Buggy – amusemusings

After a week of paradise in Fernando de Noronha, I returned to mainland Brazil for yet more beaches. I headed to Fortaleza but didn’t spend much time there; rather, I used it as a base from which to explore the beaches to the South. Based on my research, the beaches to the South are backed by these stunning red cliffs while the beaches to the North feature these ridiculous sand dunes. More on the North later. I visited Morro Branco, Praia das Fontes & Canoa Quebrada. Morro Branco is the real standout in terms of beauty but has zero pousadas in which to crash so that’s saved for Canoa Quebrada which is a pretty charming fishing village. I just spent a couple days here as I wanted to head North to the dunes for an extended stay. But my were the views pretty.

Video of buggy ride from Morro Branco to Praia das Fontes

https://youtu.be/JpVsAg9jGZQ

Huacachina is a tiny little desert town featuring a center lake, whose water supposedly holds curative properties, immediately surrounded by massive steep sand dunes (normal colored sand… not red like Punta Gallinas, Colombia). The thing to do here is play on the dunes. So we took a crazy rollercoaster-like ride in a dune buggy to remote dunes where we strapped on boards to sandboard. Unfortunately, the Velcro straps acting as bindings had lost their stickem so sandboarding on your feet was fruitless & we resorted to screaming down the steep dunes on our stomachs. So. Much. Fun. It ended with a perfect sunset over the dunes & brought to a close a perfect day that started with tours of pisco & wine bodegas in Ica, a nearby town. We stayed only 2 nights but I could hang in the tiny Huacachina for a few more days doing the EXACT same buggy tours over & over again. But alas, traveling often involves constant movement & non-stop action so we were off to the next place.