Lençois Maranhenses

It’s a typically calm afternoon.  The villagers of Santo Amaro take advantage of the Rio Grande, which is at its fullest just after the rainy season. 

Santo Amaro’s low and sandy land occasionally floods during periods of heavy showers. 

Walk east and you are suddenly in a desert. Thousands of years ago, strong winds blew in from the  Atlantic Ocean, creating these big sand dunes.

A flock of guaras flies in search of fresh water and some soft mud in which to catch a meal. 

The Lençois Maranhenses is far from an ordinary desert. During the first six months of the year, rain pours into the valleys amongst the dunes. 

In early July, the lagoons appear.  At their fullest, the lagoons become interconnected when nearby rivers, such as the Rio Negro, cut through the dunes.

Fish now find a route into the lagoons, where they feed on the larvae of insects buried in the sand and smaller fish. The wolffish spends the dry season laying dormant in the mud until the rains come.

Those who live on the dunes provide for their families by catching fish.

There are two small municipalities situated amongst the dunes.  Neither has more than ninety residents.

One is called Baixa Grande. It is home to a few local families.

Maria and Manu were born and raised in Baixa Grande. Today they are married and have transformed part of their palm-roofed house into a dormitorio in order to welcome the ever-increasing number of foreign tourists. 

A highway was constructed in 2002 between the capital of Maranhão, São Luís and the city of Barreirinhas, providing a main entry point into the Lençois Maranhenses National Park. Since then, tourism has increased to more than 60,000 park visitors annually.

The small coastal town of Atins sits on the eastern border of the Lençois, where sand meets saltwater.  It has been transformed into a popular tourist destination.