PARC NATIONAL DE CHAPADA DIAMANTINA

Chapada Diamantina National Park is certainly one of Brazil's most fascinating natural parks. This group of mountains in the Serra do Espinhaço, the second highest mountain range in the Americas, reaches an altitude of 1,700 metres. The park was created to protect an extraordinary variety of ecosystems, including the Cerrado, the lush Atlantic Mata, the campos rupestres and the Caatinga, the "white forest" of the Indians, made up largely of thorny plants and cacti. Bromeliads and orchids have found a privileged environment here, able to adapt to differences in climate, altitude and soil. Fauna is also abundant. There are over 440 plant species and 70 endemic animal species, 24 of which are found only in the chapada. The lucky ones will have the chance to observe ocelots, jaguars, birds of prey, deer and rare hummingbirds.

The tabular reliefs typical of the Chapada are mounds of quartzite massifs that have withstood the erosion process that began in Precambrian times. The most emblematic Morros, with an average altitude of 1,450 metres, are located mainly in the municipalities of Palmeiras, Lençóis and Mucugê.

Mount Tabor (Morrão), Calumbi (Morro do Camelo), the Morro du Pai Inácio and the Morro Branco do Paty seem to watch with benevolent authority over the surrounding world, which was dominated by the Maracás and Cariris Indians before the arrival of the first bandeirantes around 1750.

Numerous buildings of colonial architecture grace the towns surrounding Chapada Diamantina National Park, vestiges and markers of the rich diamond cycle that made Brazil the world's leading producer of this precious stone at the beginning of the ^20th century. The trails blazed by the prospectors are now used by hikers from all over the world.

Around 80% of Bahia's rivers have their source on the slopes of the Chapada. The Paraguaçu and Contas rivers have carved deep canyons into the mountains and plains, creating landscapes of undeniable beauty. The Chapada Diamantina National Park was declared in 1985 and is currently being implemented. It is administered by the ICMBio (Chico Mendes Institute for the Conservation of Biodiversity), based in Palmeiras.

Numerous associations of qualified guides offer their services to hikers.