amazonas – Community Adventures Ecuador

Yasuní and Oil in Ecuador: A Short History and the 2023 Vote

admin — Wed, 22 Feb 2017 20:51:30 +0000

Quick answer: Yasuní’s ITT fields (Block 43) have produced oil since 2016. On August 20, 2023, 58.95% of Ecuadorian voters chose to keep that oil in the ground, and the Constitutional Court gave the state one year to withdraw. By August 2026, Block 43 still produced about 40,000 barrels a day, and Petroecuador’s closure plan runs to 2034.

Updated September 2026 by our local guides in Quito: this opinion piece was written before the 2023 referendum. We kept the original text and added a verified timeline, the referendum result, the state of its implementation in 2025–2026, a few factual corrections and how to visit Yasuní responsibly.

Yasuní and oil: timeline of key facts

Year	What happened
1979	Yasuní National Park is created. Today it covers about 1,022,736 hectares (roughly 10,200 km²) in Orellana and Pastaza.
1989	UNESCO declares the Yasuní Biosphere Reserve.
1999	A presidential decree creates the Tagaeri-Taromenane Intangible Zone to protect peoples in voluntary isolation (the original post says 1998).
2007	Ecuador launches the Yasuní-ITT Initiative: leave the oil underground in exchange for $3.6 billion in international contributions.
August 2013	President Correa ends the initiative. About $336 million had been pledged and only about $13 million delivered.
October 2013	The National Assembly declares oil in Blocks 31 and 43 of “national interest,” limiting operations to no more than one per thousand (0.1%) of the park’s area, not 1% as the post says.
September 2016	First oil flows from the Tiputini field. Tambococha and later Ishpingo follow. Before the vote, Block 43 produced roughly 55,000 to 60,000 barrels a day.
August 20, 2023	National referendum: 58.95% vote to keep Block 43’s oil in the ground indefinitely. The Constitutional Court orders a progressive withdrawal within one year.
September 2024	Petroecuador begins abandoning wells, after the one-year deadline had passed.
December 2025	58 of 246 wells abandoned (about 24%).
August 2026	Block 43 still produces about 40,000 barrels a day. Petroecuador’s closure schedule extends to 2034.

The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the official position of Community Travel Group.

Yasuní National Park is one of the most biodiverse places on the planet, and logically, one of the places with less human per square kilometer compared to the large and deforested cities of the 21st century. The reserve is 9820 square kilometers in size and is located between the provinces of Orellana and Pastaza in Ecuador. But this is only one more fact if what we really want to know is what this territory means to its inhabitants and to humanity. In 1989 UNESCO declared Yasuní “International Biosphere Reserve”, which was expected to protect the territory, but this apparently only motivated the exploration of the human and therefore the inappropriate exploitation of the reserve, oil exploitation that Is done with the knowledge and licenses of the Ecuadorian government.

Yes, it is not a lie what I have just said, but it does not have anything to do with a political matter: in 1998 the Intangible Zone was declared, which included part of the current Yasuní reserve, and was delimited because it was wanted to keep indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation away from the oil fields. Similarly in 2007, the protection commitment was renewed, this time putting the case at the international negotiating table, requesting the developed countries to pay an economic compensation for each year in which the rich oil deposits were not exploited at Ecuador. Six years later? Initiative canceled because developed countries were not interested in keeping that oil in the subsoil but put it on the market.

Due to the precipitous fall of the mobilization of environmentalists and government to protect the reserve, a boycott to the Amazon perpetrated by the developed countries, nowadays one of the three areas to be protected (Tiputini) is already in prosperous production of oil and for this year the second (Tambococha) will be fully operational. Tiputini has a yield of 20,000 barrels of crude a day, you can imagine how much that represents in carbon emissions …

At what point did the international reserves of the biosphere (taking into account the extensive and pompous title in earnest) become active oil exploitation areas? I’m not just talking about the geographic space that the reserve occupies, part of it includes the territory of the Huaorani nation, who are entitled to the extension of land but not any right to the minerals of the subsoil that they have inhabited in their original Amazon, Both the anti-exploitation demonstrations have been unsuccessful since they have no constitutional right to the oil that is just below their feet. There is no right to prevent the bleeding of your own land.

