Travel Diary: Brazil Coastline from Bahia to Rio Grande Norte (October & November 2023)

After a massive trek across the breadth of Brazil, we ended last month with a few days on the beach which we hoped was going to set the trend for our next few months in Brazil, lots of beach and surf time with short hops along the coast as we did this.  

Our first stop was just 50km north but before getting there we went on a mission to find a gas bottle as we had run out of gas for cooking.  As with electrical plugs and sockets, there is no standard size for gas bottles or their regulators and the threads required to refill them.  In preparing for the South America Stuart had purchased a wide variety of every type adapter he could source both in South Africa and globally in order to make the refill process easier and much to our surprise we have only needed one of these so far, the simple “bullnose” adapter we have in SA for large to small bottles.  Brazil is however a different matter altogether as they will not refill anything but their own style bottle and so we knew, from last years experience, that we had to purchase a bottle.  Further complicating the process is that the standard bottle size here is 13kg which is way too big for mounting on the back of Mr J but they do also have a 5kg version (different shape to Cadac) that we had been able to fit onto the bracket we have – it was just a case of finding one.  

We knew the brand that had this size and had googled a number of their locations/outlets in Ilheus and so were reasonably optimistic that we would find one but after about the 5th fruitless stop that optimism was fading fast as we headed out of town to the factory/distribution centre.  As if things weren’t complicated enough, the data on our phone run out (meaning no Google translate) upon arrival at the factory and Stuart was left to try and explain in his “best” Portuguese to the bemused security guard what we wanted and from that interaction we obtained rough directions to a new address which sadly also turned into a failure.  As one last resort we headed back to the factory for another attempt and this time got lucky as a manager was leaving and he took pity on us, with the end result being him leading us back through town to another distribution point where we could purchase a 5kg bottle. After what had been a frustrating search, we were left grateful for the kindness of complete strangers.

After parting ways on the side of the road (he even helped lead us out of town), we quickly covered the 50km north to the next campsite, having been there already last year we thought we knew what to expect and so were rather surprised to find a campground bursting with silverbacks and their very large mobile homes.  

Based on our past interactions with Brazilians, we expected to be using Google translate plenty over the course of the next days as curious neighbours stopped by to check out Mr J and welcome us to Brazil but strangely in this camp everybody very much kept to themselves and in one week we only had a single visitor.  

Last year Stuart had had some enjoyed some quite nice “board meetings” on this beach but this year the wind and swell direction were not playing ball and blowing in some seriously scary looking (&large)Portuguese Men of War, so instead we occupied ourselves with long beach walks and kindle time while lying on the beach.  We had still not fully recovered from the long trek across Peru and Brazil so the 7 lazy days spent at Camping Paraiso were exactly what we needed.

As already mentioned we had travelled this part of the coastline already and so had decided to make a relatively quick move up to and past Salvador but first we wanted to visit one beach called Praia Engenhoca, from what we had read and the pictures we had seen it looked absolutely stunning.  You approach it via a 30-minute walk through the rain forest to emerge onto a 500m strip of sand which is wedged between two headlands, as an added bonus it, supposedly, was popular for surfing.   The only downside being that there was no camping in the vicinity so our plan was to spend the better part of the day on it and then do a 3 hour hop towards Salvador and a truck stop which had a self-service laundromat onsite, this would give us somewhere convenient to sleep and mean one less “admin” task for our time in Salvador.

The walk to the beach, the beach itself and the surfing did not disappoint and we spent a great morning there before hitting the road for what should have been an easy commute to the truckstop.  Perhaps it was because he was feeling neglected from having been left up on the road while we enjoyed a tropical paradise beach but Mr Jones clearly had very different plans, when after just an hour he cut-out from fuel starvation.  This brought back terrible flashbacks to our time in the Pantanal one year prior, as we hadn’t run out of fuel, he had had a service less than 1500km ago and there were no obvious symptoms for the issue.  Over the course of the next 3hours, Stuart bled the fuel system 10 or more times which allowed us to cover a few more kilometers forward each time before cutting out again and just as we were beginning to think we may be spending the night stranded on the side of the road he decided to dismantle and clean the fuel sedimenter in case we had some contaminated fuel.  The sedimenter turned out to be perfectly clean but thankfully after re-assembling it, Mr Jones ran for a “record” (at least for the previous 3 hours) of 25km with no issues which allowed us to get to a town and its associated campground. No laundromat for us that night but at least we were safe and could sleep soundly before regrouping in the morning.

