Madeira River: Porto Velho's Amazon Artery
Porto Velho sits on the Madeira River — one of the Amazon's most powerful tributaries — where the historic Madeira-Mamoré railway ended and the river commerce of the western Amazon began
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Orla do Madeira Waterfront
Porto Velho Beach on the Madeira River is the city's most atmospheric area — the fishing boats, floating restaurants and sunset views over the river create a distinctly Amazonian urban scene
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Madeira River Commerce
Madeira has been a highway into the western Amazon since colonial times — river traffic links Porto Velho with the Bolivian border upriver and to the main Amazon downstream
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Pink dolphin at the harbor
The pink boto dolphin is often seen on the water in Porto Velho — the animals follow the fish around the river harbor and are visible from the boardwalk all day
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Sunset in Madeira
Madeira River sunsets from Porto Velho – the wide river turning orange, the fishing boats silhouetted and the sound of river trade winding down – are among the western Amazon's finest
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Floating restaurants
The floating restaurants (flutuantes) of Madeira serve fresh river fish – tambaqui, pirarucu and jaraqui prepared in traditional Amazonian ways – with the river traffic passing below the restaurant deck
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River Dolphins Research
The Porto Velho area of Madeira has been a research site for Amazonian dolphins - the species' decline from mercury contamination in the upstream mining areas is a conservation issue studied by Brazilian scientists