One day Authentic Willie Mays Jersey , not long ago, I sat at the round table in front of the Yellow Rose, drinking a cold Iquitena with my good friend, Ryan, talking about the many beautiful orchids and epiphytes we have observed in the rainforest near Iquitos, Peru. Ryan nodded his head.

He glanced over his shoulder, leaned toward me, and said in a low voice Willie McCovey Jersey , "My spies, which are wrong ninety percent of the time, tell me that a new species of orchid has been discovered near Moyobamba the size of a dinner plate."

"Sounds more like the size of a pile of horse manure to me."

"My spies work for INRENA."

"I always wanted to go to Moyobamba."

"They say the weather is perfect every day and every night."

"I think I will go tomorrow."

"You know about the Lacey Act?"

"How can I not know, you lecture me on it once a week!"

"I only want you to be careful and stay out of trouble. This orchid is unknown to science, it is unnamed. You can not touch it, hold it, move it, transport it Dave Dravecky Jersey , or export it. You understand?"

"I understand! I only want to look at it. Smell it's scent, photograph it for posterity. That surely doesn't violate the Lacey Act, does it?"

"Be careful, it's intoxicating."

I spent one day researching and packing. My best friend, Marmelita, and I left the next day for Tarapoto, a quiet, clean Gaylord Perry Jersey , farming community. We found an inexpensive hostel, two blocks from the central plaza, took a motokar to the market and made a meal out of fresh milk, whole grain corn bread, good cheese, fruits, and nuts from the local farms.

My Nikon D-70 camera malfunctioned and the man at the camera repair shop loaned us his digital Canon while he worked on mine. In the afternoon we hired a car to take us up to the High Cascade Waterfalls, a great place to swim and enjoy nature. In the evening we ate delicious Orlando Cepeda Jersey , giant, fresh, aqua-farmed Malaysian shrimp and washed it down with a pitcher of mango juice. The next morning my camera was still in pieces so we decided to spend another day in Tarapoto.

Tarapoto is not a bad place for nature lovers. It was near here the English botanist and explorer, Richard Spruce, discovered and named the Platycerium Andinum, or Staghorn Fern. Spruce's specimen died before getting back to England and it was not until 1969 that Lee Moore, the Adventurer, rediscovered the staghorn in the vicinity of Tarapoto and got a live specimen back to civilization.

I fondly remember growing two staghorn ferns in the shower of my bathroom in Indiana Juan Marichal Jersey , in the 70s, doing my best to recreate the tropical rainforest environment. When I found my first magnificent specimen in the wild rainforest, I realized how pitiful my houseplants had been. This monster circled most of the tree, had fronds hanging down five feet or more, and the 35 shield fronds grew nearly two feet tall. If my house plants had reached their natural potential, there would not have been room for me to have taken a shower.

The next morning my camera still did not work. I purchased the used Canon 3.2 megapixel I had borrowed the day before. Compared to the Nikon at 5 megapixels, with the wonderful lens and all the buttons and functions that I know and love, this was a big loss. With no practice and the manual in Spanish Will Clark Jersey , the odds of getting great photos were about the same as finding an orchid big as a plate.