Over breakfast the following morning, we made the decision to push forward, given that he had run so well for the last part of the previous evening and see how far we could go.  Our logic being that either the problem would rear its ugly head quickly and then we could turn around and come back to the small town we were in, to search for a diesel mechanic or alternatively it would take longer to appear and that would allow us to get closer to the BR101 ( a main arterial road in Brazil) and its associated truck support garages scattered all along its length where we were more likely to find an expert diesel mechanic.  5 hours later we found ourselves driving into the outskirts of Salvador and even confident enough to risk the traffic so that we could go searching for a butchery and supermarkets.   It remains a mystery as to what the actual issue had been but Stuart surmises that a small air leak must have appeared at the seal of the sedimenter and by removing and reinstalling it, this inadvertently fixed the issue.

As we had been in Salvador a year prior there was no need to spend time doing touristy things and so as we often do with big cities we focused on getting jobs done and acquiring items we don’t usually find in the smaller towns.  After a very efficient but busy day we were ready to head north and into what would now be new territory for us, unfortunately we had inadvertently picked a holiday to do this and it felt like every “Salvadorian” was headed in the same direction, at least for the first 100km or so until we had got far enough away from town for it to make sense as a day trip.  

We had in mind a wild camp spot on a what we thought was a relatively deserted peninsula but upon arrival realised that the picture and review in iOverlander had been a bit misleading, however not to be deterred we headed further along the peninsula on some deep sand tracks.  99% of the time we do not need the 4×4 capabilities that Mr Jones has but when we do use them or need them they are invaluable and this evening was one of those.  The sand tracks took us past a few villages and into a large coconut palm forest where we could back-up against the dunes for an idyllic camping spot which we nicknamed “Coconut Alley”.  Sundowners on the sand dunes overlooking the ocean with nobody around for many kilometres certainly made up for the issues and stress of a few days ago.

Leaving Coconut alley we were hoping to find another “long stay” venue were we could be stationary for a week or more and so this meant a 6 hour day in the car to cover the 370km it took to get to a small village called Coruripe were we found a very well organised campsite.  It is not a recognised surf spot but upon arrival it appeared to have some pretty decent waves out front at high tide but the high water can potentially hide unknown dangers such as rocks and reefs so if there are no locals to “guide the way”,  Stuart always waits for a full tide cycle to pass where he can observe the water both at high and low tide before deciding whether to surf.  Some rocks did become exposed at low tide but having observed their positioning he felt comfortable to hit the water alone and over the course of our stay had a number of really good sessions, even if he was the only one in the water each and every time.   

Another advantage of the campsite was that it had pretty decent WiFi which meant we could watch the Springboks in action at the Rugby World Cup. Although it did require some “out the box” thinking as to how to get a decent video stream with the final solution being us video calling family via WhatsApp and having them face their device towards the TV.  Where there is a will there is a way!   Both the quarter and semi-finals were nerve wracking affairs with the Springboks prevailing by only 1 point in each case which meant some very intense time in front of the screen and probably had our neighbours a little bewildered as to what was going on.

The day after the semi-final we were up way early (5:30) and quickly on the road for a short 60km into the relatively large town of Maceio hoping to get haircuts and shopping done.  When seeking out services such as a hairdresser or perhaps a smarter supermarket, Google is an invaluable tool for us.  Firstly, using the search engine for finding options and then following that up with the maps but not so much for the aspect of navigation but rather for reviewing photos and in particular the “street view” photos.   With street view we can rotate the picture to get a good idea of what the neighbourhood looks like and even more importantly what the parking situation is, the latter being important because of Mr Jones height.  Google maps is also usually pretty good at showing the business operating hours which we had overlooked as it never occurred to us that every single hairdresser and barber in this town is closed on a Monday.  All was not lost however as we at least did get to confirm that we would be able to easily park Mr Jones in the area and that the salons looked pretty decent.

Once we had completed our shopping we backtracked on ourselves a little bit to a smaller village where we hoped that perhaps we could spend a few days at an “estanciomento” which was located just back from a popular surfing beach called Praia do Frances. An estanciomento is a parking lot and along the coast they often offer toilets and showers for people coming off the beach, in the case of this one it was well documented to have an area for motorhomes and even provided electricity hookups.   It was certainly very popular and we have stayed in a few others before but for us, this one, felt very crowded and a bit dirty so our hoped for longer stay quickly become a one-nighter.

