Sue And Graham's Excellent Adventure: Island Life in Brazil

Graham got his computer back, so were finally able to post the final update from South America.

We spent 1 full week on Brazil’s favorite island getaway, Isla Grande. Despite the less than ideal weather for most of our stay (we had intense rain/thunder storms many evenings) we still managed to get a tan and chill out. We met several friends during our first days and took several long hikes across the island exploring waterfalls and beaches (despite the clouds). The longest hike, about 5 hours was to Dios Rios, a small town on the opposite side of the island which we were told housed an old prison. With visions of Alcatraz in our heads, the group set out on the muddy 5 mile road. At the other end we found a mostly abandoned town with what was left of a rather unimpressive square building at one end. Turns out the prison had been operational until 1994 (so not really very old) and then most of it was imploded by the government a few years later….so much for tropical Alcatraz.

When the weather finally cleared we made the 2 hour hike through a beautiful jungle to Lopez Mendes, an isolated beach with fine white sand. There was an option to take a boat tour there, but being the cheap types, we figured the hike only made the reward even better. In fact we did the same thing again the next day.