Paved stone
Since 1792.
Joalpe — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dennis Fidalgo — CC BY 2.0 · Joalpe — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Joalpe — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Joalpe — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Joalpe — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Joalpe — CC BY-SA 4.0
The «Calçada do Lorena» was the first paved road linking São Paulo with Santos, built on the orders of the captaincy governor Bernardo José Maria de Lorena, in the Serra do Mar mountains of São Paulo state. It was opened in the late 18th century because the old road was in such poor condition that it hampered carrying sugar and goods from the plateau down to the port of Santos on the coast. Work began in 1790 under the engineer Brigadier João da Costa Ferreira of Lisbon's Royal Military Academy and was finished in 1792. It ran fifty kilometres, cutting the journey between Santos and São Paulo by about twenty per cent, and was one of the colony's greatest feats of engineering at the time, descending more than 700 metres in stone-paved zigzags. Today it is visited within the «Caminhos do Mar» park in the Serra do Mar State Park, on a trail of about seven kilometres there and back through Atlantic Forest, of moderate difficulty and about two hours. The park opens Wednesday to Sunday with tickets, so book and check prices in advance.
Since 1792.
Along the trail.
A 700 m descent.
Caminhos do Mar park, Serra do Mar, between São Paulo and Santos
Within the Caminhos do Mar park in the Serra do Mar, on a trail of about seven kilometres there and back, ticketed.