João Batista: our super hero of the Chapada Diamantina

Once upon a time, there lived João Batista, our super hero of the Chapada Diamantina. Ever since he was a little boy, back in the mining days, he used to venture into the woods of the Chapada. And wandering through them he discovered many paths, among them the famous one leading to the “Fumaça” waterfall. While everyone was looking at this beauty from top to bottom, João was down there screaming, but nobody could hear him, his voice lost in the 380 meters above.

João was also a pioneer in surfing the “Ribeirão do Meio” (Middle Creek). Legend has it that kids, parents and grandparents would come just to see João going down the full creek. And that’s how it all began for me. Disguised as a guide, João took us around the Chapada for eight days, doing mischief. He started out by going down the “Ribeirão do Meio” with his own feet. I must confess that I, myself, had to pray a lot to go down it on my butt: “Lord’s prayer, Hail Mary… God bless me!”

During these eight days, every day was full of surprises and adventures. He picked the mango from the highest branch in the tree, climbed the “Morro do Veneno” (Poison Hill) like a lightning bolt, flew fifty meters down the Capivara and climbed the “Morro do Macaco” (Monkey Hill) without using his hands. As if this weren’t enough, when I couldn’t go on anymore, he’d come back and carry me up the Macaco with just one arm. That’s why João, to us, is not João Batista, he’s Super João!

Super João climbed the trees that no one else could climb, picked the fruit that nobody else could pick and reached the highest point in the Chapada as fast as a bullet. João knows where the waters spring and what can be eaten from the woods. João speaks with the sky, the sun and the waters. João knows and loves the animals. João understands that those who listen to nature, who know it and respect it, are more human. And that’s how, while he shows us the beauties in the heart of Bahia, he is also defending the Chapada Diamantina. That is why João is not just João Batista, João is Super João, our super hero of the Chapada Diamantina!

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Once upon a time, there lived João Batista, our super hero of the Chapada Diamantina. Ever since he was a little boy, back in the mining days, he used to...