Survivor: The Amazon series
Robert Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve
nearest city: Oakland
(Alameda County, CA)
I have been a big fan of CBS's premier reality show Survivor since
the original series. It is currently on its sixth cast, and 16 men
and women who were sent to the tropical rain forest of the Amazon for
39 days to battle it out, leaving the sole survivor $1,000,000
richer. The motto of the show is to Outwit, Outplay and Outlast,
which might also work as the rallying cry of letterboxers sometimes.
planted by PrincessLea on March 21, 2003
terrain: medium difficulty - part smooth, part rocky dirt/ path with
some uphill climbs
rountrip distance - 1.7 miles (trail is a loop)
Directions: There is a variety of ways to get to the park, which is
located just east of the intersection of Grizzly Peak Blvd. and
Skyline Blvd. Best to find your way on a map, either from Highway
24 or Highway 13.
Box #1 - Survivor Logo
The Amazon is dominated by its famous river and almost daily
thunderstorms - so the first box is hidden near water. There are
some eucalyptus near a barbed wire fence - check behind one of the
boulders. The hiding place is marked by large rock.
Go back down trail to junction, take a hard right onto the trail
marked "to Volcanic Trail." You will go through a cattle gate at the
beginning.
Box #2 - Jaburu Tribe
On the first episode of Survivor: The Amazon, the men and women were
separated into same sex tribes - a gimmick which was new this season,
setting the scene for a Battle of the Sexes. The women's team was
named Jaburu, which is the name of an Amazonian stork.
On a small rise above marker #2 (which points out part of the wall of
the caldera of the volcano for which the park is named) is a large
bush/ tree. Search in the branches on left side. This box is the
most exposed of the series, so please take pains to cover it
completely when you leave.
Proceed on the path and make a U turn at the juncture - toward "Round
Top Loop Trail." Follow the Round Top signs (don't go down into the
quarry!)
Box #3 - Tambaqui Tribe
The tribe that was originally made up of men was called Tambaqui,
after an Amazonian fish.
You will reach a cattle gate in a barbed wire fence. Just past the
gate there is a grove of burned out eucalyptus trees. Once through
the gate, you will see a large burned out stump; immediately in front
of it are two smaller logs perpendicular to each other - search at
their point of intersection.
Continue along the rocky path until you reach an asphalt road; turn
left and walk down about 0.08 miles, where you will see a trail on
the right marked "Skyline Trail" and "Bay Area Ridge Trail." Take
this trail to the last box.
Box #4 - Immunity Idol
Half way down this trail is giant fallen redwood; its root system
will be on your left and stands about 4' high. Go to the far side of
the trunk and look beneath it, at the spot marked by a bunch of pine
cones. This is my favorite stamp of the series, so please re-pile
the cones when you're done to protect the hiding place.
Continue to follow this trail - it will bring you back to where you
began your hike.
Once Survivor: The Amazon airs all of its episodes, I will
probably add a couple more boxes to this series: one of the ultimate
survivor (i.e., the winner!), the immunity necklace and the merged
tribe. Thanks for playing Survivor!