The Rio Negro is one of the greatest freshwater fishing destinations on the planet — a massive blackwater river winding through the heart of the Brazilian Amazon in Amazonas state. As one of the largest tributaries of the Amazon River, the Rio Negro stretches across an extraordinary landscape of flooded timber, back channels, lagoons, and jungle-lined banks that together create an almost incomprehensible diversity of fish habitat. The river's dark, tea-colored water — stained by tannins from decomposing organic matter in the surrounding rainforest — is the defining characteristic of this system, giving it both its name and its unique ecological identity. With over 1,200 species of fish documented in the Rio Negro basin alone, this is arguably the most species-rich freshwater fishery in the world, and for sport anglers, it represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to pursue some of the most powerful and aggressive freshwater gamefish on earth. The river is most celebrated for its peacock bass, which grow to exceptional sizes in these waters, but the sheer variety of species available — from massive catfish to piranha — ensures that every day on the water brings something extraordinary.