Iquitos: Gateway to the Peruvian Amazon
Iquitos — the world's largest city inaccessible by road, reachable only by boat or plane — is the capital of Loreto, Peru's largest and most biodiverse region; the city sits where the Amazon proper begins, surrounded by the world's most species-rich rainforest
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Roadless City
Iquitos is one of the world's largest cities inaccessible by road — the Amazon and its tributaries isolate it from the Peruvian highway network; all goods, people and food arrive by river (3-7 days from Pucallpa) or by air; the city of 500,000 people is completely dependent on river and air logistics
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Amazon River Formation
Near Iquitos, the Marañón and Ucayali rivers join to form the Amazon itself; the Amazon at Iquitos is already 2-4 km wide and carries approximately 20% of all fresh water flowing into the world's oceans; the river's seasonal floods (Várzea) are extreme — water levels vary by up to 10 meters between wet and dry seasons
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Pink River Dolphins
The Amazon river dolphin (boto or pink dolphin) lives in the rivers around Iquitos; the largest river dolphin species in the world (up to 2.5 m long), the pink dolphin has pink skin, an unfused occipital vertebra that allows it to look sideways, and a thick forehead; the animals are sacred in Amazonian mythology
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Pacaya-Samiria Reserve
Reserva Nacional Pacaya-Samiria — 2 million hectares of protected flooded forest accessible from Iquitos — is one of the world's largest protected wetlands; the reserve's fish (giant arapaima, tucunaré), birds (hoatzin, macaws, harpy eagle), reptiles (black caiman) and primates (pink-faced monkeys) make it one of the world's great wildlife destinations
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Amazon Biodiversity
The Loreto region around Iquitos has outstanding biodiversity — more bird species than the entire United States, more tree species per hectare than any other ecosystem on earth, and new species discovered every year; the pharmaceutical, agricultural and scientific value of this biodiversity is immeasurable
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Amazon Lodge Tourism
Dozens of eco-lodges accessible by boat from Iquitos offer jungle experiences - night caiman spotting, canopy walks, piranha fishing and visits to indigenous communities; the lodges range from basic platforms in the forest to luxury resorts on the river bank; the 3-night lodge stay is the standard Iquitos visitor experience