Pico do Itacolomi
Landmark of the Estrada Real.
Deiwson de Araújo Abreu junior — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Leonardo Breguêz — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Filipi Miranda Soares — CC BY-SA 4.0
Itacolomi State Park protects 7,543 hectares of mountains between Ouro Preto and Mariana, from 700 to 1,772 metres, at the southern end of the Serra do Espinhaço. Created in 1967 and open to visitors since 2004, it mixes Atlantic Forest with rocky high fields, and an orchid grows here that is found on no other range. Its landmark is the Pico do Itacolomi (1,772 m), long a guide for travellers on the Estrada Real. The summit trail is 6 km each way from the visitor centre, about 4 hours there and back, of medium to hard difficulty, and walkers must start by 11:00. Shorter trails include the 470-metre Trilha da Lagoa, suited to children and older visitors. The park also keeps the Casa Bandeirista, a tax post from the gold era (1706), and the Museu do Chá, with machinery from a 20th-century black-tea farm. The park reopened in late January 2026 after improvement works; it opens Tuesday to Sunday 8:00-17:00, with registration until 16:00.
Landmark of the Estrada Real.
A 1706 tax post.
Old tea machinery.
Between Ouro Preto and Mariana, Minas Gerais
By 11:00: it is 6 km each way and takes about 4 hours there and back.