[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-nyK0LNgXKYk/VJMWP6lzB0I/AAAAAAAAjpg/PcWBzY1MkNY/s144-c-o/IMG_0750.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage21Brazil3NatalToSalvador#6094239183444051778″ caption=”Natural reef pools are so intersting to explore!” type=”image” alt=”IMG_0750.JPG” ]

Highlights: Paddling like just what the doctor ordered!
Lowlights: No need for that dumper landing…
Launch: Sheltered river beach
Landing: Dumper on steepish beach
Pos: here
Loc: Gravata
Acc: tent
Dist: 43,3 km
Start: 4:35 End: 14:00

A dead calm night, all good. Paddling out of the river with some smaller waves as usual, but the wide reef behind my river was calm this morning. Behind the bumpy spit of Ipojuca I opted to go behind the reef inside the deep wide bay, which took me past another river mouth with very strange current. My lovely island needed to stay way offshore, I rather like to go inside the reefs, if possible.

I saw on the satellite images that the next large reef was connected to the beach and was formed kind of a dead end once in there, but once I paddled inside from the headland before I didn’t like to go out again! Now came the already yesterday missed lovely calm crystal clear shallow reef paddling time, on the last time of the outgoing tide it was even nicer! And I had even moderate following wind all day from NE! Fishermen were standing on the reefs, catching what was on offer, and instead of taking the last way out to the open sea I paddled in between two big sections of the large reef. It was so beautiful and calm and clear! I got out a few times, walked on rocky sharp reef sections, exploring here and there. I found a way out of this middle section to the open water inside the river, with dragging my kayak over shallows twice, as it looked as if the tourist place inside with many boats still offered an exit back to the open sea. We’ll see…

pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-YeaCmg26rlI/VJMWLg10S1I/AAAAAAAAjpY/WD3ZXiVdO6Y/s144-c-o/IMG_0748.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage21Brazil3NatalToSalvador#6094239107812445010″ caption=”A huge broken off reef chunk leaving a small channel at the reef at Praia dos Carneiros” type=”image” alt=”IMG_0748.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-xUyQF9elrcU/VJMWgDa4RnI/AAAAAAAAjpo/0yAjDKnWsNA/s144-c-o/IMG_0759.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage21Brazil3NatalToSalvador#6094239460692084338″ caption=”Another big reef channel” type=”image” alt=”IMG_0759.JPG” ] [

I paddled between two narrow channels formed by broken off reef overhangs, lovely! I walked up again, checked the options, but I still couldn’t see if there was a gap or not between the end of the reef and the beach. Just in case, I either turn back or carry over the beach, I guessed. But sure for my kayak there was an exit, even on lowest tide! Even without dragging I paddled carefully in the middle of the long reef over some shallows and was out on the open water again! There is *always* a gap in the reef…what a lovely place!! The beautiful pousada right at the end of the reef on the beach is so well hidden in a palm forest that on the satellite image you can not even see it. But there were really many tourist enjoying this spot also…

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-DMeEdbeTNZY/VJMWgwDJOYI/AAAAAAAAjpw/Ez-D0qm4y88/s144-c-o/IMG_0753.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage21Brazil3NatalToSalvador#6094239472672127362″ caption=”The reef at low tide” type=”image” alt=”IMG_0753.JPG” ] [pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-05t1bdGkLNk/VJMWGLQhVNI/AAAAAAAAjpQ/JYu4lGm2snM/s144-c-o/IMG_0746.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage21Brazil3NatalToSalvador#6094239016119522514″ caption=”I enjoyed exploring the reef at Praia dos Carneiros” type=”image” alt=”IMG_0746.JPG” ]

The whole village line of Tamandare was a shallow reef, beautiful to paddle on,with many fancy houses and pousadas. As the whole coast since Recife shows eventually up some wealth, different to the poorer fishing villages up north. It really pleases your eyes eventually, but the only disadvantage is wild campsites are rare, the beach upfront such a fancy house looks so private and is also mostly gone on high tide. But I don’t have to stay in the villages, there are enough other spots. I bought an ice cream in Tamandare on an inviting calm reef spot with a small shop, what a luxury…

[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-rKmQN7pfHG4/VJMWo9PfKfI/AAAAAAAAjp4/qw3D3O3IZFg/s144-c-o/IMG_0767.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage21Brazil3NatalToSalvador#6094239613652511218″ caption=”Camp at the dumping high tide beach of Gravata before Sao José de Coroa Grande” type=”image” alt=”IMG_0767.JPG” ]

The wide bay until the next headland with another river mouth was less sheltered, but at the river mouth headland another reef protected the exit again. I was tempted to stop already at a wonderful rocky headland inside the next bay, or at the last river mouth before my actual landing, but my goal was a sheltered looking beach just before the next city of Sao Jose da Coroa Grande. The sat image showed a protecting reef, but it didn’t do it’d job like on the other beaches- this one had a lovely remote palm tree forest all along, but the beach had a fat dumper with some wash up on this time of the tide- one hour before high tide. Later I thought I should have taken the small river mouth just before the city with probably a better beach to land, but I opted to go in and timed it right and jumped out quickly, all good. This will be at least a calm and private spot for the night! Just a bit noisy from the surf now…