if^ AVOYAGETO Book IV. 



wholly ferpentine; but to Caracol, the landing place 

 in winter, there are twenty-four reaches, the longeit 

 df which are the three ncareft the city; and thefe 

 may be about two leagues and a half in length, but 

 the others not above one. Whence it may be in- 

 ferred, on an average, that the diflance, meafured on 

 the furface of the river, between Guayaquil and the 

 cuftom-houfe of Babahoyo, is twenty-four leagues and 

 ia half, and to Caracol twenty-eight and a half. The 

 time requifite to perform this paflage is very dif- 

 ferent, according to the feafon, and nature of the 

 velTel. During the winter, a chata generally takes 

 up eight days in going from Guayaquil to Caracol, 

 being againft the current of the river ; whereas two 

 days are fufficient to perform the paflage downwards. 

 In fummer a light canoe goes up in three tides, and 

 returns in little more than two; the fame may be 

 faid of other veflels, the paflage downwards being 

 always performed in much lefs time than the other, 

 on account of the natural current of the river, in the 

 reaches near the cuftom-houfe, where the fl:rongeft 

 iiood only ftops the water from running downwards. 



The diftance from Guayaquil to Ifla Verde, fituated 

 at the moiuh of the river in Puna bay, is by pilots 

 computed at about fix leagues, and divided, like the 

 other part, into reaches : and frbm Ifla Verde to 

 Puna three leaQ;iies. So that the whole diftance from 

 Caracol, the moft inland part up the river, to that 

 of Puna, is thirty- feven leagues and a half. Between 

 Ifla Verde, and Puna, it widens fo prodigioufly, that 

 the horizon towards the north and fouth is bounded 

 by the iky, except in fome few parts northwards, 

 where the plantations of mangroves are perceived. 



The mouth of the river at the Ifla Verde is about 

 a league in breadth, and even fomething broader at 

 Guayaquil, above which it contracts itfelf as it advan- 

 ces nearer the mountains, and forms other creeks, the 

 ' mouth of one of which, called Eftero de Santay, faces 



■ the 



