Pico do Tira Chapéu: the road was harder than the hike

Pico do Tira Chapéu was a Ribu and one of the easier walks of our Brazil trip. Reaching the trailhead was another matter: a failed road approach, rough driving from the other side, no phone signal, and Petter coming back to look for us.

HikeBrazil | Southern Brazilian Highlands

16 June 20265 min read

Golden Ridge Under Low Cloud

The open ridge gave long views even with cloud hanging over the higher ground.

On paper, Pico do Tira Chapéu looked like one of the simpler Ribu peaks on our Brazil route. With 1,295 metres of prominence it was important enough to be on the programme, but our recorded hike was only 9.4 kilometres with 383 metres of ascent. The walking did turn out to be easy. Reaching the trailhead was the part that required more imagination.

Two attempts at the trailhead

We left Cruzeiro in the morning, drove east to Queluz and then turned south towards Areias. Between Areias and São José do Barreiro we followed the route suggested by Google Maps towards the trailhead. The national park warning signs were not encouraging, and the road kept getting worse. We could also see that the final section ahead would be the steepest, so eventually we turned around and worked out another approach from the map.

Coming in from the other side was not exactly trivial either. On several pitches Dave extracted about as much as the car had to give. Between his driving and a useful amount of luck, we finally reached the trailhead.

Petter, Michael and Lihua were already there, changed and waiting. The trailhead was on a small saddle with room for only about two cars, so there was not much space to spare once both vehicles were there. We had stopped on the way for coffee and a quick bite, so we were later than they expected. With no phone signal, there was no way to explain where we were. Petter had become concerned enough to drive several kilometres back down the road to see whether we needed help. By the time all six of us were together, the most complicated part of the day was already behind us.

Tall Paraná pine trees with umbrella-shaped crowns above green pasture near the trailhead. — Paraná Pines Near the Trailhead
Paraná pine (*Araucaria angustifolia*) is characteristic of the park’s high-montane mixed forest.

Spider web covered in round water droplets among grass and leaf litter. — Water Droplets on a Spider Web
The vegetation was wet, but the rain during our walk never amounted to much more than a few drops.

Near the start, the high country mixed damp vegetation with the distinctive Paraná pines of Serra da Bocaina.

An easy ridge walk

The first slope was the only unpleasant part of the walk. On the way up all six of us took the direct line straight up the steep grass beside the farmer's fence. It worked, but it was not a good route. Beyond that, the walking became straightforward and we followed an obvious track along the ridge.

ICMBio's visitor page classifies the Tira Chapéu trail as difficult and describes one access with roughly five kilometres of climbing from Cabana do Pai Tomás. From the trailhead we had managed to reach, however, this felt like one of the easiest walks of our trip.

Rounded grass ridge with a narrow footpath beside a dark strip of forest and cloud beyond. — Trail Along the Rounded Ridge
A faint but easy-to-follow track continued along the ridge.

Broad grass-covered ridges and green forest patches receding beneath low cloud. — Open Bocaina Highlands
Much of the approach followed an exposed ridge with the landscape open on both sides.

Narrow orange road crossing golden grass-covered hills beside dark forest patches. — Road Across the Open Hills
Roads and pasture divide the high plateau into a patchwork of grass and forest.

Orange dirt road cutting through dense green forest between rounded grass-covered slopes. — Red Dirt Road Through the Valley
From the ridge, one of the dirt roads below stood out clearly against the forest.

The ridge opened onto a patchwork of grassland, forest and the dirt roads winding through the high country.

Most of the route stayed in open pasture with long views. A few hundred metres passed through a small patch of forest, enough to change the vegetation completely. ICMBio describes the park's high country as a mixture of dense Atlantic Forest, high-montane mixed forest and campos de altitude. Here that transition was visible within a short walk.

Red bromeliad flower surrounded by glossy green leaves on the forest floor. — Red Bromeliad in the Forest
The short forest section held bromeliads that contrasted sharply with the open grassland.

Dense yellow-green low vegetation covering a broad patch of exposed ground. — Pale Groundcover on the Plateau
A pale carpet of low vegetation on the high plateau.

