Pico da Bandeira: The Ultra We Couldn’t Skip
One of the world’s most isolated major summits and an Ultra, Pico da Bandeira was non-negotiable on our Brazil trip. The bigger uncertainty was not the trail but whether our rented car would reach the trailhead.
Pico da Bandeira was not one of the optional peaks on this trip. It was one of two Ultras we had built into the route around Rio, and Peakbagger places it at #21 on its list of world peaks with more than 1,000 kilometres of isolation. For me, that was enough. We were going up if we could get to the trailhead.
The mountain is also Brazil’s third-highest summit. Caparaó National Park, straddling Espírito Santo and Minas Gerais, contains five of the country’s ten highest peaks. On paper, the hike itself looked straightforward. The uncertainty was the road.
Getting the car to the start
After Pico da Caledonia the previous day, we reached São Raimundo da Pedra Menina late in the evening, but still early enough to get pizza.
The map made the final approach look reasonably manageable, but maps are less good at explaining how a steep dirt road feels from inside a rented car. A few pitches were steep enough to justify our concern. Dave kept the momentum, used practically everything the car had, and got us all the way to the end of the road. No bonus road walk after all. Well done, Dave.
A rufous-collared sparrow near the start, followed by the first broad views across the Caparaó high country.
The easy part was walking
Once we were on foot, the mountain became much simpler. The trail was good all the way up, never especially steep and never technically complicated. We still managed to lose it a few times, but that had much more to do with us than with the trail.
We were walking and talking at the same time, moving from one subject to another. If I remember correctly, politics occupied a fair part of the ascent. Apparently a sufficiently good argument is a form of performance enhancement. People climb faster when they are busy proving a point.
The morning was sunny and pleasantly cool. By midday the sun felt much hotter. Higher up, the forest gave way to open high-altitude vegetation and exposed rock, and the views expanded quickly.
The upper route crossed open high-altitude terrain, with rocky ridges above the cloud layer and deeply cut valleys below.
The Caparaó massif is compact but remarkably high by Brazilian standards, and from here it was easy to understand why the park contains so many of the country’s highest summits. The ridges looked much rougher and more complex than the uncomplicated trail beneath our feet.
An Ultra above the clouds
The summit appeared sooner than expected. We had views in every direction, with the higher ridges in clear air and clouds filling parts of the lower country.
The name Bandeira means “flag”. According to the park’s official history, Emperor Pedro II ordered an imperial flag to be placed on the highest summit of the Serra do Caparaó around 1859, when it was still believed to be Brazil’s highest mountain. The name is thought to come from that episode.
From the summit, the high ridges seemed to run in every direction.
The five-metre summit cross was impossible to miss. We took the usual group photos, stayed for a few more minutes, and then started down the same way. No elaborate summit ceremony was needed. This was our first Ultra of the trip, but we still had another peak waiting.
The descent was as straightforward as the climb, including our talent for walking past the obvious trail in a couple of places. We corrected ourselves quickly and kept moving. A crow-like bird watched from a boulder, and we met a few more teams still heading uphill.
Pizza, coffee and the next peak
Back at the car, we had to give the steep road the same respect on the way down. Once we reached pavement, the difficult part was over. We agreed to celebrate our first Ultra at the same pizzeria where we had eaten the previous night.
Coffee plantations covered the slopes around Pedra Menina, which eventually convinced Dave and me to buy a few packs of fresh beans. They cost only a few dollars, a pleasant contrast with a recent quote in Jamaica where a similar pack had been offered for more than $50.
Coffee plantations covered the slopes around Pedra Menina; after the hike, a few packs of beans ended up in our car.
After snacks we turned north towards Pico do Soares. Finding accommodation for six people nearby was not especially promising, so we settled on a budget Ibis in Muriaé. Conveniently, there was a churrascaria next door and football that evening. For the locals, the football was clearly the important event. For us, the question was the next mountain.
Pico do Soares was roughly a hundred kilometres farther north, and we were not sure about its trail or access, so we booked two nights. Pico da Bandeira had turned out to be easy once the car reached the end of the road. The next day had already found a new uncertainty for us.
Links & Resources
Peakbagger.io įrašas: Pico da Bandeira.
English overview of the third-highest peak in Brazil, on the Espírito Santo / Minas Gerais border, high point of Espírito Santo in Caparaó National Park.
Climbing routes and approaches from major cities, staging through Tronqueira and Terreirão.
English article on the national park protecting the Caparaó range, including Pico da Bandeira.
Official park page with geography, gateways (Alto Caparaó, Pedra Menina), and main routes.
Official trail information: times, campsites, markings, and entry regulations for the summit.
Official seasonal guidance: best months to climb (April–October) and entry windows.
IBGE news release on the re-survey setting Pico da Bandeira’s altitude at 2,891.9 m.