La Vieja River

Infobox River | river_name = La Vieja River

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caption = La Vieja River, at the mouth of the Roble River.
origin = Valle de Maravelez, Quindío, Colombia coord|4|23|40|N|75|48|10|W|
mouth = Cauca River coord|4|48|25|N|75|56|08|W|
basin_countries = Colombian departments of Quindío, Valle del Cauca and Risaralda
length = 102 km (63 mi)
discharge = 92 m³/s (3,250 ft³/s)
watershed = 2,925 km² (1,129 mi²) La Vieja River ( _es. Río La Vieja) is a river in the Colombiandepartments of Quindío, Valle del Cauca and Risaralda. It is a major tributary of the Cauca River.

The river is formed by the joining of the Quindío River and the
Barragán River in an area known as the Valle de Maravelez. It has alength of 102 km and flows in a northwesterly direction, meeting theCauca River approximately 7 km north of Cartago. Majortributaries include the Roble, Consota, Barbas, Espejo and Pijao rivers. La Vieja forms the limit between thedepartments of Quindío and Valle del Cauca; it also forms part ofthe limit between Risaralda and Valle del Cauca.

The river basin has an area of 2,925 km² and includes the entiredepartment of Quindío. Although Cartago is the only major urbanarea situated directly on the river, the cities of Armenia and Pereira arelocated in its watershed. The average river flow is 92 m³/s.

Recreational use of the river includes the increasingly popular tourist activity "balsaje", in which groups of up to 16 people explore the slow-flowing river in large rafts made of guadua. The majority of these excursions depart from Puerto Samaria in the municipality of Montenegro, Quindío, and arrive at Puerto Alejandrino in neighboring Quimbaya. The number of participants has grown from 400 during 2000 to over 11,000 in 2003, and there are at least a dozen firms offering this service.

La Vieja has significant contamination problems,primarily due to inadequate waste water treatment in its watershed.

References

Corporación Autónoma Regional del Quindío (2005), [http://www.crq.gov.co/visual_crq/documentos/proyecto_riolavieja/diagnostico_rio_lavieja.pdf Proyecto Ordenacion y Manejo de la Cuenca del Río La Vieja] (in Spanish)