Nevado Mismi

Mismi is a 5,597-metre (18,363 ft) mountain peak of volcanic origin located in the Ch'ila mountain range in the Andes of Peru. A glacial stream on the Mismi was firmly identified as the most distant source of the Amazon River in 1996; this finding was confirmed in 2001 and again in 2007. The waters from Mismi flow into the streams Qarwasanta and Apachita, which flow into the Apurímac River. It is a tributary of the Ucayali which later joins the Marañón to form the Amazon proper.

Location

Mismi is about 160 km west of Lake Titicaca and 700 km southeast of Peru's capital city, Lima, in the Arequipa Region. It is one of the highest points of Colca Canyon. There are several glaciers on the peak.

The Cousteau Amazon Expedition

In 1982 Jean-Michel Cousteau led a large scale scientific exploration of the Amazon from its mouth to its origin. The “Cousteau Amazon Expedition” cost eleven million dollars and culminated in a six-hour television documentary titled “Cousteau’s Amazon” released in 1983. It offered study information to last years and gave insights into the biology and geology of the largest river system on earth. This expedition was broken into three separate groups and the upper Amazon section was covered by “The Flying Expedition” tasked with exploring the upper third to Arequipa from the river's origin.

Nevado

Nevado (1813? – 1821) was a Mucuchies dog that was given to Simón Bolívar by the local people of Mucuchíes, Mérida, in the Venezuelan Andes. It was given as a kind of present shortly after the Battle of Niquitao during his triumphal Admirable Campaign from New Granada (today Colombia) to Caracas in 1813. Bolivar's army was approaching a farm when the independence fighters were stopped in their tracks by a giant, barking guard dog. Weapons drawn, the rebels were about to kill the dog when Bolivar, marveling at its beauty and bravery, ordered them to back down. Nevado always ran beside Bolívar’s horse, no matter if he traveled through cities or battlefields. Nevado died in the Battle of Carabobo on June 24, 1821. When Bolívar received news that Nevado was badly injured, he rushed to the dog, but he came too late.

Several monuments to Nevado stand at the entrance of Mucuchíes town.

References