El Dorado Waterfall is the largest waterfall in the amazon in Brazil, located in the Serra do Aracá, in the municipality of Barcelos, in the state of Amazonas. It is 211 km (131 miles) in a straight line from the municipality or 393 km (244 miles) by river. That is, in this journey through the river it resembles a serpent and makes numerous curves in its course, which makes the path even further and difficult to access.
El Dorado Waterfall is the biggest waterfall in Brazil
El Dorado Waterfall, also known as Aracá Waterfall, has a 353 meter (2952 feet) waterfall. This is equivalent to a 126-story building, making this the highest freefall waterfall in Brazil.
How To Get To The El Dorado Waterfall?
Serra do Aracá State Park does not have any infrastructure for tourism due to its remote location, only the most adventurous resort to an expedition to discover this almost untouched paradise.
The path that leads to the waterfall is considered extremely difficult, which on the one hand is a positive point, as the place is very well preserved.
Few tourism agencies operate with expeditions to El Dorado Waterfall, some of which charge around R$5000. Therefore, in addition to the location being difficult to access, the budget is also not accessible for lovers of nature tourism.
To get to Barcelos from Manaus by river via the traditional boats that make this trip, the estimated time is 33 hours. Another option is the Expresso, a much faster vessel that takes approximately 12 hours.
Distances from Manaus to Barcelos are 405 km ( 251 miles) in a straight line or 655 km ( 406 miles) by river. There is also the possibility of going by plane through air taxi companies. The duration of the trip takes around 1 hour.
Once in Barcelos to the El Dorado waterfall, the river journey is made by “voadeiras”, small boats with powerful engines. The estimated time to reach the base of Serra do Aracá is around 30 hours on the Aracá River. That is, the place where the trail (10 km or 6 miles) that leads to the top of the highest waterfall in Brazil starts. From the top of the waterfall to its base, it takes another 1 hour of trail.
The best time to go to Barcelos is from April to September, when the rivers are still full.
The Legend of El Dorado
The Legend of El Dorado
The region is also marked by legends of strong cultural influence from the indigenous civilization of the Incas. In one of them, they were reported by Spanish conquerors in the 16th century through the narratives of the Indians.
According to one of these stories, in the region there is a large flooded plain that was said to belong to the legendary Lake Parime. This lake was located in Manoa, an indigenous city of enormous wealth that became known as El Dorado. The term Eldorado means The Golden Man in Spanish.
Final considerations
Isolated and distant, few people have ever seen El Dorado Waterfall, an intriguing place of unique beauty.
In conclusion, to get to know the biggest waterfall in Brazil requires availability and a good investment for an expedition.
