Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 18, 2017 photo, Joao Aquino Pereira, right, talks with fellow cowboy Rene Almeida at dawn in Corumba, Pantanal wetlands, Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. On his feet hours before sunrise, 66-year-old Pereira readies the horses and wakes up the herd of oxen for a new day in the three-week pilgrimage in search of grass. "Today's going to be one of those days," says the old cowboy, forecasting the weather by looking up at the red skies. "It seems like it'll be a hot one and we still need to prepare the cattle to go across the river."
Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 17, 2017 photo, cowboy cook Odair Batista carries a case with food in Corumba, the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Dressed with leather chaps on top of their jeans, stetson hats and a machete attached to their waists, before setting off, the men finish their breakfast with Terere, an herbal "mate" beverage served ice cold in an ox drinking horn.- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 16, 2017 photo, Araras ,or Macaws, are seen at a ranch in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. At different moments during a cowboy round-up, they crosses paths with macaws, deer and pit vipers, all seemingly unfazed by their presence.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 16, 2017 photo, a cowboy serves "Terere," an herbal "mate" beverage, served ice-cold in an ox horn, in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. "Terere" is sipped through a silver straw, the personal property of each cowboy.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 18, 2017 photo, a cowboy prepares his mounts to continue the journey in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Cowboys earn an average of $18 dollars a day, and the leader of the group can earn as much as $285 per day.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 17, 2017 photo, the Milky Way lights up the sky above a ranch where cowboys spend the night during a round up, in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Ranchers here contract out the grazing business, and being a cowboy is reasonably well-paying for the region.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 16, 2017 photo, cowboy Renan Lopes Nascimento holds his reigns as he arrives to a ranch to spend the night, in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Cowboys earn an average of $18 dollars a day, and the leader of the group can earn as much as $285 per day.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 17, 2017 photo, cowboy Joao Aquino Pereira smokes at dawn on a ranch in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Cowboys earn an average of $18 dollars a day, and the leader of the group can earn as much as $285 per day.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 17, 2017 photo, cowboy Joao Aquino Pereira rides his horse in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Each day, the men and animals traverse about 11 miles from dawn until 3 p.m., in temperatures averaging about 90 degrees Fahrenheit during the day.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 16, 2017 photo, a handmade whip handle, in the shape of a boot, hangs in a cowboy camp in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. The whip was made by one of the ranch hands who helps round up cattle.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 17, 2017 photo, cowboy Joao Aquino Pereira, 66, cooks "churrasco," or barbecue, at a ranch in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Dressed with leather chaps on top of their jeans, Stetson hats and machetes attached to their waists, before setting off the men finish their breakfast with "terere," an herbal "mate" tea served ice cold from a cup made out of an ox horn.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 18, 2017 photo, cowboy cook Odair Batista crosses the Taquari River with a horse train carrying food for the cowboys in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Hardly recognizable in the developed world, working as a cowboy is still a way of life in rural areas of Latin America's largest nation.
- Eraldo Peres, The Associated PressIn this May 17, 2017 photo, a cowboy stands under a tree at dusk on a farm in Corumba, in the Pantanal wetlands of Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. Working as a cowboy is still a way of life in rural areas of Latin America's largest nation and is reasonably well-paying for the region.
Eraldo Peres, The Associated Press
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In this May 18, 2017 photo, Joao Aquino Pereira, right, talks with fellow cowboy Rene Almeida at dawn in Corumba, Pantanal wetlands, Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil. On his feet hours before sunrise, 66-year-old Pereira readies the horses and wakes up the herd of oxen for a new day in the three-week pilgrimage in search of grass. "Today's going to be one of those days," says the old cowboy, forecasting the weather by looking up at the red skies. "It seems like it'll be a hot one and we still need to prepare the cattle to go across the river."
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By The Denver Post | newsroom@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
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Working as a cowboy is still a way of life in rural areas of Latin America’s largest nation and is reasonably well-paying for the region.