Three cascades
On the Salgado River.
MacioFeitosa — CC BY-SA 3.0 · MacioFeitosa — CC BY-SA 3.0 · MacioFeitosa — CC BY-SA 3.0 · MacioFeitosa — CC BY-SA 3.0 · MacioFeitosa — CC BY-SA 3.0
The Missão Velha waterfall is one of the geosites of the Araripe Geopark, on the Salgado River in the municipality of Missão Velha near Juazeiro do Norte. The water drops in three small cascades of about twelve metres over ancient sandstone. The rocks belong to the Cariri Formation, described in geopark material as among the oldest of the region's sedimentary rocks, and they preserve trace fossils left by aquatic invertebrates of the distant past. Researchers value the site for its beauty and for its cultural links with the settlements of the Indigenous Kariri people who gave the region its name. The falls change greatly with the seasons: in the rainy season the river swells and the waterfall overflows, while in the dry months the flow drops sharply. The petrified forest geosite lies about eleven kilometres away, so both fit into half a day.
On the Salgado River.
With trace fossils.
The falls at their fullest.
Salgado River, Missão Velha municipality, Cariri region, Ceará
During and just after the rainy season, when the river is full.