Rio Tocantins (Chega Mais)

RIO TOCANTINS

You have just arrived at the natural divide between Carolina, in Maranhão, and Filadélfia, in Tocantins!From here, the speedboats depart to Pedra Encantada, one of the most sought after attractions in Chapada das Mesas and one of the most popular in Maranhão.

On the banks, the simple bars and restaurants, often with thatched roofs and plastic tables, are also frequented by natives. It might be a good chance to "escape" from tourist mode.

EASY TO SEE

From inside the water, aboard the speedboat, you can see perfectly, on the horizon, the rock formations that gave rise to the name Chapada das Mesas.

It's just that they resemble the shape of stone tables. In fact, seawalls are sandstone formations (sedimentary rocks, less hard) that are millions of years old.

The crossing between the States here is not long by ferry or speedboat. But you can get a small idea of the immensity of the Tocantins River, which is 2,640 km long.

Photo: Jair Prandi/ Travels and Paths/ Reproduction

PASS HERE

Carolina's story passes through these waters. Since the first farm was installed in 1809, the city has been an entrepôt and commercial center. Thus, farmers became merchants and the opposite also happened.

With this development, Carolina installed, for example, the first hydroelectric plant in the Amazon. Then came other modernities such as car dealerships and movie theaters, which were not so common outside large centers.

THE SECOND BIGGEST

The length places Tocantins as the second largest located entirely in Brazil. The first is San Francisco. At one point, it is called Tocantins-Araguaia, in a region called Bico do Papagaio (between Tocantins, Maranhão and Pará). The word Tocantins, by the way, comes from the Tupi language: bico de tucano, joining the words tukana and tim.