Pico do Itacolomi in the Pico do Itacolomi State Park (“Stone Child” in Tupi-Guarani), at 1772 metres, was the reference point for bandeirantes looking for gold in the hills of Minas Gerais at the end of the 15th century.

Gold was eventually discovered in the streams that crisscrossed its surroundings, and it was at its feet that Antônio Dias founded the future Vila Rica on 24 June 1698.

The Itacolomi Mountain Range, part of the Espinhaço Mountain Range, was declared a State Park in 1967 and now covers 7543 hectares, belonging to Ouro Preto and Mariana.

The great attraction of the tour is the combination of nature and history.

The park is well organised with paid parking at the entrance and visitor centre. It also offers good support services with vans, monitors, toilets and a snack bar.

Located in an area of transition between the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado, in the lower parts of the park there are large trees – perobas, canelas, baraúnas, jatobás and quaresmeiras – while in the higher parts there are tall fields of begonias, bromeliads, canelas-de-ema, evergreens and orchids, including the endemic Habenaria itaculumínia.

Animals include anteaters, coatis and otters. Moorish cats and armadillos, and birds such as the green grackle and the peacock.

More risky and difficult to spot are the jaguars, brown and painted, and the sauá monkeys.

The attractions are divided into historical and cultural, trails and expeditions.

Conheça o Parque Estadual do Itacolomi

See also Historic Cities of Minas Gerais

Pico do Itacolomi State Park

1. The history

Much of the responsibility for the exploration of the Ouro Preto region was due to the presence of a natural symbol that attracted the bandeirantes of the 17th century: Pico do Itacolomi, the “Pedra-Menino”.

In one of the points of the Park, on the route of the gold production, a commercial and tax office was built to collect the quinto, the tax levied on the exploitation of minerals in Minas Gerais, as soon as the settlement of the region began, around 1706.

This post also served as a form of surveillance and defence of access to the mines. It is considered to be one of the first public buildings in the country.

The site was also the setting for 18th and 19th century naturalist travellers such as Spix and Von Martius, who carried out important studies and research.

With the decline of gold mining in the region in the mid-18th century, the area was converted to agriculture, with tea plantations.

In 1772, the area was auctioned off by Sergeant Major Manoel Manso da Costa Reis, and was then known as Fazenda da Vargem da Olaria.

In 1871 the property was mortgaged and in 1909 it passed into the hands of the Soares brothers. At an unknown date, it was sold to Francisco Diogo de Vasconcelos.

The then Fazenda do Manso, located on the site of today’s Itacolomi Park, was one of the two main tea producers in Ouro Preto, where there were seven other companies producing the herb.

The production of edelweiss tea flourished from the early 1930s until the end of the 1950s.

In 1946, there were 1.8 million tea trees on the São José do Manso estate.

The estate was owned by José Salles Andrade, who imported the seeds from India and the machinery from Germany.

The tea was named Edelweiss in honour of the farmer’s wife.

In 1974, Fazenda São José do Manso was sold to historian Tarquínio José Barbosa de Oliveira, who attempted to revive the production of black tea.

When he took over the farm, the historian found the plantation overgrown with weeds. He cleared it and restarted production, but didn’t have the same success as Edelweiss Tea.

2. Geomorphological aspects

The region is very attractive for its geomorphology, which stands out in the landscape not only because of the imposing mountain range – the southern part of Serra do Espinhaço – but also because of its natural monument, Pico do Itacolomi, which is one of the symbols of the settlement and history of Ouro Preto.

Serra do Itacolomi is one of the isolated branches of Serra do Espinhaço, which crosses Minas Gerais from south to north.

The rock composition of the park is mainly quartzite, phyllite, granite and sandstone.

The rocky outcrops in the highlands and sloping plateaus, such as Serra do Trovão, Lavras Novas, Cibrão and Pico do Itacolomi, stand out.

This geomorphological diversity in the Park is characterised by the variation in altitude, which ranges from 700m to 1772m, the peak of the peak.

3. Vegetation cover

The park’s vegetation consists of a transition zone between two different biomes, the Atlantic Rainforest to the west and the Cerrado to the east.

This diversity is easily seen on the trails offered to visitors to the park, although about 60 per cent of the land is made up of upland fields.

Its vegetation is also made up of semi-deciduous seasonal forest and gallery forest.

A tree of great scenic beauty found in the park is the quaresmeira, found mainly along the watercourses that cross the region.

In the higher parts of the park there are grasses and vines, an important example of which is the canela-de-ema. There are also fields of candeia throughout the region.

But the highlight – and the cause of some concern about bio-piracy – are the exotic bromeliads and orchids, plants that attract the interest of visitors who often end up taking them out of the park.

4. The fauna

An IEF survey found that there are around 400 different species in the Itacolomi Park area, giving the region a great diversity of fauna.

Many of these species are threatened in the area where the park is located due to frequent fires, especially in the winter months, a time of drought and strong winds.

Among the endangered species in the region are the maned wolf, the brown jaguar, the sauá monkey, the peacock and the giant anteater.

5. Hydrography

The basin in which Itacolomi State Park is located is that of the Gualaxo do Sul, a river that is one of the tributaries of the Rio do Carmo.

Other rivers that cross the park are Rio Mainart, Ribeirão Belchior, Córrego dos Prazeres, Córrego Domingas and Córrego do Manso.

They all form part of the hydrographic network that makes up the Rio Doce basin, one of the most important in the State.

6. The climate

The climate of the region is similar to that of the city of Ouro Preto: a typical highland climate, relatively humid with fog and prevailing south-westerly winds.

Rainfall is abundant in summer, especially between November and March.

