Along the River that Flows Uphill

‘Former journalist Richard Starks and travel writer and editor Miriam Murcutt relate their adventure along the mysterious Casiquiare in vivid detail, including a brush with a tribe of Yanomami Indians and a potentially dangerous confrontation with FARC guerillas. Their reflections of the sights, wonders, and wistful beauties of a littled-travelled path make for an unforgettably vivid travelogue.’
Midwest Book Review

‘The book [Starks and Murcutt] produced is both enjoyable and informative: and so much beyond the travelogue one might expect. It is creative non-fiction. It is literature. It is history. It is geography. It is adventure. And it is cracking good fun.’
January Magazine

Along the River that Flows Uphill is a travel book with a difference. It weaves the story of an Amazon journey with science, maths and reason to explore the risks that are inherent in any adventurous travel.

In 2005, authors Richard Starks and Miriam Murcutt were commissioned by Geographical — the magazine of the Royal Geographical Society in London — to travel the length of a strange river in Venezuela called the Casiquiare.

This river — once the source of great controversy — is like no other, since it joins two otherwise-separate river systems, the Orinoco and the Amazon, by apparently flowing up and over the watershed that divides them. Rivers should not be able to do that.

The authors recount the story of their journey, including a brush with a tribe of Yanomami Indians and a confrontation with FARC guerillas. Along the way, they also explore thoughts and ideas — both humorous and serious — that relate to the thrills and stresses of off-the-map travel.

RICHARD STARKS is a former journalist, editor and publisher of newsletters and magazines. He has also written for television, and has had five other books published.

MIRIAM MURCUTT has worked as a writer, editor and marketing executive in the travel and publishing industries.