Well a lot has happened during the last week, with a few endings and some new beginnings. After wrapping things up in Area 2, it was time to go and collect the data in the last stage of the study – an almost completely developed fragment of recovering forest directly on the edge of the reservoir.
The first day here began with an atmospheric boat ride across through the heavy morning mist, and I wondered what was awaiting us there in the shadows as we slowly made our way over the water to the otherwise inaccessible pocket of jungle.
It was quite a big difference working here compared to the areas of initial regeneration. There were none of the tangly Mixirico shrubs we’d come to know and love, just colossal trees and a forest that converged completely above us. We could actually stand up whilst walking through the plots! Well, almost. Navigating through the bush there had its own challenges, with some pretty severe slopes and a thick layer of leaf litter and debris covering the forest floor, so it wasn’t always easy staying upright…
Here underneath the shade of the tall canopy the air was cool and still, and there was definitely a sense of age that was lacking in the more recently disturbed places we’d seen.
The new mixture of plants was beautiful to see – with the occasional glimpse of the water glistening through the trees – but dangerous too. Here there was no hidden barbed wire, but nature’s own version instead. Almost all the surfaces were covered in some kind of thorns, spines or barbs so you always had to look exactly where you were putting your hands, or any other bits of you.
Unfortunately Gabi took a six inch spike to the leg at the end of the first day, causing some mild paralysis and putting her out of action for 24 hours (I also got a taste of it in my fingers after mistakenly punching a vicious palm, which was bad enough!)
There were even some nasty little surprises hidden under the leaves (in addition to the abundant and slightly poisonous spiders), which made collecting the leaf litter all the more fun…
But by this point we had pretty much become experts in our field (literally), so after just three days here we had already completed our work – ending my three week long episode (and x field days) out here in the forests of Itatiaia.
(The dream team celebrates finishing the last plot!)
In addition to the countless bags of soil, from this last area I’ll be taking back with me fond memories of listening for wild beasts, being attacked by a swarm of (luckily relatively harmless) bees, and some minor scars. And a sense of place that I don’t think you could quite find anywhere else.
So I left the reservoir for the final time with mixed feelings – a relief that the hard work is over (at least the physical side…) but I will be sad to leave these beautiful places, and the good friends I’d made through the fun and ordeals we’d shared.
But the excitement wasn’t over completely, and there was just one more adventure to squeeze in before the journey back north to Lavras – a quick day visit to Rio to absorb a bit of a different kind of Brazilian experience.
So the next day began with a 4.30 am start to catch the bus out of Resende, the dawn breaking as we made our way along the winding roads – the outlines of the mountains forming vaguely in the eerie morning light.
Four hours and a couple of articles on succession in tropical forests later we finally arrived at the main bus station in Rio, where I caught another bus across town towards the coast. The endless traffic jams gave me lots of time to soak up the sights up on the way.
I had heard plenty of horror stories and tales of tourists meeting sticky ends in Rio, so it was with a little apprehension and socks stuffed with anything of any value that I hopped off the bus at Leme and began to explore.
I hit the beach straight away. The white gold sands of the Copacabana looked like something straight out of a film, stretching out in front of me between the mountains and the sea. I really couldn’t believe I was there, especially having just come straight out of the wilderness the day before.
(Enjoying a cold coconut on the beach after a quick dip– the best way to enjoy the first day off in a long time!)
From there it was a sunny stroll up the promenade to Ipanema, where I came across a few similarly disoriented English people, Americans and Germans on the way. There was an exciting vibe as people from all over the place had collected there for the world cup, and I met a few friendly characters – swapping cameras to take pictures of each other in front of the decorated backdrop of the seafront. Luckily it wasn’t hard to blend in amongst the many tourists.
On the way back through town I stopped off at the famous and beautiful botanical gardens, finding some trees that I’d now become acquainted with out in the wilds as well as loads of other amazing plants.
There were some spectacular giants from Amazonia that really captured the imagination, and giving me a little urge to go and see these things in their natural home…
Of course there were no heated greenhouses like the tropical gardens I’ve visited before back in Europe, everything just growing out in the open air.
So the whirlwind tour across the city was almost over. Unfortunately I hadn’t been able to see the renowned Christ the Redeemer as the weather wasn’t on my side, but perhaps I’ll get another chance one day…
(The remarkable view of the one cloud over the city that just so happened to be sitting on the exact spot of the statue!)
I was happy I’d managed to avoid being mugged, kidnapped or eaten – in fact my experience of the city had been really pleasant, but I hadn’t really wandered too far off the beaten track…
Then it was just another crammed bus ride back to the station and a late arrival for the last evening in the town. I’d grown quite attached to it and its quirkiness over the last three weeks.
(The aforementioned chocolate factory next to Santa’s grotto, weirdly surrounded by palm trees…)
Once we’d had our goodbye meal it was time to pack (again!) and load up Jurema with all of our equipment and samples ready for the next day’s departure. In the early morning, after many fond farewells, we finally embarked upon the journey to Lavras – accompanied by a new friend Renato who had come to help us transport our kit back. Thoughts turned to the next step of the project – the long process of plant identification, soil analysis and other sample processing in the labs– and then making sense of it all! I’m very excited to see what will come out of the information we’ve recorded, and what implications it could have for the land here.
The fieldwork really has been an amazing experience and I am so glad to have had the opportunity to be here. It’s been a nice time with our little family in our little Penedo home that I won’t forget any time soon. Who knows, maybe I’ll get the chance to be here again one day to see how things have changed for the Mata Atlântica up in the hills of Itatiaia…
a brazilian excursion 