Estrada Real - Catas Altas

I rolled into Catas Altas with the anticipation of new curiosities. Situated amongst verdant rolling hills, Catas Altas is a small village. At the height of the Minas Gerais gold rush Catas Altas became one of the richest and most populous villages in Brazil. Once the mines were depleted most of the villagers left, leaving only a handful of residents.

I headed for the centre of town. Located in a public square was the Church of Our Lady of Conception with its wide frontage and corner towers facing the lofty Caraça Mountain. This church dates back to 1738, when the Portuguese controlled the interior and prohibited religious orders and missionary activities. The result was the development of new religious groups and the construction of churches. Our Lady's Church has a simple Rococo exterior, but it's richly carved inside with gilded carvings. The church was never completely finished, giving conservationists and historians an opportunity to study its architecture, the building techniques and the materials used.

A few miles northeast of the village is the Bicame de Pedra Aqueduct dating back to 1792. It was made entirely out of quartzite stone and its construction, inspired by Roman techniques of building without cement or mortar, can be observed in the centre of the portal’s arch where the stones are tightly packed together. The purpose of the aqueduct was to carry water from the Caraça Range to the town of Brumado, where gold was extracted and washed. Only about 200m of the wall remains with the highest point standing at 16ft (5m). A set of stone steps are embedded into the side of the wall allowing access to the top of the aqueduct.

As with most of Brazil, I didn’t have to travel far to find a waterfall. Taking a short side trip on my way out of town, I hiked to a scenic spot to enjoy the views of the valley, the railway track and the village with the Church of Our Lady proudly protruding above the rooftops. Before moving on to Ouro Preto, I enjoyed cooling off at Maquine Waterfall.

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