The Amazon is a world-class river. It carries one-fifth of all the river water in the world. Only the Nile River in Africa is longer, but not by much.
A ride down the Amazon covers the same distance as going from New York City to Rome, Italy! More water pours into the ocean from the Amazon than from any other river in the world. Every second, the Amazon spills over 6 million cubic feet of water into the Atlantic. In fact, the Amazon dumps 10 times more water into the ocean than the mighty Mississippi, the largest river system in the United States. In many places, the Amazon is quite wide. As it nears the Atlantic coast, it widens from 20 to 60 to 200 miles across at the point where it goes into the sea.
There are several ways to travel down the Amazon. You can cruise down the renowned river by canoe or paddleboat. Or you can go by oceanliner part of the way. A side trip through the Amazon rain forest could prove as memorable as a trip down the Amazon itself. Especially if you come across a 20-foot snake that can easily be mistaken for a clinging vine.
