Two days along the 200 bends of southern Brazil’s most famous mountain road, the Corvo Branco rock cut and the canyons of Urubici. A route planned for a large group, at an easy pace, with small children on board.
The group has 10 adults — 8 sleep at the lent house in Urubici and 2 sleep elsewhere, but everyone does the sightseeing and meals together.
The outbound leg climbs the Serra do Rio do Rastro; the return drops down through Urubici and the BR-282, forming a loop without repeating roads. With children, add about 1h per day for stops.
Updated forecast for June 6 & 7. Check again the day before — mountain weather changes fast.
The trip is done as a convoy, with 6 two-way radios — 2 per car across the 3 vehicles. On a mountain road full of bends, fog and slow trucks, the radio keeps everyone together without relying on cell signal.
Agree on a single channel before leaving and write it down.
The lead car calls out dangerous bends, stops and overtakes.
The rear car confirms everyone made it through — nobody is left behind.
Charge all 6 radios the night before and bring spare batteries.
A hearty breakfast at home to save time. BR-101 southbound. Leaving early is essential — arrival in Urubici is planned for 3 PM.
Restroom, coffee and a leg stretch for the kids. Lauro Müller is the foot of the mountain: last good chance to fuel up and buy snacks before the climb.
Over 200 bends and several official lookouts with room to stop. Pull over at 2 or 3 of them for photos and to ease motion sickness.
The classic photo spot, at 1,421 m. Free and spacious parking, restrooms, a café and shops with regional products.
About 80 km on the SC-110, through São Joaquim. Fully paved road, lined with apple orchards and araucaria pines.
Arrival at the house in Urubici and a break for the children to rest before the late-afternoon outing.
With the new pavement up to the cut, you can drive up, see the ~90 m cleft and head back easily, with no demanding walk. A great way to close the day.
5 large pizzas for the group, with drinks. A relaxed end to the first day.
Visiting Morro da Igreja is free, but it requires advance booking on the ICMBio website. Slots open about a week ahead and fill quickly on weekends. Each vehicle needs its own booking — whoever drives each car should book theirs as soon as possible.
BOOK ON ICMBIOPaved access, inside São Joaquim National Park. Free to visit, but it requires advance booking and picking up the physical ticket at the ICMBio office in Urubici.
It is practically on the way back to Urubici. Paved access with only the final ~1.5 km on well-kept dirt road. The upper section lets you drive close to the falls, has decks and facilities suitable for children.
Lunch at a simple restaurant downtown, before hitting the road.
Return on the SC-282, about 2h45. Leaving at this time, arrival happens in daylight — safer on the mountain road.
The Sunday drive back runs entirely on the BR-282, which has many fixed speed cameras between Bom Retiro and Greater Florianópolis. Limits range from 60, 80 to 110 km/h depending on the stretch — watch the sign right before each camera. Use the convoy radios to call out each camera to the cars behind you.
The postcard of the range, at 1,421 m. Panoramic view of the bends dropping toward the coast. Café with regional products.
Brazil’s largest sandstone rock cut — walls about 90 m high. One of the most dramatic sights in the Santa Catarina Highlands.
One of the highest and coldest spots in Brazil, overlooking Pedra Furada — a natural sandstone arch in the Três Barras Canyon.
A 100 m drop over a basalt wall, in Mundo Novo Park. In the upper section you can drive right up close to the falls.
Urubici has far more than fits in a weekend — even more so with small children and an easy pace. These attractions are saved for a second trip, perhaps with the kids a bit older and with more days.
Horseback rides along the trails, fields and lookouts of Urubici, for all levels. From short beginner rides to high-altitude expeditions across Campo dos Padres. A unique way to see the range — but one that calls for slightly older children.
Adventure · horseback tourismOne of the area’s farms gradually opening its gates to rural tourism — country life, traditional produce and a calm connection with the mountain nature. A slow-paced outing, great for a future visit with more time.
Rural tourism · country lifeOne of the largest canyons of the Serra Geral, with thousand-metre walls and the famous infinity swing. Left out of this trip because access requires a 4x4 and a trail — unfeasible with toddlers, but unmissable on a future expedition.
4x4 only · trailA ~1.8 km trail along the riverbed, passing seven waterfalls where you can swim. A warm-day outing — closed in winter, and the hike asks for more stamina than this trip allows.
Trail · warm dayBoth Corvo Branco and Avencal have private parks with glass walkways and swings over the abyss. Left out of the budget this time, but they make the best photo of the range — worth saving for next time.
Paid lookouts · optionalOther lookouts and canyons scattered around Urubici, some on private land slowly opening to visitors. Every trip to the range reveals a new corner — there is always a reason to come back.
Lookouts · exploreTap the markers to see each stop. The orange line is the outbound leg over the Serra do Rio do Rastro; the green one, the return through Urubici.
Costs come in two streams: what is split per car (fuel and tolls) and what is split per adult (house share, ticket and food). Children ages 1 to 4 incur no ticket cost.
Items marked as on your own are paid individually during the trip — each adult sorts it out as they go. The per-person estimate is in the "Per adult" card below. Only what is marked with PREPAID is fronted and split via Pix.
Saturday dinner, Sunday breakfast and the house share must be settled in advance — someone fronts the shopping and the host receives the house share. All of this goes by Pix before the trip. Lunches, snacks, ticket, tolls and fuel each person pays individually as the trip goes.
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The house is lent, but it is worth agreeing on the essentials so everyone sleeps well and spends the weekend comfortably. Check with the host what is already there — so nobody brings too much or too little.
Sheets and pillowcases for the beds each family will use. Agree on the sizes (single, double) beforehand so nothing is missing or left over.
Essential — June is winter in the mountains and the nights are freezing. Each family brings enough blankets, including a spare one for the children.
One per person. A pillow is a personal item and rarely spare in a lent house — best for each person to bring their own.
Each person brings their own — plus a spare towel for the children, who often need a change. Remember a face towel too.
A lent house cannot be counted on for this: each person brings soap, shampoo, toothbrush and toothpaste, deodorant and whatever else they use. For the children, do not forget specific items like baby shampoo and diapers.
Each person with their own charger and cable. Easy to forget, and nobody wants to share one in a group of 14.
Optional, but highly recommended: much of the route passes through areas with no signal, and the phone drains its battery much faster while searching for a network. A charged power bank keeps maps, photos and contact going all day.
Tap to check off. The list does not persist on reload — it is just a visual aid for organizing.