That Island is Haunted

2021

It’s a paradisical island of powder-fine white sand beaches, located just 70 miles (as the crow flies) from one of the largest conurbations on earth,

and absolutely draped in some of the lushest, most pristine stretches of Atlantic Rainforest in the southern hemisphere. The Tamois indigenous peoples, who inhabited the coastline prior to the arrival of the Portuguese at the turn of the 16th century, believed that the island was haunted. In the centuries that followed, it became a slave smuggling port, a pirate haven, a leper colony, a penal colony and (most infamously) the birthplace of Comando Vermelho, one of the largest criminal organizations in the world. The island is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognized for both its cultural and natural contributions to humanity—the only such Site in Brazil.

Today, Ilha Grande is a tourist attraction. Or at least, that’s the idea. The reality is that roughly one-fifth of the island is a holiday community for Rio’s elite—a spiritual & cultural extension of the stunning archipelago that surrounds it; another fifth is home to caicara community; another is empty (& stunning; but not all pristine) State Biological Preserve coastline; yet another is mountainous National Park land; and a final fifth is based around Vila do Abraão’s burgeoning tourism scene.

Ilha Grande is a visually stunning, historically unique & culturally compelling place of national importance. In other words, it’s a place that lends itself to a compelling telling of the Story of Brazil.

Between 2020-2021, renown Costa Verde explorer, Everton Polo, and I made multiple expeditions to Ilha Grande & the surrounding coastline—including Ponta Joatinga, Paraty-Mirim, the Serra da Bocaina, and further inland—to explore the possibility of creating a future GOGO Collection in southern Rio.

Here are some photographs & musings from those trips.

- Eddie

Black and white photo of a small white church with a peaked roof, a cross above the door, and framed pictures on the front wall, set in a grassy area surrounded by dense trees, with tall palm trees in the background.

View of a mountain landscape through a rectangular opening with water in the foreground.

Black and white photograph of a beach scene with large rocks and three birds on the sand, several boats floating on the water, and dark storm clouds overhead.

A person walking along a sandy beach with footprints, carrying a backpack and shoes, with green trees on the left and ocean waves on the right, mountains in the background, under a clear blue sky.

A shirtless man wearing shorts standing in a wooded area with trees and a dark hole or opening in the background.

Tropical beach with large rocks on white sand, palm trees, and dense green foliage on the right, calm ocean in the background, distant mountains under cloudy sky.

Everton has been trekking, kayaking, diving, & guiding in the Costa Verde region (between Sao Paulo & Rio) for almost 3 decades. I’d spent 6 months on the northern coast of São Paulo in the early 2000’s, and had been to the Costa Verde enough to know how compelling it was.

I’d never been to Ilha Grande, though, and Everton wanted to show me what I’d been missing. We talked for years about doing a trip there together, but the dates never aligned. Then, in 2020, the pandemic unexpectedly gave us that opportunity.

We did our first 12-day exploratory trip to the island in 2020, at the height of the pandemic. Economic activity in Brazil was heavily restricted during COVID, and Everton suddenly found himself client-free. I was in between field trips in the Serra do Espinhaço (for D/WT+LT). We trekked for 9 days before the weather turned pretty bad. Everton wanted to go home, but we compromised by remaining on the island for the next couple of days, but putting the remainder of our trek on hold.

We followed that up shortly afterwards with a 10-day trip (also mostly a trek, but with some unexpected off-roading thrown in the middle) in the nearby Serra da Bocaina. Later that year, Elisa & I went back to Ilha Grande for yet another 14-day trip.

All in all, the 3 of us spent about a month in 2020 exploring & documenting the region’s trails, and another month brainstorming & mapping the logistics for what a potential GOGO trip might look like. I spent quite a bit of time researching the island & learning about its history. It had had me at pirates, to be honest.

A detailed nautical map of Baía da Ilha Grande in Brazil, showing coastlines, mountains, water depths, and navigational markings.

Everton mapping out trails the night before our first expedition, in 2020. he turned in at some point, but i spent the whole night responding to an online interview. We ended up hitting the road at around 4:30am. It was brutal.

Cluster of yellow pineapples growing on a pineapple plant with long green leaves.

Boats docked at a harbor with a harborfront walkway, people walking, trees, and distant land on a cloudy day.

Boat scene in Angra dos Reis, the standard poRt of departure for ilha grande. Angra is a gritty town in a super pretty setting—the kind of Place that has potential to stick with you, but only if you hang around long enough.

Passengers seated in an airport waiting area, wearing masks and some looking at their phones, with large windows in the background.

