Jequitinhonha Valley

The Jequitinhonha River (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʒekitʃiˈɲõɲɐ]) flows mainly through the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. Its source lies near Diamantina in the Espinhaço Mountains at an elevation of 1,200 metres (3,900 ft), after which it flows northward and then east-northeastward across the uplands. At Salto da Divisa, it is interrupted by the Cachoeira (falls) do Salto Grande, 43 metres (141 ft) high. The river descends to the coastal plain at the city of Jequitinhonha, beyond which it is also called Rio Grande do Belmonte, and empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Belmonte in Bahia state after a course of approximately 1,090 kilometres (680 mi). The main tributaries are the Araçuaí River, Piauí, São Miguel, Itacambiruçu, Salinas, São Pedro, and São Francisco.

The valley of the Jequitinhonha is one of the poorest regions of Brazil and is still prone to endemic yellow fever. It covers 78,451 square kilometres (30,290 sq mi), twice the size of Switzerland, and has an approximate population of one million people, distributed in about 80 municipalities. The most populous of these is Almenara (36,254 in 2004) located on the middle Jequitinhonha.

The valley is known for its variety of gemstones, colonial-era towns, unique handicrafts and starkly beautiful landscapes immortalized by the Brazilian author João Guimarães Rosa.

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Wikipedia