Scenic South of Florianopolis

The South of Florianopolis has the wildest natural scenery on the island, with a real beauty in the wildness of the remote beaches, the mountains, the rocky headlands and the lesser known of Floripa’s large lagoons, Lagoa do Peri.

The mountainous terrain means that the two coastal roads leading down from the city and from Lagoa da Conceição don’t meet at the southernmost point of the island. The rocks dropping steeply into the sea make it impossible to build a road here, and the beaches of the very south can only be reached via a rough track or even on foot only. Roads north and south of Lagoa do Peri connect the two coasts, with Morro das Pedras marking the start of the south.

This small hill is topped by an old convent, and the rocky point separates the beach of that name from Praia Armação. Both are popular surf spots, although currents and undertows make them unsuitable for everyone. The lagoon is a nature park, with paths for walking or cycling through the trees and along the shores, leading to waterfalls in the forest.

The quiet little village of Armação is one of the oldest settlements on the island, with a church that dates from 1782. It is also the gateway to Matadeiros, one of the most beautiful beaches on the island. Both communities have roots strongly associated with the Azorean fishing communities who were among the first to come from Europe.

A footpath leads over the river to and around the rocks to Matadeiros, and from the far end of the beach around the rocky headlands to Lagoinha do Leste, an almost uninhabited and undeveloped beach at the south-eastern corner of the island. Only reachable by boat or by the trails, many people spend the day on the beach or surfing the waves. Some stay and camp amongst the dunes between the curving channel that leads to the green lagoon behind, and the deep blue Atlantic in front.

The mountains around the beach have to be negotiated in order to avoid walking back the same way, with the path over the hill to Pantano do Sul the quickest way to and from the beach at around 80 minutes walk through the trees.

Pantano do Sul is the first beach that faces south on the island, with many fishing boats and a few seafood restaurants on the beach including Arantes, a Floripa institution. Another traditional community this is possibly the most popular place for tourists in the south, with a long beach and dunes occupying the arch of the witches’ foot.

Costa de Dentro is the village at the far end of the beach and the end of the road on the eastern side of the island. Tracks do lead down through small fishing communities and Praias do Rio das Pacas, Saco do Caldeirão and Saquinho. This is the start of the remote south of the island, with a trail leading around the southern tip to Naufragados.

Another beach with a name related to the whaling activities of the coast is Praia do Saco da Baleia, and after this beach, the mountains drop straight into the sea, making even a footpath impossible.

Praia dos Naufragados is the last beach of the island, and one whose name probably comes from the narrow entrance to the South Bay at this point. The southern tip of Florianópolis is only a kilometre or so from the mainland at this point, and with the Three Sisters and other rocky islands guarding the entrance, it is very easy to imagine the amount of ships and boats seeking shelter in the calm waters of the bay that would have crashed into the rocks on a dark, stormy night.

The shipwrecks and the shipwrecked would have washed up on Praia dos Naufragados and had a difficult journey up the western coast of the island. Even now with a lighthouse, the journey north is not easy, with a winding trail to negotiate before you reach the road.

The route north has to hug the coastline on a spectacular journey between the bay and the mountains. Small beaches and villages line the road until Riberão da Ilha, the oldest and best preserved of them all. Colourful one storey houses and a photogenic church line the streets, while boats dot the bay. This is the centre of Floripa’s historical culture. A little further north and the mountains flatten out into the central plane which was the perfect place to construct Hercílio Luz Airport. From here, the city is just 12km to the north and Lagoa da Conceição and the east coast beaches around the same distance away.