An unprecedented expedition tries to unravel the mystery of the true length of the Amazon River

What is the longest river in the world? The Amazon has a serious competitor in this “dispute”: based on differences in measurement, the Nile in Africa is considered the longer of the two. “It is a great mystery of geography, which will perhaps remain for a long time to be discovered. And this is a question not only for Brazil, but for the whole world”, says Brazilian explorer Yuri Sanada, who is planning a five-month expedition in April 2024.

Sanada says fewer than 10 people have trekked the full length of the Amazon to date, far fewer than other iconic expeditions like crossing the Atlantic (1,500 people) or climbing to the top of the ‘Everest (6,000 climbers) .

The Guaracy mission will depart from the Mantaro River, in the Peruvian Andes, in a first stage of rafting 5,000 meters. One of the project partners, the American James Contos, believes that the origin of the Amazon is actually further north than previously thought.

“Science couldn’t find anything by satellite because that area has a lot of clouds, it’s very overcast. The river makes a series of bends, there are trees, so nobody made that connection. Then we discovered that the Mantaro River is connected, yes, to the Amazon River. And that makes it a bit longer, less than 200 kilometers, than the other sources, like the Apurimac or the Maranhão”explains the Brazilian. “When you measure a river, if you measure from the shore, you have one measure, but if you measure from the middle of the river, you have another. So you have to measure the two rivers, the Nile and the ‘Amazon, with the same criteria to know which is the biggest’.

In the longest leg of the journey, the team will be split in two: one will focus on data collection and the other on image capture. Researchers from universities in Brazil, Peru and Colombia will accompany the mission, improving knowledge about biodiversity and the indigenous communities that live along the river. Additionally, they will use information capture satellites to digitally map the Amazon to the Atlantic Ocean.

The explorers will travel aboard three hybrid boats, made of resin and specially designed for adventure. The boats will then be donated to indigenous peoples and local residents, who pay up to 5 reais per liter of fuel to navigate the area.

“It’s a trimaran, a long canoe, which copies what the natives have been doing for thousands of years, and which is solar-powered and pedal-powered. You can sleep indoors, in the middle of the river or tied to a tree, away from animals and possible hostile people, who are also of concern. Sanada said.

The explorer ensures that the technical part of the navigation does not concern him, but the human dangers of the road concern him: “If there are problems, we will solve them. But the human part is the scariest and the most complicated at the moment, because there are illegal miners and drug traffickers. The Brazilian government has changed and made great strides in the Amazon, and these criminal centers have changed locations.” it is said.

“This information is important to be able to know where we will have to take an armed escort to have some security and not run the risk of being strafed, sinking and disappearing”underline.

The expedition is expected to end in September 2024 and will result in a series of videos. Later, Yuri Sanada plans to repeat the adventure on the Nile, “a must”, according to him, to clarify once and for all which is the longest river on the planet. In 2010, the Brazilian and his wife, Vera, were already on the African continent to retrace the odyssey of the Phoenicians.