Travel with us 120 miles in the Island of the Magic.

December first of 1994, I was preparing for the first long bicycle trip of my life. With the intention of developing a map of bicycle path from the Island and  promoting the connection through bike lanes of their 42 beaches, that trip counted with Engineer José Piccoli's support, in the formulation of the idea.

Take a look on Florianópolis Map

Cyclists: Adilson Pedro Maria, 21 years old.       Time: 5 days
                 Leonel Hilário Maurici, 25 years old.    Distance: 250 miles

In 1994 I was again giving tennis classes in a very old and famous Itajaí club, Sociedade Guarany. We needed a good bicycle for me, because my cousin had already bought one of great quality, and also more $150 for expenses with feeding and lodging, but nothing we got yet. Until one week before the trip, we won an cyclo computer to register the distance and speed sponsored by the Ótica Corujinha of the valley, whoever the owner is my tennis student, sr. Jaime Hueser, a person that had a very important support for the accomplishment of the trip for Atlanta.

We also won, a backpack sponsored by Radionaval and we got the revelation of the 108 pictures that we beat, paid by Unified System. But we still needed the bicycle. Then we went to give interviews for a local program of television, and for the newspapers Daily of the Coast and the News, on the trip of Florianópolis and one day later, I won a bicycle sponsored by the Hipermercado Vitória, due to the interviews that we gave.

Everything prepared for the trip. We left on December second Friday by 07:00 o'clock, in front of Mother church Itajaí downtown. We took the highway that links Itajaí to Balneário Camboriú diffused, going to BR 101 heading for the south. Going up the Hill of the Ox, we stopped to take a water of drinkable source and we followed trip will stop 5 Km after the city of Tijucas in a hut of cane broth. We made an economical lunch, because we didn't have enough money.  We ate cookies, bananas, bread, two glasses of sugar cane and we ate a cooked corn each one. The nice couple, Dona Justina and her husband, Zé, they had the kindness of not collecting money from us, then we thanked beating a picture to register such beautiful moment in a cycle-tourist's life. We said good-bye and came back to the highway.
The trip was normal until we arrive in the capital of Santa Catarina, in the Square XV of November to the 16:30, exact 101 Km from the Itajaí's Mother church. We marked with the press in the following day and we returned to the city of São José, to sleep, where my brother, Arnaldo Pedro Maria, lives, he is Commander of the Fire brigade of Florianópolis . Therefore early, we took a perfected breakfast, done by my sister-in-law Soráia, and we returned to the Square for us to give beginning the Turn the Island of SC.

There we gave interviews to RBS TV announcing the objective of building a bicycle path map of every perimeter of the Island, and also containing the information of highway conditions, difficulties of the course, beach distances and the discovery of new trails.

Therefore then, we started pedaling to the north, being the first beach to be visited, Beach of Cacupé, and from there for the other ones, always edging the sea, because it was that interested to us.

 Already of beginning, we found people that received us with a lot of affection, wishing us a good trip and a lot of success. To each beach that we visited, we felt a different emotion, the landscapes, the sands, the sea, anything will not repeated.
The lunch time is now, and once again as economy, we bought bread, bananas and we made a snack. Taking advantage the pause, we had a chance to watch our interviews on TV and later we proceeded heading for Beach of the Pontal.  Before we were approached by some residents that attended our report and they gave  us a nice cold glass of water. Of there we proceeded to the beach through sand edging the sea, because it was the only access, where we stopped and we ate our accompanied snack of a lot of sand, because it was wound strong. We returned for the same road the highway that gives access to other beaches diffusing and then for front we began to catch a wind obstacle close to the 13 m/h, hindering our turn of the pedals, but it is part of the show.

After terms gone by some less famous beaches however of an exuberant beauty, we arrived at the Beach of Canasvieiras, where one were having the accomplishment of national tournaments of beach volleyball, because there is a good margin of sand following by a great structure.

 
Continuing our Turn the Island of Santa Catarina, we arrived at the Lagoinha Beach, very beautiful where the sea is quite calm and also has a small lake, then the origin of the name. Therefore we began to catch uneven land going by the Brava Beach, favorite for the surfers with their enormous waves for the practice of the sport, and we also found people that saw us in television and them gave us some information on the Island. The end of the day arrived, and of there we proceeded direct to the Beach of English, going by the Cut Hill, with a touching descent of almost 1 km. There we got a close camping to the beach where the nice owner, only collected four dollars for that night, and still for top we slept in a closed place and him lent us a radio to feel home.
 

On Sunday morning, we woke up for our third day of trip, proceeding to the Beach of Costão of Santinho and entering in a trail of sand with 1,000  miles enclosed of dunes and vegetation. Suddenly, we found a big spider in the middle of the trails, Leonel had the courage to take a picture and I passed flying, therefore I don't move with that bug type. That trail gives access until the Beach of Mocambique.

We found two ways to go and we asked that question that is the most obvious. _And now, where do we go? Then, Leonel left me with the bicycles and went  to see which alternatives we can take to. In the moment, a nice gentleman appeared  with a large knife in the hand, and I took advantage to ask information for which trail we can take to the beach. He show us the right way while Leonel arrived. We said goodbye to the nice gentleman and we followed the arrow.