However, on paper, no more than 1% of the protected territory of the reserve shall be operated; It is not a question of throwing blame but of reviewing the facts and start asking us as citizens of the world what our role is so that this kind of things will not continue to happen. It is no longer a secret in the information age that the Amazon is in danger, but the only non-renewable resource is oil? Because when we talk about non-renewable resources we forget all these species (vegetable, animal and spiritual) so biodiverse that they keep in balance in the lung of the world? I do not think we can renew a single (if extinct) of the more than eighty species of bats that are in this reserve (to put a vague example). Nor do I believe that we can justify by the wishes of the “civilized” world the destruction of the forest, of the jungle, and of any manifestation of life on earth.

Bibliography:

What happened after the 2023 Yasuní referendum?

It was the first time a country’s voters chose to leave proven oil reserves in the ground, but implementation has been slow. The government set up a committee in May 2024 to carry out the result, and Petroecuador started closing wells in September 2024, after the one-year deadline set by the Constitutional Court had already passed. According to data compiled by the Ecuadorian fact-checking outlet Lupa Media, only 58 of the block’s 246 wells had been abandoned by December 2025, and production was still around 40,000 barrels a day in August 2026. The state oil company’s plan now stretches to 2034. Waorani organizations, YASunidos and other groups have filed non-compliance actions that the Constitutional Court had not resolved as of August 2026 (GK, Human Rights Watch). Note that the vote covers Block 43 only. Other oil blocks inside and around the park, such as Block 31, are not part of it.

How can you visit Yasuní responsibly?

Most trips start in Coca (Puerto Francisco de Orellana), a flight of about 35 minutes or a bus ride of 9 to 10 hours from Quito. From there, motor canoes run down the Napo River to lodges on the park’s northern edge. The most responsible choice is a lodge owned or co-managed by the local Kichwa or Waorani community, such as Napo Wildlife Center, run by the Kichwa Añangu community. That way, your money goes to the people protecting the forest. Never try to enter the Intangible Zone or look for “uncontacted” groups: contact can be deadly for them, and it is prohibited. Choose licensed naturalist guides and never buy wildlife products.

Yasuní lodges are excellent but usually cost several hundred dollars a night. For a budget-friendly Amazon trip, we run tours to Cuyabeno, a reserve in Sucumbíos with blackwater lagoons, pink river dolphins and Siona communities. Read our Cuyabeno vs Yasuní comparison to choose.

Cuyabeno Jungle Tour · from USD 310 pp · 3D/2N, 4D/3N or 5D/4N · departures Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri

Lodge, meals on tour, rubber boots, poncho and a bilingual naturalist guide, with a Siona community visit and a sunset swim in Laguna Grande.

See the tour →

Related guides

Plan it with us

Our office is at Pedro Fermín Cevallos N6-78 y Olmedo, on the edge of Quito’s Old Town, inside Community Hostel. Drop by, message us on WhatsApp at +593 97 953 3832 or write to info@communitytravel.ec, and one of our local guides will help you plan the Amazon part of your trip with current prices and departure dates.

Frequently asked questions

What did Ecuador’s 2023 Yasuní referendum decide?

On August 20, 2023, 58.95% of voters said yes to keeping the crude oil of Block 43, known as ITT (Ishpingo, Tambococha, Tiputini), underground indefinitely. The Constitutional Court ordered the state to withdraw oil activity progressively within one year of the result being made official and to not sign new contracts. The vote applies to Block 43 only, not to every oil block in Yasuní.

Is oil still being extracted in Yasuní in 2026?

Yes. In August 2026, Block 43 still produced about 40,000 barrels a day, down from around 55,000 to 60,000 before the vote. Petroecuador began abandoning wells in September 2024 and had closed 58 of 246 by December 2025. Its plan extends the full closure to 2034, and non-compliance actions are pending before the Constitutional Court.

