Río Arque is one of the headwaters of
Río Grande and
Mamoré River in
Bolivia. Río Arque has its source in the
Cordillera Tres Cruces on the western slope of
Cerro Huaylluma at
17°41′0″S, 66°43′30″W, 50 km northeast of the mining city
Oruro and 65 km southwest of
Cochabamba.
The river flows 50 km in a southeasterly direction before it turns northeast. At kilometer 58 there is the provincial capital Arque on the northern bank of the river, at kilometer 72 Estancia Umani on the southern bank, and at kilometer 85 the town of Capinota on the northern bank. The watershed of Río Arque comprises 2.224 km². At Capinota, the base flow of the river is 2 to 2.5 m³/s. However, when the river rises during the rainy season (November-April), the flow can be up to 900 m³/s. The sediments which Río Arque carries in the rainy season can be up to 120 g/l.
After a total of 88 km Río Arque joins
Río Rocha at
17°42′10″S, 66°14′45″W at an elevation of 2,350 m to form
Río Caine. Río Caine after another 162 km merges into Rìo Grande which after a total of 1,438 km from the source of Río Rocha joins
Río Ichilo.