Orinoco.

[AndrewB]

I'm wondering whether it is possible to take a yacht up the Orinoco (Venezuela). If anyone knows of any account of sailing there, I'd be most grateful for details. (And even more so for any personal experience of that area - not north coast Venezuela).

 

[Roberto]

Hello Andrew,

[btw, I saw Sentinel going upstream the Odet river, was it mid july ?]

it is possible to go upstream as far as Puerto Ayacucho, then there are rapids and shoals making it impossible to continue by river.

There is an account of a sailboat which came up to there, then put the boat on a truck for a few miles, just to skip the rapids, and then continued upstream up to the Casiquiare, a small river which connects the orinoco and the amazon basins; from the casiquiare one eventually arrives in the rio negro basin (brazil), sao gabriel da cachoeira, then manaus

I think is was Humboldt who discovered the two basins were joined by the Casiquiare.

 

[Roberto]

I have found the reference of the book

Jean Francois Dine
Orenoque Amazone sur un voilier de dix mètres
2950930107


http://www.librairie-maritime.com/article.cfm?art=8060&cat=0

for some reason the book seems not available from Amazon site, if you need any help in getting the book let me know

 

[kliever]

A chapter or so in "The breath of Angels" by John Beattie about sailing a Warrior 35 across the atlantic. Possibly more of a story though he says a true story. In another life I've been as far as Porto Odaz in a 14,000 tonne freighter.
John R

 

[ChrisE]

I was going to mention Breath of Angels, saw the guy at the Cruising Association a few years ago and as far as we could tell it is all true.

 

[Amphitrite]

Some good facts can be found in the american enroute pilots pub. 148 that can be downloaded for free from their website: http://pollux.nss.nima.mil/pubs/
The Orinoco is said to be navigable for 200 miles upstream....

Holger

 

[AndrewB]

Porto Ortaz is probably as far as we could expect to get, though Ciudad Bolivar might be possible. From what you recall, do you think it would be practical in a yacht?

 

[AndrewB]

[btw, I saw Sentinel going upstream the Odet river, was it mid july ?]

Yes, that was us! We went upstream as far as we could. We ploughed the bottom so often I thought of sending in a bill for dredging. It would have been great to have met you.

Many thanks for the book reference, and to all who answered.