We arrived at the beach and was no body living close by.  With an unforgettable image, we took advantage to relax and we took a enjoined the beach. As we were in the end of the beach, we continued on the sand until we found a parallel street.  After 5 Km, we followed our trip just appreciating the green of the Island, will stop at a very beautiful beach called Barra da Lagoa Beach, that preserves their small dunes and the clarity of the water.  Over here, we went to the part more urbanized and we made our economical lunch once again.

After lunch, the Island reserved us the image considered by us, the more beautiful woman, Conceição Lake, enormous and of transparent waters, enclosed dunes, mountains and of nautical clubs. We registered this wonderful vision and we continued for the highway that makes the outline of the Lake, following by a mountainous and  giving access to the Galheta Beach, where people can practiced the naturism, but we didn't enter.

We went to know the famous, Beach of Joaquina,  incomparable beauty, with enormous dunes, stones with fruits of the sea, restaurants, leisure area and it is the official beach of the competition surf.

 By the way, we drunk a sugar cane juice to restore the energies.
We made a small pause to appreciate the nature and we returned on the same road. Facing the  Conceição Lake again, we forward west and sells a lot of gram, shadow, bars with live sound, people playing, jumping, really a place to relieve the tension of the work and the traffic. Before we finished the outline, we caught the left towards the south of the Island for urbanized road, but before we took a shortcut of 3,9 km going by a ground highway and to vary, with a lot of sand hindering our day. We arrived at the Beach of Campeche, and the eraly afternoon the summer rain arrived following by thunder storms but we were protected at a bar.

Is 6:00 PM, and we decided to ride more 9 miles to pass the night in Pãntano of the South. On the road, we across the beaches of the Hill of the Stones, with very thick sand, enclosed of mountains of great stones and also for the Beach of the Frame, it semi-deserts and full of mystery. When we arrived, we went to seek a place to sleep, and we took the direction for the Pirate's Housing, that was for where we went.

On the road, a bus with students from Pouso Redondo City passed us and we thought that place would not remain space for me and Leonel in the Pirate's Housing, but the luck was with us. So much that the nice lady of the Housing, Miss. Sueli, had the kindness of not collecting money from us for that night. The group of the trip, soon began asking us questions about the trip and we became friends. We considered the best day of the trip, we met the most beautiful places of the Island and in the night we had a pleasant company of that group of young. It was one day for anybody to forget.

In the morning, we said goodbye to the group that left early and we ate our breakfast in the Pirate's Housing Cafeteria, that was also offered us by the nice and young lady Miss Sueli. We thanked a lot the nice landlady and we came back to business.  Heading south, we give a jump in the Beach of the Solitude, and we met some nice residents. This beach is coasted of hills where there is a trail of two hours of walk for the forest to arrive in the side west of the Island, in the Beach of Shipwrecked.   Me and Leonel thought about going for this trail, but the residents  advise us, therefore it would be very difficult to cross for the other side of the Island with our bicycles.

Then we had to return towards the north, passing in front of the Housing will catch ground highway, and we came across the Cut Hill, which cuts us the road in 50% for us to arrive on the other side, exactly in the Beach Outside. Therefore at the beginning we caught an inclination of about 10 degrees from where we had a wonderful view of every Swamp of the South and an light air, accompanied of singing of the birds. There you feel like man in the jungle, almost as well as us on that moment, we fed of sugarcane, bananas, oranges and bread. Well, after almost 6 miles of hill, we arrived on the other side, leaving for our last moments in the Island of the Magic.

We called the press and we marked an encounter in the clover of access to the Beach of the Stones for us to make an interview of finalization of the Turn the Island of Santa Catarina, with Barriga Verde TV .   Now, let's ride to the south again, going to the Beach of Caeira, and we were already approached by some nice residents that saw us in television, and we chatted. Of there we did continue and did we notice the company of a dog that followed us during 1 mile...  where is he going?  Reaching our end,  we visited the Shipyard of Canoes and we talked with a nice gentleman about the life on the ocean.

Returning towards the north of the Island, we made our first nice lunch, a succulent bean plate with rice, fish, salad and a lot of water, paid by my cousin Leonel, because I had no money. Then of that deserved lunch, we went to the encounter with the press to register the end of the trip, exactly in the clover that gives access the Beach of the Hill of the Stones, where it also served of scenery for the recording of the interview. Of there we went running downtown, in the Square XV of November, place of the beginning of the trip.

In the fifth and last day of trip, we stayed at my brother's house to rest and to clean the bicycles living just after the lunch. The return trip was calm, thanks to God, and we passed again at lady's hut Justina to take that cold sugar cane juice free, because again she wasn't collect money from us. We arrived in Itajaí, on same day December 06, in the Church Mother  on 19:10 hrs.

 With this trip, we began to give beginning to our background and we became more known. We made an exhibition of pictures inside  of Hipermercado Vitória for four days.

Thanks for Ms. Isabel helping me on translate from Portuguese to English and Spanish.

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