Travel, Photography, Life.
Chapada Diamantina Trek
A three-day trek through one of Brazil’s best national parks.
Walking to the Top of the Waterfall
Apr 16th
March 20, 2007
Day 480
Chapada Diamantina Trek Day 3
The crew looked pretty exhausted again this morning. This was the last day of our trek and I think most were glad it was almost over.
We started going uphill as soon as we left camp. Everyone saw how high that waterfall was yesterday, so we all knew we’d have to climb a long time to get to the top. Luckily we were surrounded by beautiful hilly forests the whole way.
When we got to the top, the view was incredible. My brain knew how high we were, but when I shimmied out to the edge and looked over, the bottom seemed like a painting, impossibly far away. I was angled slightly downward, and when a gust of wind hit me, it felt like I had already fallen off and was slowly floating toward the bottom. I eased my way back and didn’t dare go too close to the edge again.
We had lunch on top of the waterfall and began our long descent to the bottom. From Capao, at the bottom of the valley, we all took a van to Palmeiras, the next town over. Finally, we caught a bus back to Lencois to end the trek. Everyone was tired and filthy, and most of us had gotten sunburned, but we were in good spirits in the end. Brazil is mainly about beaches and cities, but Chapada Diamantina was a great diversion from all of that stuff. And the trek helped me conditioned for my future adventures, something I had been worried about after spending so much time in cities.
Sleeping in Caves Sounds Great Until You Actually Do It
Apr 15th
March 19, 2007
Day 479
Chapada Diamantina Trek Day 2
We were supposed to leave at 8:00 this morning, so I got up at 7:00 in anticipation. Frequent camping on this trip has put me in the routine of getting up, putting away my sleeping bag and mattress, cooking and eating breakfast, cleaning my pots, taking down my tent, and packing everything in an hour without rushing. I was pretty annoyed when 9:00 rolled around and some of the others in the group still weren’t ready to go. All they had to do was put away their sleeping bags and pads and eat the breakfast that was already cooked for them by the guide, so I couldn’t understand why they would possibly need over two hours to get ready. I’m not just complaining for no reason, either. Sometimes temperatures can get unbelievably hot by 10:00 here, so I think it’s best to leave as early as possible when it’s still cool.
Luckily today the weather cooperated and the hiking was easy. We reached our campsite after hiking only one hour on fairly flat ground. We put our backpacks in the caves and began walking upstream toward the bottom of the Cachoeira da Fumaca, the highlight of the trek. It was an easy two-hour walk to the waterfall. Along the way, we spotted a small constrictor snake, a lucky sight because it was resting on a flat rock, making it easy to spot.
The waterfall itself was incredible. At 420 meters it’s the highest waterfall in Brazil. Underneath, there was another big cold pool of water for swimming. We had lunch, enjoyed the location for awhile, and headed back down to our campsite.
Camp was once again in a great location and there still wasn’t any rain to ruin anybody’s night. However, the atmosphere wasn’t festive like it was last night. I think most people didn’t get much sleep last night in the caves on their thin rented foam mattresses. Everyone went to bed early tonight to try and compensate, but that just means laying even longer on the hard rocks. I was really glad to have my tent so I could sleep on the soft ground outside the caves. Sleeping in caves sounds great until you actually do it.
Trekking Through Chapada Diamantina
Apr 14th
March 18, 2007
Day 478
Chapada Diamantina Trek Day 1
I got up plenty early today to ensure I’d be able to meet the group at the designated time of 8:30. Things were a bit out of order when Pierre, Omer, and I got there. The guide who said he’d take us suddenly said he had a big group tomorrow so he couldn’t go. Instead, another guide and his brother would take us. It didn’t really matter because at least the new guy spoke English. The other unexpected thing was that the group had gotten much bigger. Joining the three of us would be Matias and Ana, two Germans named Ano and Oliver, and a Swiss/Irish couple. So there were nine of us and two guides. Unsurprisingly, we didn’t get started until 10:00.
For the first forty-five minutes, we walked along the same path as yesterday toward the water slide. Instead of going all the way down, we crossed the river and worked our way up the hill on the other side, taking a break every ten minutes or so. At the top of the pass, we were rewarded with a spectacular view of the region.
Next we went down the other side until we reached a river a the bottom of the valley. We dropped off our packs and walked five minutes downstream to a large swimming pool and a beautiful waterfall, where we relaxed for an hour or so. Next, we picked up our backpacks, walked up the river for another hour, and arrived at camp.
The camping area was on the river by some more small waterfalls. We were told we’d be sleeping in caves, so it wouldn’t be necessary to take a tent. However, I was told that since I already had a tent, I should take it. I was glad I did. The “caves” were really just overhanging rocks which would probably flood if it rained. I put my tent up in a nice comfy place away from the caves, cooked a big dinner with Omer and Pierre, and enjoyed the rest of the day in the vast wilderness that surrounded me.
Preparing for Trekking
Apr 14th
March 17, 2007
Day 477
The bus arrived at 5:00 AM at Lencois today and sure enough, there were ten guys trying to get me to go to their hotels before I even got off the bus. My options were significantly narrowed as soon as I indicated that i preferred camping, and soon I was delivered to a large backyard with a few tents already set up from the night before.
Soon I met an Israeli named Omer who wanted to do the standard three-day trek to Cachoeira da Fumaca, which at 420 meters is the tallest in Brazil. The gears started moving immediately and soon we found a Belgian guy named Pierre and an Argentine/French couple (Matias and Ana) who also seemed interested in joining us. Omer found a guide who was willing to give us a steep discount since we wanted to carry our own gear and cook our own food.
Having taken care of a lot of the logistics for the trek, Pierre, Omer, and I decided to do a day walk in the area. We went a few K’s outside of town to a place called Ribeirao do Meio, which had a natural swimming pool and a slight waterfall which was possible to slide down. I went across the pool, got out off the water, and climbed the rocks to the river. Then I went to the center of the rapids, sat down, and crossed my fingers. The strong current of the water soon had me bouncing over the rocks to the bottom of the slide and into the water. It was quite a fun experience.
Back in town, we made some final arrangements with our guide. We found out that the other people we had met earlier in the day already signed up to go, and payed more money for food and equipment. It was going to be a big group.
Pierre, Omer, and I bought food, got some fuel, and planned to meet at the guide’s hotel at 8:30, when we were supposed to begin the trek. Having accomplished a lot today, I kicked back with the other campers in the backyard with a few caipirihnas.
The photo album for this entry is here.