Stuart was up with the sun to join a few locals for a dawnie session in the surf before we headed back into town for haircuts.  With fresh new haircuts we hit the road for what should have been a short hop up the coast hoping to arrive in time for lunch, but when that didn’t appeal we tried the next spot and then the next spot and so forth (all free /wild) ones until we resorted to heading for what sounded like a nice formal camp but turned out to be a big open patch of sand (with nice bathrooms). As we did not feel like paying R280 for that, we went another 10km up the road to another option that also sounded nice to arrive and discover he wanted R400 for nothing exciting but parking under some trees with an iffy bathroom and a solid hike down a steep hill to get to the beach but as it was by now dark we had no choice than to cut our losses and stay. To add insult to injury, Stuart managed to reverse into a tree in the dark while trying to position Mr J, thankfully the tree was rotten and the metal guards we have over each light lens worked, so there was no permanent  damage to Mr J.  On the positive side the scenery on the drive was quite good and while checking out the free camping spots we had stopped at a number of very pretty beaches. 

The following morning having perused iOverlander we found a pousada (guesthouse) that offered Motorhome camping/parking which was just down the road and headed there.  It was a little cramped but right on a pretty “Tania friendly” beach (no waves), had a nice vibe from the other campers and most importantly had decent WiFi which we considered essential as the Springboks were due to play New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup final that coming weekend.

Once the springboks had prevailed and become the first team to win 4 Rugby World Cups we once again pointed Mr Jones nose northwards for what was now a recurring theme: “ a short hop with a number of failed attempts at finding a decent camping spot”.   

This time we ended up free camping in the city park of Macaraipe along with many Brazilian snowbirds in their vans and a large number of homeless people, which for us felt very much like squatting.  Travelling the way, we do puts you in touch with all levels of society and generally helps you realise and appreciate that we are all cut from the same cloth no matter your status in traditional society but one thing we have not been able to get used to is this style of urban camping.  Perhaps we would feel differently if we had a van or Motorhome where you could retreat easily into your little bubble and lock the world out but that is not sustainably possible with Mr Jones setup and also not the lifestyle we want.  

We did however have a pleasant afternoon, when a German chap who lives in town drove past and recognised the South African flag on our number plate and stopped by for a chat.

Needless to say, we hit the road fairly early the following morning and just as we had done the night before ended up free camping but this time in a spot that felt far more natural and acceptable to wild camp at, even though it was only 15km outside the major city of Recife.   The difference was, it was just above the beach, nestled in a grove of coconut trees with the nearest residences a good few hundred metres away and most looked like holiday homes and therefore empty.   Recife is the only area in the entire South America that has a history of recorded shark attacks and has in fact for the last decade imposed a ban on swimming or surfing at many of its beaches.  Therefore Stuart had no expectation of surfing but when not long after we arrived a number of surfers arrived and the water got quite busy, he decided to join them.  Later that day when we went for a sunset walk along the beach we come across signs which banned swimming to the left side but not the right – we did wander if the sharks had themselves received notification of which side of the designated line they were allowed to swim and thus avoid interfering with the surfing activity.

Brazil has a public holiday called “All Saints day” at the beginning of November and once we had shopped in (and passed through Recife), we sought out a nice campsite where we could stay off the roads for the long weekend, which we found in the beautiful campground of Vida Lida.  Apart from the super friendly owners there was lovely grass underfoot which made a welcome change from sand and we made sure to make the most of this feature by giving the inside of Mr Jones a good clean.  

The other reason for staying put over the long weekend was that it would allow us to “fall into the window period” where our visa could be renewed and the next town, Joao Pessoa, supposedly had a very efficient office of the Policia Federal where we could do that.  And it certainly was an easy process, we even had time afterward to find a self-service laundromat and get to our campsite at the lighthouse by mid-afternoon.  A fun little fact was that the lighthouse is located on the eastern most tip of South America, which meant we have now visited the continents eastern, western and southern most extreme points as well as passing through its geographic centre in our travels.