What was the Yasuní-ITT Initiative?

Launched in 2007, it proposed that Ecuador would leave the ITT oil untouched if the international community contributed $3.6 billion, about half the oil’s estimated value. By August 2013 only about $336 million had been pledged and roughly $13 million delivered, and President Correa ended the plan. The National Assembly authorized drilling that October, and production began in 2016.

Who lives in Yasuní National Park?

The park overlaps the ancestral territory of the Waorani and borders Kichwa communities along the Napo River. It also shelters the Tagaeri and Taromenane, peoples living in voluntary isolation, for whom a 1999 decree created the Intangible Zone. Under Ecuador’s constitution the state owns subsoil resources, which is why communities cannot veto oil projects on their land.

Can tourists visit Yasuní National Park?

Yes, mainly through lodges on the Napo River reached from Coca, which is a short flight or a 9 to 10 hour bus ride from Quito. Community-owned lodges are the most responsible option. Visitors cannot enter the Intangible Zone. Trips usually last 3 to 5 days and cost more than Cuyabeno tours, which start from $310 for 3 days with us.

Het bericht Yasuní and Oil in Ecuador: A Short History and the 2023 Vote verscheen eerst op Community Adventures Ecuador.

Misahuallí, Ecuador: Amazon Jungle Town Guide (2026)

admin — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 20:59:31 +0000

Quick answer: Puerto Misahuallí is a small river town in Napo province, about 5 to 6 hours from Quito by bus via Tena. Its beach still has a small troop of wild capuchin monkeys, fewer than in the past. Most visitors come for canoe trips on the Napo River, short jungle walks and the Las Latas waterfalls, 13 km away.

Updated September 2026 by our local guides in Quito: we added how to get to Misahuallí from Quito, current bus and entry prices, the situation of the monkeys on the beach and a correction about the Ahuano airport.

Misahuallí at a glance	As of 2026
Where	Puerto Misahuallí, Tena canton, Napo province, where the Misahuallí River meets the Napo
Quito to Tena	Bus from Quitumbe terminal via Baeza, about 4.5 to 5 hours, around $8 to $10
Tena to Misahuallí	Local bus from Tena, roughly every 40 minutes, about 45 minutes, $0.90
Las Latas waterfalls	13 km from Tena on the road to Misahuallí, $1.50 entry, about 45 minutes of trail
Canoe rides on the Napo	From about $20 per group for short trips, more for longer routes
Best for	A relaxed Amazon stop combined with rafting in Tena; not for deep-jungle wildlife

Local tip: Do not feed or touch the monkeys, and keep sunglasses, phones and snacks inside a zipped bag on the beach. They are wild capuchins and can bite when people tease them or pull food away.

A popular tourist stop is the small town of Misahualli Ecuador (pronounced Mees-a-why-YEE). Located at the junction of the Misahuallí and Napo rivers this sleepy, end of the road town has beautiful jungle scenery and a large sandy beach.

Animal Life

The most popular inhabitants of Misahualli are the monkeys. They wander along the beach and into the park at the center of town.

Be careful the monkeys are very mischievous and will steal anything they can get their hands on. Water bottles and food are their favorite things to snatch. Watch you cameras and sunglasses too.

Things to Do

2026 update: The “new International Airport” at Ahuano mentioned below is Jumandy Airport, opened in 2011. It has had no scheduled commercial flights since January 2016, so plan to arrive by road through Tena. The Las Latas trail is still open: it passes a small 3 m fall and a 10 m fall with natural pools and caves, and the community charges $1.50. Always hire guides with a license from Ecuador’s Ministry of Tourism, as the original post advises.

There is a nice butterfly farm in Misahualli just a block from the park. You can see some of the many butterfly species found in the jungle including the beautiful blue morpho butterfly.

