Ceará is a state full of surprises, not all pleasant.
From the bone dry caatinga (or semi-desert) interior to the altitude swamp of Ubajara’s high perch to the fleshpots of the coastal capital, Fortaleza (greatly expanded by the Yanks during WWII), the state marvels.
My first encounters, after the trials of Piaui, were enchanting:
Yet precisely when it appears nothing more can go wrong while scraping the bassoon-depths of travel, and you’re ready to throw away your shriveled pride, give up, and opt permanently for the package tour, is usually the time a little perseverance can bring sudden rewards, of redemptive if fleeting moments to the rescue. Such it was that afternoon, when we drove inland through some of the most enchanting back roads of Ceará, before climbing the Chapada da Ibiapaba up a one lane mountain road to the simply nicest pousada of our trip, called Neblina. [p. 214]
There, on top, perches a fascinating park, encompassing one of the country’s greatest ecological contrasts:
The next morning I visited the kilometer deep caves of the Ubajara National Park, the country’s smallest, which is named after a legendary cacique (“master of the canoe” in Tupi) who came up from the coast to live alone for the rest of time. I could see why, as it is the only place in Brazil where you can gaze from rainforest down onto the Brazilian semi-desert, or the vast ecosystem of the sertão named caatinga, by the Indians, for “white forest” – a view spanning the greatest ecological contrast of the country. [p.215]
But first, a few roadside images along the tantalizing interior roads of Brazil’s famous Northeast… [kindly hover over images for captions]
![Memorial along highway, nr. Coreaú, CE, with Serra do Ibiapaba behind. “The caatinga is characterized by sparser vegetation than the cerrado, the trees even more stunted, the landscape dotted with varied cactuses [...] and with numerous bromeliads, whose water-catching properties make them indifferent to the dearth of ground water.” [p.215]](https://backroadsbrazil.com/wp-content/gallery/the-northeasts-ceara/Ceara804-010w.jpg "Memorial along highway, nr. Coreaú, CE, with Serra do Ibiapaba behind. “The caatinga is characterized by sparser vegetation than the cerrado, the trees even more stunted, the landscape dotted with varied cactuses [...] and with numerous bromeliads, whose water-catching properties make them indifferent to the dearth of ground water.” [p.215]")
![“The Ubajara oasis is what’s called an altitude swamp, a mountainous remnant of the Atlantic rainforest that once covered much of the Northeast, before tree-felling and burning created a tortured, sun-scorched landscape of some tragic beauty.” [p.215]](https://backroadsbrazil.com/wp-content/gallery/the-northeasts-ceara/Ceara804-030w.jpg "“The Ubajara oasis is what’s called an altitude swamp, a mountainous remnant of the Atlantic rainforest that once covered much of the Northeast, before tree-felling and burning created a tortured, sun-scorched landscape of some tragic beauty.” [p.215]")
![Irauçuba, CE. “The soil is thin and over-grazed, its parchedness accentuated by rocky outcrops bared by erosion. Annual dry spells are long and irregular, with six or seven rainless months in a row quite common, lending the landscape a defensive, the-worst-is-yet-to-come look.” [p.215]](https://backroadsbrazil.com/wp-content/gallery/the-northeasts-ceara/Ceara804-083w.jpg "Irauçuba, CE. “The soil is thin and over-grazed, its parchedness accentuated by rocky outcrops bared by erosion. Annual dry spells are long and irregular, with six or seven rainless months in a row quite common, lending the landscape a defensive, the-worst-is-yet-to-come look.” [p.215]")
![Potholes along BR-222. “Just when I was certain that the worst driving (kindness of Piauí) was behind us, the relatively benign and idyllic east coast within our grasp, we encountered the worst federal highway conditions of our trip, after Sobral, of over a hundred kilometers completely riddled with trip-breaker potholes.” [p.215]](https://backroadsbrazil.com/wp-content/gallery/the-northeasts-ceara/Ceara804-087w.jpg "Potholes along BR-222. “Just when I was certain that the worst driving (kindness of Piauí) was behind us, the relatively benign and idyllic east coast within our grasp, we encountered the worst federal highway conditions of our trip, after Sobral, of over a hundred kilometers completely riddled with trip-breaker potholes.” [p.215]")