The renewal/extension of our visa means that we have received an additional 90 days and allows us to stay in Brazil until the end of February 2024 if we so desire, but most importantly it means that we can continue to enjoy the slow pace of short hops up the coastline and this is exactly what we did when we left Joao Pessoa.  Forty kilometres out of town we almost however didn’t take the turnoff to the little village of Barra do Mamanguape as it was just a little dirt road through sugarcane fields, but thankfully we did as an hour later we emerged on the edge of a beautiful estuary.   As we were debating if it would be okay to camp there, a local approached us to welcome us and tell us that it was super tranquilo and seguro (tranquil and safe) and we were welcome to camp under the nearby trees.  

After a fantastic evening and night next to the estuary, we seriously considered staying another night but with no facilities and after Stuart looked around and didn’t find a freshwater tap where we could perhaps fill up and obtain shower water, we sadly departed.  We have a 60 litre “clean water” tank in Mr Jones which only ever receives filtered water and while we could use that for dishes and showers we prefer not too. In addition we have a bumper tank of around 12Litres and a loose bottle of 6litres which are filled with general water and are used for cleaning purposes.  Until now this has been sufficient as often when we wild camp there is a fresh water source nearby from which we can easily refill but in drier parts of the world and in particular on coastlines we have found we could do with more general-purpose water capacity.  Stuart has been scheming for a while on how we could increase our carrying capacity and thinks he has a solution, it is now just a case of finding somewhere that can build a tank as he wants it.

Leaving our idyllic estuary camp we headed to the small fishing and surfing town of Baia Formosa with high hopes for a long stay but somehow both of us expected to be disappointed, thankfully we were both horribly wrong as from the moment we arrived, we felt at home and welcome.  During the week it is a tiny fishing village with a big surfing culture, thanks to it being the home of current Olympic gold medalist and past World Champion – Italo Ferreira.  On the weekend it transforms into a busy tourist destination with many surfers and other weekend tourists flocking to enjoy the waves, beach bars, buggy and quad bike tours on offer.  In total we enjoyed 12 days there and just as we felt the locals did, breathed a big sigh of relief when each Monday rolled around and the tranquilo vibe returned.

A more well-known beach and surf destination is the town of Pipa which is roughly only 30km up the coast from Baia Formosa but before going there we needed to go a bit further into the bigger city of Natal in order to re-supply our groceries.  In Brazil the majority of shopping is done at large warehouse like stores (similar to Makro in South Africa) known as attacado’s where you can get everything from wine, to household products and fresh fruit and vegetables. These do however tend to focus on the mass market and so the quality of meat is not great nor is the selection of more luxury items like jam, etc.  For these items we prefer to visit a supermercado in the better parts of town. In Natal Tania thought she had identified one such supermercado which looked like it had parking that would accommodate Mr Jones but when we got there we discovered this not to be the case and while circling the block to see if there was any alternative entrance to the parking, Stuart spotted a gym with street parking available directly in front of its entrance and coffee bar.  The main risk for us in big cities is having Mr Jones broken into while we are not with him, so the opportunity to park outside a busy gym with many people coming and going was too good to pass up and we quickly claimed the spot.  Naturally Mr Jones immediately garnered attention, meaning a number of free car guards, and when we come back to him after shopping, a number of the gym bunnies were eager to ask about our travels and because we were in the more upmarket/professional part of town could even chat in English.

Pipa unfortunately turned out to be a disappointment. We had been hoping that given that it is a well-known tourist destination, we would perhaps bump into some fellow travelers and that it would also have some funky restaurants, with perhaps even some live music, where we could enjoy an evening or two out. Sadly, it seemed to have neither.  We did however enjoy a few nice days on Praia Amor (the beach of love) although Tania did have to conquer her fear of heights getting to and from it!

From Pipa we piggybacked our way up the coast for a week with a number of short hops to end the month of November in the little village of Touros.  There is not much in Touros apart from a lighthouse and a number of lovely rock pools which become exposed at low tide and are perfect for sitting in while enjoying a glass or two of white wine, if low tide happens to fall over lunchtime, which it did for us. For many Brazilian overlanders though, it is probably better known for being the point where the BR101 starts or ends depending on the direction you are going, as could be witnessed by the many stickers on the road sign designating this fact.   Just like South Africa’s N2 highway, the BR101 runs along a large portion of the Brazil coastline, in fact 4765km of it, and was the first “major” road we drove on when we first entered Brazil in April 2022.  

We, on the other hand,  still have 2000+ kilometres to go until we reach the end of our journey along Brazil’s coastline, but that will be December’s travel diary.

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