Miami to Buenos Aires

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Miami and
S. Florida

Miami and Southern Florida

START
Cuba

Cuba

35 mins
430 km
Jamaica

Cockpit Country, Jamaica

1hr 10 mins
880 km
Sierra Nevada
Santa Marta

Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia

2 hours
1,797 km
Boyacá
Colombia

Boyacá, Colombia

3hrs 30mins
2,361 km
Amazonas
Brazil

Amazonas, Brazil

6 hours
3,778 km
Rio Branco
Brazil

Rio Branco

7 hours
4,180km
Rio Beni
Bolivia

Rio Beni

7hrs 20mins
4,525 km
Cochabamba
Bolivia

Cochabamba

7hrs 50mins
5,000km
Salv. Mazza
& Yacuiba

Salvador Mazza & Yacuiba

8hrs 20mins
5,560km
Chaco
Argentina

Chaco, Argentina

9 hours
6,215 km
Paraná River
Argentina

The Paraná River

9hrs 25mins
6,725 km
Buenos Aires
Argentina

Buenos Aires, Argentina

10 hours
7,127 km

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Rio Beni

Ancient earthworks built by the people of Las Lomas covered an area greater than the Pyramids of Gisa.

The Madidi National Park is one of Bolivia’s largest, covering 45,000 square kilometres.

A complex pre-Colombian society flourished in the Las Lomas region of Beni between the 1st and 13th centuries.

Tobacco, peanuts, cotton, cassava (manioc), vanilla and sweet potatoes are thought to have been originally grown in the raised fields of this region.

The town of Rurrenabaque was originally settled when quinine became an important fever medicine.

Beni’s main industry is now cattle ranching, having once been a centre for agriculture and rubber production.

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Flying at 13,000m - The aquatic culture of Las Lomas

Seasonal flooding in the Beni region: the low lying savannah is often regularly submerged by increased river flow due to heavy rainfall and snow melt from the Andes.

A satellite image of the Manmore image in the Beni region showing the old river bed. Flooding and increased water alters the course of the river, creating a series of ox-bow lakes and relic meanders.

Flooding in Beni encroaches on a farm and house. The ancient pre-Colombian settlers of this area built huge raised systems of earthworks to avoid being overwhelmed by flooding.

Water inundates the low lying Beni savannah grassland during an annual bout of seasonal flooding.

A satellite image showing rivers draining off the Andes into the Beni region, with the Beni and the Manmore rivers at bottom right.

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Flying at 1,000m - Beni’s changeable history

Heavy seasonal rainfall, combined with additional melt water from the Andes, often results in widespread flooding across Beni, which caused European settlers to initially avoid the region.

Maize (also known as corn) was grown across the Beni region in raised fields. Many species of maize are ancient, dating back to the Incas.

An 18th century engraving of the legendary city of El Dorado. Although many conquistadors searched in vain for this mythical city of gold, it was never discovered.

Maize plants are still grown across Bolivia, and were a staple in the Beni region when raised field agriculture was widespread up until the 13th century.

Cattle ranches are now the main source of land use across the Beni region as both agriculture and rubber production have both been widely abandoned.

A Bolivian bank note dating from 1911, when large numbers of these notes were produced due to the sudden wealth brought by the Bolivian rubber boom, which lasted until the 1920s.

Rice is a crop which is still widely grown across the Beni region today, both on a small scale for families and also for commercial production and sale.

Beni was at the centre of Bolivia's "rubber boom", which brought great wealth to the region during the 19th century until synthetic substitutes were made available after WWII.

Unprepared roots of manioc or cassava, a staple crop of the original raised field systems in Beni and a major source of carbohydrate in many subtropical regions.

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Flying at ground level - Eco-tourism in Beni

Piranhas are often found in the river and caught by guides to show tourists - their rows of sharp and dangerous teeth are a favourite curiosity.

Walking tours across the pampas grassland are also a popular way to see a variety of birds and wildlife.

Sunset over the Beni pampas - eco-tourism brings tours across the area to experience wildlife by boat, vehicle and on foot.

Squirrel monkeys play in the trees along the river's edge and are present along the Beni and Yacuma rivers into Madidi National Park.

Eco-lodges such as Chalalan have been set up to cater for visitors and tours. This lodge was set up and is run by the San Jose de Uchupiamonas indigenous people.

A family of capybaras, the largest rodent in the world, on the banks of the Beni river near Rurrenabaque. They are excellent swimmers and can remain under water for more than five minutes.

A lightweight canoe on the River Beni near Rurrenabaque. These canoes are often used for eco-safaris as they can be manoeuvred over the shallowest areas of the river easily.

A hoatzin sits atop a tree in Beni province. The bird is pheasant-sized, with a long plume on the back of its head and a claw on each of its wings.

Caimans and crocodiles can often be seen sunning themselves along the banks of the river - a fascinating but dangerous part of many eco-tours.

A line of riverboat canoes on the bank of the Beni in Rurrenabaque, waiting for travellers to commence their five or six hour journey downstream.

A huge variety of bird life, including this brightly coloured toucan, can be seen in the deep jungle of the Madidi National Park as part of the eco-tours.

A view across the pampas grassland to Rurrenabaque and the River Beni, a centre for eco-tourism with tours down river into the jungle and also across the pampas.

A local woman poles her cargo of bananas downstream for sale at Rurrenabaque. The River Beni is a key route for transportation across the region.

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© 2013 Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)