Pevas

Pevas was founded in 1735 as a mission and is generally described as the oldest surviving town on the Peruvian stretch of the Amazon, a settlement of a few thousand people on a bluff above the river, with wooden houses on stilts, a market, and boats pulling in from the communities around - Bora, Huitoto, Yagua and Ocaina people live in the district, many of them descendants of families who came from the Putumayo in the early twentieth century. The town is known internationally for Francisco Grippa, a Peruvian painter who settled there and works in a large studio on the hill above, painting Amazonian subjects on canvas made from local bark cloth; his house is a standard stop for riverboats. Pevas is a scheduled halt on the passenger boats between Iquitos and the Colombian border, and most visitors see it that way.

What to look for

• The stilt town - wooden houses above the water on the river bluff.
• The Grippa studio - the painter's house and workshop above the town.
• The peoples - Bora, Huitoto, Yagua and Ocaina communities in the district.
• The 1735 foundation - the oldest surviving town on the Peruvian Amazon.

When to go

June to October in lower water, though river travel runs all year. A day, or a few hours as a riverboat stop between Iquitos and the border.

Good to know

Reached only by river - a slow boat from Iquitos takes many hours. Facilities are minimal. Craft sold by visiting groups can involve pressure. Heat, humidity and insects. Studio visits depend on the artist being there.

Nearby

Iquitos is upriver; the Colombian and Brazilian borders are downstream at Santa Rosa.

Key facts