52 year old Martin Strel plans to swim across the amazon river from start to finish. His journey is planned to be of 3375 miles and take approximately 70 days.
The Amazon River is the most voluminous river on Earth, eleven times the volume of the Mississippi. The Amazon has six times greater total river flow than the next six largest rivers combined, and the largest drainage basin in the world. At the peak of the high water season, the river’s mouth may be 300 miles wide.
The Amazon is filled with snakes, crocodiles, sharks, and of course the notorious piranha. A team of about 20 people are to be with Strel including doctors and river guides.
Martin taught himself to swim when he was 6 and became a professional marathon swimmer in 1978. Martin holds several world records for endurance swimming including some Guinness Book world records.
