Do people swim in the Amazon River, and is it safe?
Not really, there are a lot of dangers in this river, Piranhas, Electric Eel, Bull Shark and Arapaima and the Orinoco crocodile that may from time to time end up in the northern reaches, just to name a view.
As a general rule even it is not a good idea, anyone can swim on the Amazon River but never go alone. Use the advice of residents and avoid isolated and dangerous areas (unless you want to die).
Sure, the prospects of piranhas, parasites and Caimans are intimidating, but it didn’t stop a Slovenian marathon swimmer from becoming the first person to swim the entire length of the Amazon River in 2007, Time reported. It took Martin Strel 66 days to arrived in Belem, Brazil and accomplish the nearly 3,300-mile journey.
Over the course of the swim Strel battled delirium, exhaustion, and infected sores on his legs.
He was 50 at the time and his diet included daily consumption of Slovenian wine.
Strel was the subject and star of a feature documentary entitled Big River Man directed by the acclaimed art-house director John Maringouin.The film was critically praised for its blend of comedy and drama, and chronicled Strel's 3,300 mile historic swim of the Amazon River.