price of missing it could be a long paddle into the unknown… so we gambled and lucked out.
Anyways, this run was great fluffy class III. I really which I had a playboat on this run as there was some really nice surf and downriver spots on the run. If you are a looking for a shorter and mellower day on the water. This is a great option. But don't expect to experience solitude as there are houses along the river and rafts in the water.
Also, as this area is popular, I am sure all of the rapids on these rivers have real names… but I don't know them.
Mi -0.0:
Honestly, there aren't any standout rapids. The run consists of long wave trains, some bigger than others. But non with unique personality. The biggest and most fun of the rapids are all in the first half. After that it turns into a quick paced class II paddle.
Take-out: Take-out is easy to find. Just south of Tena on E45, at the bridge over the Jatunyacu (which turns into the Napo just downstream).
Put-in: Our taxi driver knew the way. We used the lower take-out which is at the foot bridge that leads to Serena. There is an upper put-in… buy the guidebook for those directions.