Deep in the
heart of the Amazon, legends tell of a river so hot that it boils from below.
As a geoscientist, Andrés Ruzo’s training told him the stories couldn’t be
true. But that was before he saw the river with his own eyes.
It’s
incredible to think there are natural wonders on this planet not yet known to
science, but such was the case for the river at Mayantuyacu, publicized for the
first time in The Boiling River: Adventure and Discovery in the Amazon. The
book is an engrossing, true story of discovery, adventure, science, and
mysticism, told by a man who was driven to explain something impossible, and is
now on a quest to preserve it.
When he was
twelve years old growing up in Peru, Ruzo’s grandfather told him a strange
story. After Spanish conquistadors killed the last Inca emperor, they headed
deep into the Amazon rainforest in search of gold. Few of these men would ever
return, but those who did spoke of a waking nightmare—poisoned water,
man-eating snakes, starvation, disease, and a river that boils from below, as
if lit by a great fire.
“The
planet’s gotten small, and natural wonders like this are few and far between “
The image of
that boiling river seared itself into Ruzo’s mind. But it wasn’t until years
later, as a PhD student in geophysics at Southern Methodist University, that he
started to wonder if the legend could be true. This wasn’t just idle curiosity:
Ruzo’s thesis project was initially focused on creating the first detailed
geothermal map of Peru, including parts of the Amazon. If a boiling river
existed, it would surely merit recognition.
But his
senior colleagues dismissed the idea as preposterous. It would take a
tremendous amount of geothermal heat to boil even a small section of a river—and
the Amazon basin lies hundreds of miles from any active volcanoes. One advisor
even suggested that Ruzo stop asking “stupid questions” if he wanted to finish
his PhD.
But Ruzo
didn’t stop asking. And eventually, he found someone who took his questions
about a boiling river seriously: his aunt. That’s because she’d been to one.
The river
turned out to be no legend at all, but the sacred geothermal healing site of
Mayantuyacu, nestled deep in the Peruvian rainforest and protected by a
powerful shaman. Ruzo couldn’t quite believe it until he saw it for himself,
but once he did, his life changed.
Up to 82
feet (25 meters) wide and 20 feet (six meters) deep, the river surges for
nearly 4 miles at temperatures hot enough to brew tea or cook any animals unfortunate
enough to fall in. And yes, a small portion of it is so hot that it actually
boils. There are documented hot springs in the Amazon, but nothing nearly as
large as this river.
“You’re
surrounded by the sounds of the rainforest,” Ruzo told Gizmodo. “You feel this
water surging past you and plumes of vapor coming up. It’s truly a spectacular
place.”
Mayantuyacu
is visited each year by a handful of tourists, who come to experience the
traditional medicinal practices of the Asháninka people. Save several obscure
references in petroleum journals from the 1930s, scientific documentation of
the river is non-existent. Somehow, this natural wonder has managed to elude
widespread notice for over seventy five years.
Many of us
turn to fiction to escape the mundanity of the real world. But as The Boiling
River so poignantly illustrates, fantastical discoveries are lurking all around
us. It takes a special type of persistence, and a little bit of crazy, to pull
the clues out of the white noise of everyday routine. When Ruzo did, he was
rewarded with the biggest adventure of his life.
And it’s an
adventure that’s just beginning. Having forged a strong relationship with the
local community, Ruzo is now conducting detailed geothermal studies of the
boiling river, attempting to place it in the context of the Amazon basin. He’s
also collaborating with microbial ecologists to investigate the extremophile
organisms living in its scalding waters. Anything that survives here could offer
insights into how life got its start billions of years ago, when the Earth was
a much harsher planet.
But most
importantly, Ruzo’s trying to save the boiling river. “In the middle of my PhD,
I realized, this river is a natural wonder,” Ruzo said. “And it’s not going to
be around unless we do something about it.”
Since Ruzo
first visited Mayantuyacu in 2011, the surrounding forest has been decimated by
illegal logging. If action isn’t taken, the site—held sacred by generations of
Asháninka cultural practitioners—could soon vanish.
Ruzo hopes
that by putting a spotlight on the boiling river, he can garner the public
interest and financial support needed to ensure its long-term survival. While
Mayantuyacu faces many threats, from loggers to would-be energy developers, the
coalition to protect its unique natural and cultural heritage grows stronger
every day.
Ruzo
recently received a grant from National Geographic, part of which will go
toward using technology—drones, satellites, and the like—to learn which regions
of the surrounding forest are the most vulnerable. To strengthen the
conservation effort on the ground, he’s teamed up with Peruvian environmental
organizations, and local community leaders.
Ultimately,
if the boiling river is to survive, it’ll be because people came together and
recognized its intrinsic value. After reading Ruzo’s captivating, real-life
adventure story, you might be inclined to agree.
“I don’t
like the concept of one person leading this charge—I think it’s about building
a community on an international scale,” Ruzo said. “The planet’s gotten small,
and natural wonders like this are few and far between.”