Dense green forest climbing a rounded grassy ridge under grey cloud. — Forest Patch Below the Ridge
Most of the route crossed open grassland, interrupted by short forest sections.

The brief forest section and low plateau vegetation were a sharp change from the open grass ridges.

A few drops of rain fell at times, but never enough to change the day. Cloud sat over some of the higher ground while the views remained open beneath it.

Golden rounded ridges and dark forest patches beneath a low bank of cloud. — Cloud Bank Over the Highlands
Cloud stayed low over the higher ground, with only a few drops of rain while we walked.

Cattle were a more constant feature than the rain. Small groups of cows and bulls grazed along the way, including directly beside the trail.

Light-coloured cow resting in dry grass with more cattle behind. — Resting Cow Beside the Trail
The cattle seemed entirely unbothered by hikers passing through their pasture.

Horned cattle standing and resting in tall grass beside the mountain trail. — Cattle on the Ridge
Cows and bulls grazed along the open ridge on the way to the summit.

Golden grass-covered ridges and dark forest patches beneath low cloud in Serra da Bocaina. — Bocaina Ridges Below the Clouds
A clear window across the rolling ridges of Serra da Bocaina, with cloud sitting on the higher ground.

Which rock was actually highest?

At the summit there was a large rock, and all six of us managed to get on top of it for the obligatory group photograph. There was not exactly a lot of spare room.

Six hikers squeezed onto a summit boulder on Pico do Tira Chapéu, with grassy highland ridges and cloud behind them. — Six on the Summit Boulder
Squeezing onto the summit boulder. From left to right: Dave, Lihua, Michael, Petter, Rob and me. Photo: Dave.

Squeezing onto the summit boulder. From left to right: Dave, Lihua, Michael, Petter, Rob and me. Photo: Dave.

Nearby stood a cross and another monument. The summit area also contained enough large boulders to create a small question that mattered to a group of peakbaggers.

About a hundred metres to the southwest, another substantial rock looked higher from where we were standing. We walked over and climbed it. Once we were on it, the height readings reversed and the first rock now looked clearly higher. Rob checked the two points with his more precise equipment and a handheld receiver. The official summit won. That settled it.

Tall narrow rock rising from scrub with mist drifting across the grassy ridge behind. — Mist Around the Summit Rocks
Low cloud moved across the summit area, though the views repeatedly opened.

Cluster of bright red flowers with water droplets against pale grass. — Red Flowers Near the Summit
Bright red flowers among the low vegetation near the summit outcrops.

Large rounded granite boulders above golden grasslands and rolling forested ridges. — Granite Boulders Above the Bocaina
Large rock outcrops punctuate the open summit area above the rolling highlands.

Around the summit, isolated rock outcrops rose from the low vegetation; one nearby outcrop looked high enough from a distance that we went over to check it.

Stone cross standing among boulders beneath blue sky and broken cloud. — Summit Cross on Tira Chapéu
The cross beside the summit rocks on Pico do Tira Chapéu.

We returned by the same route, again catching only a few drops of rain. At the steep grassy slope near the start, I did not repeat our direct ascent line beside the fence. Instead I followed the trail on a slightly wider arc. It probably added no more than about 100 metres, and it was clearly the right way to do that section. Then came the road for a second time. The car made it back through the steep and slippery sections without drama. At one bend Dave, Rob and I waited until Petter, Michael and Lihua were visible behind us again in the mirror before continuing.

Pastries in Areias, then back to Cruzeiro

We all regrouped in Areias and stopped for local pastries. The street view towards the Igreja Matriz Sant'Ana was a rather more civilized finish than the access roads had provided earlier in the day.

Twin-towered church at the end of a narrow street lined with colourful buildings in Areias. — Igreja Matriz Sant'Ana in Areias
Back in Areias, we regrouped for local pastries before returning to Cruzeiro.

Afterwards we drove back to Cruzeiro. The next morning's target was Pico da Pedra da Mina, an Ultra and another peak that was effectively mandatory on our itinerary. Tira Chapéu had been the gentler mountain of the two days. The road to it had simply refused to be equally cooperative.