Chapada Diamantina

We started our trip to the national park „Chapada Diamantina“ from Salvador. Mandy and me booked a VIP bus trip which took about 7 hours. We had seats that could be transformed into a bed with a pillow and a blanket. This was a great experience and we slept well. When we arrived in Lençóis we took a taxi to our hotel. After a short siesta we visited the office of the company “Diamantina Mountains” where we booked our trips to the national park. We had 2 full days to visit the park, so we used the time to do 2 one-day- trips. The woman in the office explained us that our guides would pick us up in the morning at our hotel. It was recommended to wear good shoes and bring some beachwear.

Hiking through pristine nature

The first day our guide and a driver picked us up and we drove about 2 hours with a very cool jeep. The last one hour we drove off-road which was very exciting because it wobbled very much. After that we had to climb up a mountain which was really exhausting. Then we hiked about 2 hours through the steppe. It was very peaceful. We haven’t seen anyone except 3 donkeys and many lizards. When we arrived on our destination we had an incredible view over a huge valley and some other mountains. The long hike was definitely worth this amazing view.

We had a short break there and lunch, then we walked back. On our way back we took a different way so that we came around a river called Rio Preto. Many people say it looks like coke or tea but despite the color the water is very clean. It only has this colour because of the iron in it. We had the chance to swim there and it was a great experience for us. After another few hours of walking, we had to climb down the mountain. For us, the way down was at least as difficult as the way up. We were very happy when we arrived at the jeep again. I have been very tired and Mandy had a sunburn but this trip was amazing and we are so happy that we’ve done this.

Our day trip through the diversity of the Brazilian nature

The next day we had booked a trip which isn’t so exhausting because we did not have to walk so much. We saw a lot of various nature attractions. First we drove to a waterfall called Devils Pool which was really beautiful. We climbed down to the bottom of it and took great pictures. Our next highlight was the visit of a huge cave. It was totally dark in there so we had big flashlights to see the way. In this cave called Lapa Doce we were alone with our two guides which was totally amazing for us.

After that we ate lunch and drove to another cave. This cave is called Pratinha and was surrounded by clear blue water. That we could swim and snorkel in the cave was the best thing about it. It was the first time Mandy snorkeled and it was so exciting. We had flashlights again because it was dark in the cave. We swam and snorkeled half an hour in it. This was the most exciting thing we did. At the end of the day we drove to a mountain called Pai Inacio where we climbed up and saw the beautiful sunset with an amazing view on a valley. This was a perfect finish for our trip to the Chapada Diamantina.

Things you must have done in Chapada Diamantina:

• Do a long hike through a steppe
• Visit the waterfall Devils Pool
• Definitely snorkel in the cave Pratinha 
• Visit a cave like Lapa Doce