NATURAL ATTRACTIONS
Mucugezinho River.
Close to Lençóis, very popular with refreshment stands lining its
banks. Below these
stands on the same river is a deep cold pool called the Poço de
Diablo.
Poço Azul South of Lençóis, near the town of Andaraí, an
underwater pool with crystal-clear water and excellent limestone
formations where swimming is allowed.
Poço Encantado:
Swimming is not allowed. A long way from anywhere down some pretty bad roads,
but it is special. It's a large underground cavern with perfectly
clear water. Between April and August light reaches down through a
window in the cavern wall, and the water glows electric blue.
Marimbus
wetland. In addition to lots of caiman, it boasts capybaras and a wide
variety of colorful bird life.
Biking -- Roney
Oliverira Aleixo (tel. 075/334-1700) has lived in the area
for 10 years and biked every possible trail.
Hiking -- Trails in the
Chapada Diamantina are universally good. Many of them are old miners'
supply routes. Signage is nonexistent. Carry a map, compass, and some
spare food and water (locals insist the water from and in the
highlands is drinkable, but there are enough cattle still illegally
pastured up there that I have my doubts). If in doubt of your
trail-finding skills, bring a guide along.
There's no end to hikes in the Chapada Diamantina, here's
4 suggested
by
Frommers.
- A short hike up the Lençóis River
from the bridge will take you to the Serrano swimming holes,
composed of little pools of pink conglomerate rock. About .5km (.25
miles) further up the river, there's the larger Hartley natural
pool. A short and very pretty walk beyond that there's a small
tributary coming in from the right, the Grizante Creek. Follow
that up and you'll come to Primavera Falls.
- An hour's walk south of town will lead you to the Ribeirão de Meio natural waterslide. The waterslide is also the
trail head for a long (8-hr.) hike along the banks of the Ribeirão
River to Sossego Canyon and Sossego Falls.
- A good day hike that will take you through the heart
of the Chapada is the 25km (16-mile) trek from the Capão Valley to
Lençóis (or vice versa). Done from Lençóis, it's possible to get
an 8am bus to Palmeiras (R$3/US$1) on the far side of the Chapada,
then hire a cab to take you over the rough gravel road to the trail
head (R$25/US$8.25). The mostly level hike takes about 8 hours and
provides some excellent views along the way.
- From the bridge in Lençóis
a trail leads up beside the Lençóis River to the Serrano swimming
hole and Primavera Falls. An hour's walk south of town will
lead you to the Riberão de Meio rock slide, a huge natural
waterslide flanked by many natural swimming holes. A long (8-hr.) hike
up this same river leads to the Sossego canyon and waterfall.
Horseback Riding -- For
horseback riding, find one-armed Taurino Sousa Alcantera in his
souvenir shop at Rua das Pedras s/n, about halfway up the street (tel.
075/334-1403).Rappelling -- A popular
sport in Brazil, rappelling is the act of lowering yourself down a
length of rope with a harness and a locking carabiner. You can rappel
down a cliff face, a waterfall, into a cave, whatever. In Lençóis, the
rappelling specialist is Nativos da Chapada, Rua Miguel Calmon
29 (tel. 075/334-1314 for the shop, or 075/9960-0131 cellphone).
Tour Operators
- lentur.com.br
Lentur, Avenida Sete de Setembro (tel. 075/334-1271;
offers different guided minivan tours to just about all of the
local caves, springs, waterfalls, and mesas (Lapa Doce, Gruta Azul,
Poço do Diable, Poço Encantado, and so on). Lentur also does
guided trail hikes for groups of up to six people.
-
Tatu na Trilha-english ||francais
||PORTUGUÊS
Trekking Agency at Chapada Diamantina Find hiking maps on-line
w/ fotos
- ACVL (Associação dos Conductores de
Visitores no Lençóis), Av. General Viveiros 61, (tel. 075/334-1425).
across the river by the Cantos dos Aguas Hotel is a way to contact a
guide directly:
- www.venturas.com.br
, Venturas & Aventuras,
Praça Horácio de Matos 16 (tel. 075/ 334-1304
On the main square ), is run
by English-speaking guides.
"Our destination, the
mountain-resort town of Lençóis, built by the falls of the Rio
Santo Antonio, looked like the Town of Bedrock -- stone houses,
stone streets, an open-air market selling stone carvings and stone
picture frames."
Brazil's wild west of caves: Poço Encantado Treasure Quest |
Visitor Information
LENTUR
VIAGENS E TURISMO LTDA.
Av 7 de Setembro, 15
Lençóis-Bahia-Brasil CEP 49600-000
Telefax:55. 75. 334-1271 / 334-1117
In Lençóis, the local tourism agency Sectur
Lençóis, Av. Sr. dos Passos s/n, opposite the Portal Lençóis Hotel
on the far side of the river from the main square, has pamphlets on tours and attractions in the area,
and a color brochure on the Chapada for sale for R$8 (US$2.65).
Staff
speak Portuguese only, like the web site which is all flash so google
cannot translate it.
Telephone Directory - Lençóis
Pousada Candombá
www.gd.com.br/candomba/english
excellent website with geology, history, trail maps, cave maps,
trekkying guides including overnight trips
www.trilhasecaminhos.com.br >>
to English by google Guidebook website with many fotos by Roberto
Sapucaia
chapada_diamantina by folha.uol.com.br Portuguese
only
Fast Facts
Lencois/
Chapada Diamantina Telephone Directory
The Banco do Brasil, Praça Horario de Matos 56 (main square),
ATM i-- PLUS/Visa only. Internet access at Pede Trilha, Rua Miguel
Calmon s/n, opposite the market hall (tel. 075/334-1124);
PLACES TO STAY
-
Pousada dos Duendes:
Located in Lençois.
-
Pousada
Villa Serrano: Located in Lençois
-
Pousada Candombá: Located in the Chapada Diamantina
-
An
excellent place to stay is the pousada "Casa da Geléia" run by
José Carlos and Lia (www.casadageleia.com.br
,tel/fax 075-334-1151, in the road behind the petrol
station, as you enter the town. José Carlos speaks English, they
have a big garden and have had 14 different species of
hummingbird at their feeders, including, occasionally, the rare
(in Brazil) Brown Violetear Colibri delphinae. Lia
provides early breakfast on a tray or a sumptuous feast at 8:00
am.
arthurgrosset.com |
GETTING THERE
By
Car -- The main Chapada town of Lençóis is
427km (265 miles) from Salvador. Take BR-324 to Feira to Santana, turn
onto BR-116 to Argoim and then BR-242 to Lençóis. The road is paved
the entire way, but the asphalt breaks up in places on the BR-242.
Car rental is best done in Salvador.By
Bus -- Real Expresso (tel.
0800/617-325;
www.realexpresso.com.br ) makes the approximately 5-hour journey
between Salvador and Lençóis at a cost of R$34 (US$11). Buses depart
the Salvador Rodoviaria for Lençóis daily at 11:30pm (arriving at
5am), as well as Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 7am (arriving
2pm). From Lençóis, buses depart the bus station on Av. Senhor dos
Passos s/n (tel. 075/334-1112) for Salvador on Sunday at 11pm,
Monday through Saturday at midnight, and Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
at 8am.
By Air --
the Airport of Lençois offers 3
flights a week from Salvador or Brasilia (Airlines available: Rio Sul,
Nordeste) and 1 flight a week from São Paulo to Lençois (Airline:
Pantanal)
to Lençóis airport, 25km (16 miles) from town.