Ilha Santa Catarina, where Rio goes to relax
11/11/2006 - The Salt Lake Tribune

The world dreams of escaping to Rio de Janeiro, but what about Rio natives themselves? Ask the boys and girls of Ipanema (or many other Brazilians), and you will find that Ilha de Santa Catarina, an island just off Brazilīs southern coast, tops most lists.
Brazilians speak of Ilha Santa Catarina with wistfulness, as if the few hundred yards that separate it from the mainland are a world away from their busy lives. Yet they need sacrifice little for their journey, because in just over 400 square kilometers, the island packs in nearly all that is good about Brazil - with a few bonuses thrown in.
Famously picky about their beaches, Brazilians reserve high praise for many of Santa Catarinaīs 42 strands, which range from cliff-hugging prayer rugs to miles-long arcs of sand. A spine of mountains, luxuriant with the flora and fauna of the Mata Atlantica (Atlantic rain forest), runs the length of the island. Near the islandīs center, the peaks drop precipitously to the stunning, saltwater Lagoa da Conceicao - a Swiss lake transported to warmer climes.
Just to the north of the lagoon begins a miles-long forest of rare, protected pines, while to the east sand dunes - some of them hundreds of feet high - create an almost lunar landscape. And on the western shores, whitewashed fishing villages seem to have been imported wholesale from the Azores Islands.
Thanks to shallow bays, the northern half of theisland is eminently family-friendly, with numerous hotels and teeming summer crowds. Think South Florida with a hilly backdrop. Lagoa da Conceicao - the islandīs navel - also grows thick with motorboats and holidaymakers. Both are more than pleasant, but not the kinds of places that youīd travel great distances to see.
But the wilder southern half of the island is another story. Outside the summer holidays, fishermen outnumber travelers, and there are still beaches that, at the price of a vigorous hike, you can have entirely to yourself. With narrower roads, higher peaks and more challenging surf, the south has largely been overlooked by developers - at least for now.
Things are bound to change, however, as plans are laid to build a new road connecting the southern half of the island with Florianopolis (the provincial capital that sits on the islandīs eastern shore) and its international airport. Developers are, needless to say, salivating at the prospects. If you want to enjoy the still largely unspoiled pleasures of southern Ilha Santa Catarina, the time to go is now.
So what is there to see? The long, curving Praia da Armacao is a surferīs delight, though currents can be relentless. On the green jut of land at the southern end of the beach, you can catch a boat to Ilha do Campeche, an ecological reserve with a paradisiacal beach, good snorkeling and Stone Age etchings. Farther south, the village of Pantano do Sul, still largely inhabited by fishermen of Azorean descent, looks out on a half-moon beach ringed by mountains.
Most extraordinary, though, are hikes to the stunning beaches that can only be reached by foot, including Lagoinha do Leste, Saquinho and, at the very tip of the island, Naufragados. Even after the new road is built, these beaches will, fortunately, remain only for the determined, if not the intrepid. Link relacionado: http://www.sltrib.com/travel/ci_4644202