Shipwrecked in Brazil. Writing inspiration.

3/25/2015

My oldest son spent most of 2013 in Brazil as an exchange student. So of course I had to go over and visit. It was a mammoth effort to get there from Brisbane, 5 flights and some 35 hours in transit. Jordan was living at Florianopolis on Santa Catarina Island which is about 700km’s south of Sao Paulo.

The island is 90km long and approximately 18km wide with more than 100km of coastline and 42 beaches. There are beaches to suit everyone. Joaquina, has perfect waves for surfers and a magnificent sand dune for anyone willing to get sand in their shorts while whizzing down at a cracking pace on a board. We had a lovely seafood lunch while sitting with our toes in the sand and watching the boys hit the waves and play tennis on the beach.

One of my favourite beaches we went to in Florianopolis was Naufragados beach. How the beach got its name is self-explanatory. Naufragodo translates to ship wrecked in Portuguese. This beach is situated at the extreme southern end of Santa Catarina Island and is difficult to get to by any means. We followed a trail, approximately 3kms long that cuts across Atlantic rainforest. The hike was steep and slippery but after about an hour we stepped onto one of the most secluded and beautiful beaches in Brazil. The beach is part of a nature reserve and is famous for its rough seas and excellent surfing conditions.

It was cold when we finally stepped onto the sand.

From the beach there is a wonderful view over to Aracatuba Island, where the fortress Nossa Senhora da Conceicao is located.

You can only visit this fortress when the sea is calm though.

What fascinated me most about this beach is its history. Many ships have been wrecked here with impressive records from as far back as 1516. One of the most notable accounts details the demise of 21 sailors under chief navy pilot and Spanish explorer of Buenos Aires, Juan Dias de Solis.

Map similar to that used by Juan Diaz de Solis in 1515.

The men were left on the island after they shipwrecked one of the vessels and there wasn’t enough room on the other ships to carry them all. Imagine what they were thinking as they watched their only link to civilisation sail away.

Apparently though, the men were reported to have lived on this very beach for a further 40 years. In fact we were told some of the occupants of the beach today, living high up in seclusion, in the dense vegetation overlooking the incredible blue South Atlantic Ocean, were direct descendants of the castaways. Of course, I believe them.

Another fascinating curiosity, is the record of the Azoreans who were brought to South Brazil to colonize Porto Alegre, but stayed on Santa Catarina Island for 3 years for adaptation reasons. But when they finally departed, the ship sank off the shores of Naufragados beach, killing all 241 people on board.

It’s stories like these that capture my imagination and reinforce my love of history. So much so that this very spot ignited the spark for a couple of plot themes in my upcoming series.

Treasured Secrets, the first ebook in my
action adventure series is available to pre-order now.

Some secrets should remain hidden forever.

Treasured Secrets - Click here to find out more.