Our first expedition came during the height of the pandemic. the ferry we took to/from the island was the first time I’d been around so many people for at least a couple of months.

Black and white photo of a two-story house with three windows on each floor, a front porch, and a smaller building to the right, surrounded by tall grass and trees.

A person hiking on large rocks near the coast with lush greenery, mountain range, and ocean in the background.

Trekking the eastern side of the island. we didn’t come across A single person during 15 trail days across 2 expeditions. Such a privilege.

Decorative coconut with pink heart-shaped sunglasses, blue lei, and green foliage, hanging on a wooden structure.

And to think, most wanted criminals used to hide right here. Parnaioca, ilha grande.

Ilha grande Has so many layers. its history is mesmerizing, and When you add in the caiçara culture and the island’s network of historic trails, it becomes pretty complete. slave smugglers, Pirates, thieves & murderers, comando vermelho, LosT Trails…

A grassy field with a few small flowers, trees, and a white building surrounded by mountains in the background.

The former federal maximum security prison on ilha Grande. If you’ve never heard of comando vermelho…

There are Only two vehicles on Ilha Grande. One is The Island’s Lone garbage truck (in Vila do Abraão). The other is the National Park Service vehicle, stationed in Dois Rios (pictured below). Both are Toyota BAndeirantes.

Old, rusted white vehicle parked behind an aged brick wall in a grassy yard with trees and houses in the background.

Two men standing outside a yellow two-story building with a porch, smiling and giving a thumbs-up. One man wears a black t-shirt and shorts with a floral pattern, and the other wears a blue long-sleeve shirt, shorts, and a wide-brimmed hat. The building has a lower open-air seating area with wooden chairs and tables, and two potted plants on the steps. In the background, there are lush green trees and a small stone and brick structure.

Everton & longtime-friend/local legend Tony Montana. “Hey, hey, Hey, hey!” Araçatiba, Ilha grande.

Nestled in a beautiful bay between the State Biological preserve & Marine state Park, Aventureiro is one of the most scenic spots on the island. That said, i wouldn’t want to be there during carnaval (or non-pandemic weekends).

A person in an orange life jacket swimming in a calm river surrounded by lush green trees and mountains, with sandy beach in the foreground.

Near Dois Rios, Ilha Grande.

Plate of fried chicken, white rice, coleslaw, fried shrimp, and mashed yellow corn on a table with a fork and knife, with a bowl of dark gravy, a pink beverage, and other food items in the background.

If there’s one thing—one thing—I remember as clear as day, it’s The prato feito (blue-collar plate) at the lone restaurant in dois rios. literally a top 5-all-time meal for me. crispy, juicy fried fish, fresh chips. farofa, rice, beans, A tangy Saladinha & a bowl of blazing (and fresh!) hot sauce. It was… orgasmic. it somehow manages to be Even more than that, because the restaurant itself is so compelling, and the patrons so colorful. it’s just a complete travel-eating experience.

when elisa & I visited the island in 2021, we made the 6-hour round-trip hike just to eat. i was worried it wouldn’t be as good, but it was. we talk about it to this day.

A wooden bench on a sandy area with three backpacks, a skateboard leaning against the bench, and trees and a yellow building in the background, suggesting a rural or park setting.

Scenic view of a rocky beach with turquoise water, distant mountains, and a blue sky with scattered clouds.

Dense green jungle with trees, shrubs, and tall grass

A weathered surfboard-shaped sign with the words 'TAXI BOAT' written on it is mounted on a wooden post on a sandy beach, with calm ocean waters and islands in the background.

A lush forest scene with a small stream running through moss-covered rocks and dense greenery overhead.

A man in a blue shirt and black pants walking on sandy ground towards a shaded area with tents and clothes hanging on a fence, near a body of water.

ilha grande is amazing and incredibly complete: it is imminently brazilian, yet has a culture, history, and nature that are all its own. together with the bocaina & Ponta Joatinga, it made our Initial list of places for our (future) second collection, but I believe we’ve opted to go outside of brazil for thE next one.

I don’t know if we’ll ever end up doing a full collection anywhere in rio—as many amazing undiscovered spots as there are, I can’t help but feel a bit of the international presence (the espinhaço has spoiled us!)—but i can see Plenty of appeal in bespoke trips in the region. There’s So much goodness & uniqueness to take in, and the island lends itself so well to sharing the story of brazil.

A man sitting at an outdoor table, smiling, holds a can of Brazilian soda in one hand and a smartphone in the other. The table has water bottles, a towel, a plastic cup, and various personal items. There are trees and buildings in the background, suggesting a tropical or warm climate.