Why this ride
It goes by way of Serras do Cordeiro, Guaraguacu Ecological Station, Ilha do Mel Ecological Station and back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese and Ilha do Mel Ecological Station
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 454 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 7 h 52
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Estrada da Graciosa
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For 29 km this is Estrada da Graciosa, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 29 km
- Named road
- Estrada da Graciosa
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese
In 1873, the province of Paraná in southern Brazil opened a road down the Serra do Mar from Curitiba to the coast, and it is still there, paved with stone setts, winding through the Atlantic forest in more than a dozen kilometres of bends. The Serra do Mar here is part of the Atlantic Forest South-East Reserves, listed by UNESCO in 1999, one of the largest remaining stretches of a forest that once covered much of the Brazilian coast.
Read the complete Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese is where the day begins. Next is Serras do Cordeiro.
2. Serras do Cordeiro
South of Curitiba the Serra do Mar stops being a distant wall and becomes a country of its own, folded into sharp green peaks that rise from the coastal plain of Paraná to well over a thousand metres. The Serras do Cordeiro belong to that mountain tangle, in the zone of protected land and state parks around Pau Oco, near the town of Quatro Barras. Pico Paraná, the highest summit in southern Brazil, and the pyramid of Marumbi are the big names nearby, and the whole range is blanketed by Atlantic forest, a wet, mossy, orchid-hung woodland that catches the clouds coming off the ocean and drips for most of the year.
Read the complete Serras do Cordeiro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Serras do Cordeiro comes up 41 km in. Next is Guaraguacu Ecological Station.
3. Guaraguaçu Ecological Station
On the coast of Paraná, between the port city of Paranaguá and the beaches of Pontal do Paraná, the Guaraguaçu Ecological Station protects a stretch of lowland forest, mangrove and sandy restinga along the Guaraguaçu river. It belongs to the network of Atlantic Forest reserves that UNESCO lists for the south and southeast of Brazil, here around the Paranaguá bay, one of the best preserved estuaries on the Brazilian coast. Access to the station itself is restricted, as ecological stations are mainly for research, but the surrounding landscape gives a strong sense of what it protects.
Read the complete Guaraguacu Ecological Station write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
81 km in you reach Guaraguacu Ecological Station. Next is Ilha do Mel Ecological Station.
4. Ilha do Mel Ecological Station
No cars are allowed on Ilha do Mel, the honey island, at the mouth of the bay of Paranaguá in southern Brazil, and that is a large part of its charm. The island is a mix of sandy beaches, rocky headlands, mangroves and Atlantic forest, and most of it is protected as an ecological station and a state park. Its forests, beaches and mangroves are part of the Atlantic Forest South-East Reserves listed by UNESCO, a string of protected areas along the coast of Paraná and São Paulo that preserve some of the best remaining stretches of the Mata Atlântica. The number of visitors is limited, which keeps the island quiet even in summer.
Read the complete Ilha do Mel Ecological Station write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Ilha do Mel Ecological Station, about halfway. Next is back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station.
5. back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Guaraguacu Ecological Station write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station sits at 163 km, about halfway. Next is back through Serras do Cordeiro.
6. back through Serras do Cordeiro
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Serras do Cordeiro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Serras do Cordeiro comes up 203 km in. Next is Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese.
7. Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese closes the day.
Leg by leg
Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese to Serras do Cordeiro
Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese → Serras do Cordeiro is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Serras do Cordeiro to Guaraguacu Ecological Station
Serras do Cordeiro → Guaraguacu Ecological Station is 66 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Guaraguaçu Ecological Station to Ilha do Mel Ecological Station
Guaraguaçu Ecological Station → Ilha do Mel Ecological Station is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Ilha do Mel Ecological Station to back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station
Ilha do Mel Ecological Station → back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station to back through Serras do Cordeiro
back through Guaraguacu Ecological Station → back through Serras do Cordeiro is 66 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Serras do Cordeiro to Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese
back through Serras do Cordeiro → Zone & State Park Pau Oco Turistical Prese is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.