The Ucayali River ( es, Río Ucayali, ) is the main headstream of the

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

. It rises about north of

Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, i ...

, in the

Arequipa region Arequipa ( ay, Ariqipa; qu, Ariqipa) is a department and region in southwestern Peru. It is the sixth largest department in Peru, after Puno, Cuzco, Madre de Dios, Ucayali, and Loreto, its sixth most populous department, and its eleventh leas ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

and becomes the Amazon at the confluence of the Marañón close to

Nauta Nauta is a town in the northeastern part of Loreto Province in the Peruvian Amazon, roughly south of Iquitos, the provincial capital. Nauta is located on the north bank of the Marañón River, a major tributary of the Upper Amazon, a few miles ...

city. The city of

Pucallpa Pucallpa (, qu, puka allpa, lit=red dirt; Shipibo: ''May Ushin'') is a city in eastern Peru located on the banks of the Ucayali River, a major tributary of the Amazon River. It is the capital of the Ucayali region, the Coronel Portillo Provi ...

is located on the banks of the Ucayali.

Description

The Ucayali, together with the Apurímac River, the Ene River and the Tambo River, is today considered the main headwater of the ''Amazon River'', totaling a length of from the source of the ''Apurímac'' at

Nevado Mismi Mismi is a mountain peak of volcanic origin in the Chila mountain range in the Andes of Peru. A glacial stream on the Mismi was firmly identified as the most distant source of the Amazon River in 1996; this finding was confirmed in 2001 and ag ...

to the confluence of the Ucayali and

Marañón River , name_etymology = , image = Maranon.jpg , image_size = 270 , image_caption = Valley of the Marañón between Chachapoyas ( Leimebamba) and Celendín , map = Maranonrivermap.png , map_size ...

s: *Apurímac River (total length): *Ene River (total length): *Tambo River (total length): * Ucayali River (confluence with Tambo River to confluence with the Marañón):

Exploration

The Ucayali was first called ''San Miguel'', then ''Ucayali'', ''Ucayare'', ''Poro'', ''Apu-Poro'', ''Cocama'' and ''Rio de Cuzco''.

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

has organised many costly and ably-conducted expeditions to explore it. One of them (1867) claimed to have reached within of

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

, and the little steamer "Napo" found its way up the violent currents for above the junction with the

Pachitea River The Pachitea River is a river in Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , nat ...

, and as far as the Tambo River, from the confluence of the Ucayali with the Amazon. The "Napo" then succeeded in ascending the

Urubamba River The Urubamba River or Vilcamayo River (possibly from Quechua ''Willkamayu'', for "sacred river") is a river in Peru. Upstream it is called Vilcanota River (possibly from Aymara ''Willkanuta'', for "house of the sun"). Within the La Convención ...

upstream from its junction with the Tambo, to a point north of

Cuzco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the seventh most populous in Peru; ...

Navigation

Its width varies from , due to the large number of islands. The current runs from , and a channel from wide can always be found with a minimum depth of . There are five difficult passes, due to the accumulation of trees and rafts of timber. Sometimes large rocks which have fallen from the mountains and spread over the river-bed cause whirlpools.

National Reserve

Ucayali is home to the

Amazon river dolphin The Amazon river dolphin (''Inia geoffrensis''), also known as the boto, bufeo or pink river dolphin, is a species of toothed whale classified in the family Iniidae. Three subspecies are currently recognized: ''I. g. geoffrensis'' (Amazon river ...

, giant otter, and the

Amazonian manatee The Amazonian manatee (''Trichechus inunguis'') is a species of manatee that lives in the Amazon Basin in Brazil, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. It has thin, wrinkled brownish or gray colored skin, with fine hairs scattered over its body and a whit ...

, which are abundant in Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve, close to Nauta. The southeastern border of the reserve is formed by the lower Ucayali River. The river gives its name to the

Ucayali Region Ucayali () is an inland department and region of Peru. Located in the Amazon rainforest, its name is derived from the Ucayali River. Its capital is the city of Pucallpa. It is the second largest department in Peru, after Loreto. Geography ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

and the Ucayali Province of the Loreto Region.

References

External links

{{Authority control Rivers of Peru Tributaries of the Amazon River

Rivers A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

Rivers of Ucayali Region Upper Amazon