Torres

The Rio Grande do Sul coast is a single sandy line for hundreds of kilometres with one interruption, and Torres is it: basalt outcrops from old lava flows standing directly on the beach, weathered into the towers that gave the town its name. The Parque da Guarita protects the main group, with walkways over the rock, small coves between the outcrops and a viewpoint at the top. Offshore, Ilha dos Lobos is a rock where South American sea lions haul out in winter, visited by boat but not landed on. The Mampituba River marks the Santa Catarina border at the north end of town. Torres also holds an international balloon festival each spring, which fills the place completely and is the busiest week of its year.

History

People have lived here for thousands of years: hunter-gatherers left shell middens with burials, stone and bone tools and carvings of birds, fish, whales and other animals, later came Taquara farmers from the highlands who camped on the coast to fish, and then the Guarani, with finer pottery and ritual objects. Because the coastal plain narrows here, between the sea and the Serra Geral, Torres was a natural pathway long before the Portuguese, and in the 17th century it became the obligatory passage for the tropeiros heading south along the coast for the wild cattle of the pampas, many of whom settled as ranchers (Wikipedia, Torres, Rio Grande do Sul).

What's there

• Basalt towers on the sand - the only rock interruption in a long sandy coast.
• Parque da Guarita - walkways over the outcrops and coves between them.
• Ilha dos Lobos - sea lions hauled out offshore in winter.
• The balloon festival - the spring week that fills the town.

When to go

October to April for the beach; winter for the sea lions. Two days.

Before you go

The sea here is cold and often rough with strong current. The town is a Gaucho summer resort and empties out of season, when much of it closes. The balloon festival means full hotels at raised prices. Ilha dos Lobos is viewed from a boat only.

Nearby

Praia Grande and the canyons are inland; Passo de Torres is over the river in Santa Catarina.