In winter, the landscape becomes drier and there is a high risk of fire due to the lack of rain and wind.

Temperatures range from 4ºC to 33ºC throughout the year, with an average of 21ºC.

7. Historical aspects – Occupation of the region

The exploration of the region was part of the work of the flags that explored the interior of the continent throughout the 17th century.

Little is known about the first flag to reach the region, but it is thought to have been that of Bartolomeu Bueno da Siqueira and Antônio Rodrigues Arzão.

However, it was Bandeira de Duarte Lopes who first found gold in the region at the end of the 17th century.

The discovery was made by chance when one of the expedition members found dark stones in the bed of the Tripuí River, which, after being taken to Rio de Janeiro for analysis, turned out to be gold of the highest carat, and its dark colour was just a thin layer of iron oxide.

Thirty years after the discovery, the new village of Morro de São Paulo, the future Vila Rica, was founded and had about 40,000 inhabitants, making it the largest human settlement in Latin America at that time.

Next to it, on the banks of the Ribeirão do Carmo, was Arraial de Nossa Senhora do Carmo, which later became the first city in Minas Gerais and the seat of the Diocese of Minas Gerais.

Gold boosted not only the economy directly linked to it, but also the merchants who supplied the city, the craftsmen who made tools, objects and even art, engineers of all kinds, lawyers, clergymen, doctors, and so on.

Gold was found in abundance until the middle of the 18th century, when the metal began to run out. This led to increased control of gold production and the collection of taxes from the miners. This pressure from the crown culminated in the Inconfidência Mineira.

Vila Rica became the imperial city of Ouro Preto in 1823 and remained the capital of Minas Gerais until 1897, when Belo Horizonte was inaugurated. Mariana, one of the first planned cities in Brazil, was declared a National Historic Monument in 1945.

8. Tourist Attractions

• Visitor Centre
• Tea Museum
• Bandeirista House
• Oven Trail
• Chapel Trail
• Lagoon Trail
• Expeditions to Morro do Cachorro
• Viewpoint
• Custódio Basin
• Itacolomi Peak

Each visit is accompanied by an environmental monitor who provides information about each site.

9. Historical Tour

The park’s Visitor Centre is located in the drying area of the former São José do Manso estate, a major producer of black tea between the 1930s and 1950s.

Guided tours of the Tea Museum, which houses the German machinery used to process the herbs, tell the story.

A little further on, the visitor returns to even more remote times.

The Casa Bandeirista (Bandeirista House) was built between 1706 and 1708 in the style of São Paulo’s rural architecture. It was the first public building in Minas Gerais, where taxes were collected and gold was inspected as it travelled along the Royal Road to the port.

Listed as a National Historic Monument in 1998, the building has typical features such as arrow slits (a type of narrow window) used to defend the house, and cellars where weapons, ammunition and gold were stored.

The floor contains original pieces of the ceramics produced there, covered with glass to prevent deterioration.

Also part of this historical tour is the São José Chapel, which was renovated in the 1990s and decorated by local artists using local raw materials.

10. Trails

The park has four trails and three supervised mini-expeditions that must be booked in advance.

10.1 Forno Trail

The Forno path is circular and about 1200 metres long.

It is easy to follow and crosses an area of Atlantic forest with bromeliads and large trees, with some swampy sections.

The name comes from the ruins of a 19th century stone oven.

10.2 Chapel path

The Capela Trail, also circular and easy, is about 1500 metres long and crosses an area of candeias, an endangered tree, and other typical examples of the Cerrado.

On the way up, between the gatehouse and the Visitor Centre, there are two lagoons: Curva and Capela.

Anyone wishing to swim must sign a waiver.

10.3 Capela Lagoon Trail

The Lagoa da Capela trail goes around the lake for about 500 metres.

It’s an easy, quiet walk, suitable for children.

10.4 Caminho Velho da Estrada Real Path

The Caminho Velho da Estrada Real, about 20 kilometres long, is the dirt road that connects the Park Gate to Lavras Novas.

It can be done on foot or by bicycle.

11. Mini-Expeditions

The Cachorro Hill offers a magnificent view of the Itacolomi Peak and the entire region.

It is a 4 kilometre climb to an altitude of 1400 metres and can be done on foot, by car or by bicycle.

Much of the route to the Custódio reservoir, 8 kilometres from the Visitor Centre, is on an open road with high, pleasant woodland; there is a viewpoint along the way.

On the return journey, which is more difficult, you have to climb a closed path of medium difficulty.

The Custódio reservoir, surrounded by Atlantic forest vegetation, is formed by the river Prazeres, which has its source inside the park; it is about 3 kilometres long and 20 metres deep.

It can also be reached from Lavras Novas, after a 6 kilometre walk. If you want to swim in the Custódio reservoir, you must sign a waiver.

It is surrounded by small thatched huts, ideal for picnics, and an unregulated camping area.

If you feel like it, you can walk another 2km to the Três Pingos waterfall, a small waterfall without a fountain, just for refreshment.

A little further on is the beautiful and wilder Dos Namorados waterfall.

The walk to Pico do Itacolomi is 8 kilometres from Fazenda do Manso.

For safety reasons, the guards do not recommend climbing to the top and only accompany visitors to the base of the peak. Rod. MG-356 (Rodovia dos Inconfidentes), hospital junction, 3 km from the centre.

12. How to get there

The park gate is located between the cities of Ouro Preto and Mariana.

From Ouro Preto, take the BR-356 (Rodovia dos Inconfidentes) to the junction with the MG-262 towards the park.

From Belo Horizonte, take the BR-356 towards Rio de Janeiro through the town of Itabirito to the junction with the MG-262.

Vehicles are allowed from the gatehouse to the farm.

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