Misahualli Ecuador is a nice place to do a quick jungle tour. Day trips are available, as are longer trips. Options include nature walks, waterfalls, and visiting indigenous communities. Watch out for unlicensed, inexperienced guides.

The nearby Latas Waterfall is impressive and worth the jungle walk.

During the past, Misahualli was the principle passageway to Coca, with travelers going by canoe. This is no longer necessary, but you can still hire a canoe and go down river.

If you just want a short canoe experience try going from Misahualli to Ahuano. Ahuano is the site of the new “International” Airport in the jungle. And you can either go back to Misahualli by canoe or take the bus to Tena from Ahuano.

– See more at: http://www.life-in-ecuador.com/misahualli-ecuador.html#sthash.ZuZNd7Fz.dpuf

How do you get to Misahuallí from Quito, and what are the monkeys like now?

Take a bus from Quito’s Quitumbe terminal to Tena. The road climbs over the Papallacta pass and drops through Baeza, and the trip takes about 4.5 to 5 hours. From Tena’s terminal, local buses run to Puerto Misahuallí roughly every 40 minutes for $0.90, a ride of around 45 minutes. A taxi from Tena is faster if you share it. If you want to see Las Latas, ask the Misahuallí bus to drop you at the trail entrance, 13 km from Tena, and catch the next bus onward afterwards.

The capuchin monkeys still come down to the beach and the central park, and in 2026 local media still describes them as the town’s main draw. There are fewer of them than when this post was first written. A local guide quoted in the regional press put the troop at about 11 animals, down from around 32 some 15 years earlier, because of deaths, males leaving the group, hunting and animals being taken to rescue centers. Watch them from a few meters away and let them stay wild.

Misahuallí is an easy add-on to rafting in Tena, which is the main reason most of our travelers come to this part of Napo. For wildlife such as pink river dolphins, caimans and ten species of monkeys, you need to go deeper, to a reserve like Cuyabeno.

Tena Rafting · half day or full day · on request

Run the rivers around Tena with certified rafting guides, then spend the afternoon on the beach at Misahuallí. Tell us your dates and we will set up the day for you.

See the tour →

Related guides

Plan it with us

Frequently asked questions

How do I get from Quito to Misahuallí?

Take a bus from Quito’s Quitumbe terminal to Tena, about 4.5 to 5 hours and around $8 to $10. From Tena’s bus terminal, local buses leave for Puerto Misahuallí roughly every 40 minutes, cost $0.90 and take about 45 minutes. Door to door, count on 5 to 6 hours. There are no commercial flights to the nearby Jumandy Airport.

Are there still monkeys on the beach in Misahuallí?

Yes. A troop of wild capuchin monkeys still visits the beach and the central park, but it is smaller than it used to be. A local guide quoted in regional press counted about 11 monkeys, down from around 32 some 15 years earlier. Do not feed or touch them, and keep food, phones and sunglasses zipped away.

How much does it cost to visit the Las Latas waterfalls?

Entry to Cascada de Latas costs $1.50 per person, charged by the local community. The trailhead is about 13 km from Tena on the road to Misahuallí, so any Tena–Misahuallí bus can drop you there. The walk takes about 45 minutes and passes two falls of roughly 3 m and 10 m, with pools you can swim in. Wear shoes that can get wet.

Is Misahuallí worth visiting?

It is worth a night or a day if you are already in Tena for rafting. The town is quiet, the river beach is pleasant, and canoe trips and short jungle walks are easy to arrange. It is not the place for deep-jungle wildlife, because the forest around town is secondary and settled. For that, choose Cuyabeno or Yasuní.

Can you still take a canoe from Misahuallí to Coca?

The road network means nobody needs the canoe to reach Coca anymore, and long river trips downriver are now arranged privately rather than as a regular service. Short canoe rides on the Napo, for example toward Ahuano, start at around $20 per group. Agree on the price and route before you leave, and wear the life vest.

Het bericht Misahuallí, Ecuador: Amazon Jungle Town Guide (2026) verscheen eerst op Community Adventures Ecuador.