Welcome to Brazil! — S/V Oroboro

Ilha Grande, Brazil, March 2019

After sailing 4,387nm and spending 35 days at sea, Oroboro safely anchored in Ilha Grande, Brazil, on February 1st, 2019.

I felt like the early explorers, and I thought I could name the bay "Baia de Fevereiro" (just like Rio was named Rio de Janeiro because discovered on January 1st). I know... silly thoughts.

The Bay of Ilha Grande is just spectacular, with 365 islands and 2,000 white sandy beaches. Sometimes I feel like being on a lake in Italy, like Lake Como. But the lake is surrounded by a lush tropical forest instead.

S/V Oroboro GPS sailing track — Ilha Grande and Paraty area, February to April 2019 — S/V Oroboro GPS track — Ilha Grande & Paraty — February–April 2019 • GPS data from Raymarine chartplotter • Map © OpenStreetMap contributors

What makes Brazil really special is its people. The sound of the language, the kindness, and the smiles! We get around pretty well with our Portuñol (mix of Spanish and Portuguese), since very few people speak English. Funny enough, often times when they say something I don't understand, they turn to Yuka asking to translate it for me. With her tan body and radiant smile, she is often mistaken for a Brazilian.

We checked in Angra dos Reis, named like this because discovered on January 6:

Then we headed to Paraty, one of the maybe 2 most well preserved towns in Brazil to my knowledge (the other one being Ouro Preto).

What-a-town!

Paraty means "river of fish" in the Tupi language. It was founded by the Portugueses in 1667 and when gold was discovered in the mountains of Mina Gerais and the "Caminho do Ouro" (gold trail) connecting the town to Ouro Preto was built, it become the main port for exporting gold to Rio de Janeiro.

Since then, Paraty has been out of the mainstream, which is why it did not change for centuries, until a paved road was built from Rio de Janeiro to Santos in the 1970s. Then from a small and almost abandoned fishing village Paraty become a tourist destination.

The historic downtown is paved with large cobblestones and it's pedestrian only. During spring tides, the seawater level rises and floods the streets through small openings in the seawalls that separate the city from the harbor. The streets are only flooded for a short time, and a few shop owners put out boards to make a bridge for the benefit of pedestrians. Just like in Venice!

The town is full of cafes, restaurants, pousadas (hotels) and nice boutiques. At night, it becomes very lively and you have live music in almost all restaurants and cafes. Bossa nova and samba, of course! There is also a cachaça distillery, a mandatory stop for everyone. Food is just fantastic, with the Moqueca being our favorite dish so far.

We just love this small town and we decided to make it our Head Quarters. From here, we can sail to countless secluded anchorages and deserted beaches, both on the continent and also in Ilha Grande, one of the most pristine and richest ecosystems in the world.

It's a fantastic cruising ground, and we are enjoying it very much. Especially the Admiral:

Every anchorage — Ilha Grande & Paraty, February–April 2019

We stayed in this area for almost three months, making it our cruising home base before heading north toward Rio, Búzios, and eventually 4,000nm of Brazilian coastline. Below is a complete record of every stop, with GPS-mapped detail for each anchorage.

Stop	Date	Notes
Ilha Grande bay	Feb 1, 2019	Landfall after 35 days, 4,387nm from Cape Town
Angra dos Reis	Feb 2	Customs check-in
Sítio Forte (Ilha Grande)	Early Feb	First anchorage; Thelma called on VHF offering fish lasagna
Abraão (Ilha Grande)	Feb	Only village on the island; no cars, no roads
Praia dos Meros (Ilha Grande)	Feb–Mar	The opera singer night
Mamanguá	Feb–Mar	Tropical fjord, 8km long
Saco do Céu	Feb–Mar	“Bag of the Sky”
Enseada das Estrelas	Feb–Mar	“Bay of the Stars”
Paraty	Feb–Apr	HQ for 2 months; cobblestone streets flood at spring tides (like Venice)
Praia do Sobrado (near Ubatuba)	~Apr 7	Overnight stop; beautiful rainbow
Ubatuba	Apr 8	Crossed Tropic of Capricorn on foot
Ilha Anchieta	Apr	Former Brazilian Alcatraz; WWII Japanese prisoners; beautiful beach anchorage
Ilhote de Couves	Apr	Storm refuge; 26 knots; waited for cold front
Rio de Janeiro — Marina de Glória	Mar–Apr	2 weeks; Carnival; met Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss IMOCA)
Cabo Frio	Apr	Entered via Boqueirão passage
Praia do Forno	Apr	Cabo Frio area
Búzios — Praia dos Ossos	Apr	Brigitte Bardot statue; Yuka PADI dive course

Anchorage maps

Every anchorage, zoomed in — GPS track from our Raymarine chartplotter overlaid on OpenStreetMap.

Angra dos Reis anchorage map — Angra dos Reis — customs check-in

Sítio Forte anchorage map — Sítio Forte, Ilha Grande — first anchorage in Brazil

Abraão anchorage map — Abraão, Ilha Grande — the only village, no cars

Praia dos Meros anchorage map — Praia dos Meros — the opera singer night

Mamanguá anchorage map — Mamanguá — tropical fjord, 8km long

Saco do Céu anchorage map — Saco do Céu — “Bag of the Sky”

Enseada das Estrelas anchorage map — Enseada das Estrelas — “Bay of the Stars”

Paraty anchorage map — Paraty — our HQ for two months

Praia do Sobrado anchorage map — Praia do Sobrado — overnight stop south of Ubatuba

Ubatuba anchorage map — Ubatuba — Tropic of Capricorn; Ilha Anchieta nearby

Ilha Anchieta anchorage map — Ilha Anchieta — Brazil's Alcatraz; beautiful beach anchorage

Ilhote de Couves anchorage map — Ilhote de Couves — storm refuge, 26 knots

Rio de Janeiro anchorage map — Rio de Janeiro, Marina de Glória — Carnival & Alex Thomson

Cabo Frio anchorage map — Cabo Frio — via Boqueirão passage

Praia do Forno anchorage map — Praia do Forno, Cabo Frio area

Búzios anchorage map — Búzios, Praia dos Ossos — Brigitte Bardot & PADI dive course

More to follow on Ilha Grande in the next posts. Stay tuned!