Geography of French Guiana

French Guiana is situated on the northeast coast of South America between 2° and 5° latitude north and covers an area of 35,135 square miles.

Although French Guiana is very close to the equator, the trade winds which blow almost the year round refresh the coastal region and prevent the formation of great tropical storms.

French Guiana extends almost 250 miles into the continent and is divided into two natural zones: a small, low, swampy coastal area called the "Terres Basses," varying from ten to thirty miles in width, and a granite peneplain called the "Terres Hautes," worn down by erosion into steps forming a series of low steep hills.

Almost the entire country is covered by rain forest and its many large rivers and streams, although their courses are broken by rapids, constitute the only natural means of penetration into the interior.

The main rivers, flowing in a general south–north direction, are the Maroni, the Mana, the Iracoubo, the Sinnamary, the Kourou, the Mahury, the Approuague and the Oyapock.