A walk around
Jaguanum Island
(Contributed by Rosemary Forrester )
The island of Jaguanum in the Bay of Sepetiba, lies 4 nautical miles off the
coast of Rio de Janeiro State some 80 kilometres from the city centre of Rio de
Janeiro. The fishing village of Itacuruca on the Rio/Santos highway is the
access point for transport out to the islands of the region. The names of
Jaguanum and Itacuruca come from the Tupi Indian dialect and mean ??ittle black
dog??and ??ittle stones??respectively.
Jaguanum Island is located at Latitude 23.00 south and Longitude 43.56 west
(Kingfisher Cottage) lies in a north-east/south-west direction, two nautical
miles long and three-quarters of a nautical mile at its widest point. Most of
the island is mountainous and covered in dense Atlantic rain forest with the two
principle peaks measuring 232 and 230 metres high. Several small fishing
villages nestle on the beaches and sheltered bays and an attractive coastal path
links the various communities of an estimated 2,500 inhabitants.
To view some of the birds that can be seen around the houses and gardens, and
along the rocks and beaches refer to the article on Birds of Jaguanum by
Rosemary Forrester.
Travelling in an anti-clockwise direction and starting with the beach of Araxa,
here is a short description of each area.
Praia do Sul Beach:
A local family runs a fishing cooperative and it is possible to buy fresh fish
when the boats come in. They also have frozen fish and prawns in their freezer
room. Dona Conceicao runs a small bar and simple restaurant under a shady tree
and will cook up something delicious when asked. There is a large jetty and a
nice sandy beach.
Catita Beach:
The island school is situated here and takes children to the 8th grade
in the Brazilian education system. Teachers come every day from the mainland and
most children will walk to school though the more distant villages have water
transport for the students. Catita also has the only clinic on the island with a
resident nurse in attendance. A doctor visits once a week from the mainland.
There is another Catholic chapel on this small but pleasant beach.
Lucas: Vagem: Cabacera: Praia da Toca: Guarda
All these small villages lie on the east coast of Jaguanum island and do not
have very good beaches but are on the path around the island. There is a small
bar on Vagem if one needs to quench one?? thirst
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Pitangueiras Beach:
A large restaurant is very obvious on this pretty beach and a substantial jetty
makes docking easy.
Calabosa: A private house occupies this tiny public beach.Estopa:
One of the most popular beaches on the island, many day cruisers and tour
operators stop here for their passengers to have a swim and enjoy the beauty of
the island. Several well-kept private homes are tucked in amongst the trees and
gardens.
Estopa Beach
The name Estopa comes from the slave trader times when the ships would call in
to wash down their filthy holds and the exhausted slaves after the terrible
Atlantic crossing when so many slaves died. Estopa is the Brazilian name for the
rough jute sack cloth that was used in the general clean-up. There were very
good water sources on this beach with at least three small rivers flowing down
from the mountain.
Many of the slaves were kept on Estopa to recuperate before being transported on
to the mainland and the slave markets of Santa Cruz and Rio de Janeiro. Even
today a faint ring of stones carved in animal and mythological shapes still
exists in a garden behind the beach where the slaves once prayed and worshipped
distant gods left behind in Africa. It was only in 1850 that the slave trade was
abolished.
General information:
It takes between two and three hours to walk around the island, not allowing for
pleasant stops to drink something cool or enjoy a meal. Bird watching is good
with kingfishers, herons, parrots, macaws and parakeets, hawks, antbirds,
flycatchers, tanagers, and humming birds to name a few of the species. The shy
marmosets can be heard whistling to each other in the tree tops and squirrels
scamper along branches. At night the ??amba??or possum is out and about looking
for something to eat.
Flora is exuberant with ferns, orchids, bromeliads and a great variety of
creepers, bushes, and trees.
The cool winter months of May/June/July and August have a predominant south-west
wind and temperatures can fall quite low (14/18 degrees Celsius) at night with
the days being warm and sunny. In the summer months from September onwards the
wind switches to a north-east direction with night temperatures reaching 24/28
degrees Celsius and most of the rain falls between November and January.
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