Napo River
The Napo east of Puerto Francisco de Orellana
The Napo River is a 1480 km long river with a water flow of 4600 m³ / s, according to other sources of 6,300 m³ / s
It originates on the western slopes of the volcanoes of Antisana, and Cotopaxi Sincholagua, flowing through the Ecuadorian and Peruvian part of the Amazon basin and flows Francisco de Orellana in the Amazon.
Before the Napo reached the plain, his flow to a variety in the Páramos the Andes emerging and fed from the glaciers of the rivers mentioned volcanoes. The upper Napo is in this area, also called Jatunyacu ( Quichua for big water). Already in the Amazon basin, the upper Napo flows at Puerto Napo, with the river and from there Anzuni Napo says ( or Lower Napo ).
From this point on the Napo flows to the northeast until it unites with the left-side tributary Coca. At this point, there is Puerto Francisco de Orellana (also known as El Coca ), the capital of the Ecuadorian province of Orellana. From here the Napo flows eastwards and is again fed to the Ecuadorian- Peruvian border left side by the waters of the Aguarico, which rises in the folds of the Cayambe volcano. The river course turns on Peruvian territory to the southeast. From right it flows in the further course at the Cucuray Curaray to. When Peruvian place Francisco de Orellana in the province of Napo Maynas flows into the Amazon.
Other, smaller tributaries of the Napo are on the left side of the Misahuallí, the Suno, the Jivino and the Río Tambo Yacu and right side of the Arajuno, the Tiputini and the Yasuní.
The Napo is navigable from the Amazon up to at least the confluence of the Curucay. He also is navigable from Coca ago. On the Ecuadorian side especially the upper reaches and numerous tributaries for rafting are popular.
The Napo in 1541 cycle all under the leadership of Francisco de Orellana, Gonzalo Pizarro on the expedition, which had among other things, the search for the legendary land of gold Eldorado goal from Quito to the Amazon. However, the group found themselves in the huge delta can not handle, Pizzaro decided to turn back to Quito and witnessed his march back along the marshy banks of the Rio Napo and through the rain forests on the eastern slopes of the Andes probably the privation richest company in the South African history of discovery.
The reverse journey made from the Amazon, starting for the first time the Portuguese cartographer Pedro Teixeira from 1637 to 1639.