River · Guatemala
Motagua River
The Motagua is the longest river of Guatemala and crosses the whole country from the western mountains to the coast. Near Puerto Barrios it flows into the Gulf of Honduras.
Picture credit: Kymacpherson (CC BY-SA 3.0) · candidaloca (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is the Motagua River?
The river starts here: Western highlands of Guatemala.
It ends in the Gulf of Honduras at Puerto Barrios.
Countries on the river: Guatemala.
The story behind it
The Motagua travels through two very different worlds. Its middle valley is surprisingly dry: cactus and thorn bushes grow on the slopes, and a rare, black-and-yellow beaded lizard hides among the stones there and nowhere else. This valley is also the only place in Central America where green jade is found, and the Maya once carved it into masks and beads. Downstream everything turns green and steamy, with banana and palm-oil plantations stretching to the horizon and the old Maya city of Quiriguá standing near the bank. Heavy rain from tropical storms can make the river rise overnight and spill over the fields, which is why houses are built on stilts or higher ground. Sadly the current also carries plastic rubbish to the sea, and clean-up barriers are now used to catch it.
Questions children ask
How long is the Motagua River?
The Motagua is about 487 km long. Its whole course lies in Guatemala, so it counts as the longest river of that country.
Which country does the Motagua River flow through?
It flows only through Guatemala, from the western highlands down to the Caribbean coast. Near its mouth it comes very close to the border with Honduras.
Where does the Motagua River flow into?
It ends in the Gulf of Honduras, part of the Caribbean Sea, close to the port of Puerto Barrios. The muddy water colours the sea brown for a while after storms.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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