I kept hearing there was a waterfall in the middle of the island, but concrete details were hard to find. I finally decided to scout it out for reals on Sunday.
Brazilian hiking websites aren't very informative, and it's not just my poor Portuguese that's a problem. They say things like, "Location: Go to the Corrego Grande neighborhood." Yes, by george, that tells me exactly where to find the trailhead!
Let me be specific: Get to the TITRI bus station, and take the 163 - Corrego Grande or 164 - Corrego Grande Pacao bus. I believe the latter drops you off right at the trailhead. The former stops at the bottom of Rua Sebastiao Laurentino da Silva; it's a 10-minute walk up to the trailhead. The sign for the trail is hidden by trees, so just look for this mural.
The hike is maybe 15 minutes, and there is only one hesitation point; when you come to a junction, go left. You're not going to get lost, and you don't have to be in great shape. At the end, whoa, hey, there is a 15-foot-tall waterfall. I saw more Americans there, incidentally, than I have in all my previous weeks here.
On the return, I was curious as to where the other trail went. As the Ghostbusters say, "It goes up." It popped me out at the end of a residential street, and even though I'd never been there before, I quickly knew exactly where I was. (Believe me, I was proud of that!) So, there is an alternate route to the falls: Follow Rua Rosa near UFSC up, up, up, take its left fork, keep going, and then find a trail where the road ends.
Unfortunately, after the lovely weekend, it's back to rain for the Magic Island.
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