Monk's cave
Local legend.
Ynajara Prado — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ynajara Prado — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hector.souza — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hector.souza — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gabriela.twardowski — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hector.souza — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ynajara Prado — CC BY-SA 3.0
Monge State Park is a reserve in Lapa, Paraná, covering 371.6 hectares of the Atlantic Forest biome in the Iguaçu River basin, created by decree in 1960. It is made up of open fields with clusters of trees and woodland, and holds waterfalls and a spring some consider miraculous. The park is named after a «monk» said to have lived for a time in a cave there. Three wanderers called João Maria were known in the region, the first the Italian immigrant João Maria d'Agostini, who preached in Lapa in 1845 and travelled about giving guidance and prescribing medicinal herbs; the cave believed to have been his home became a destination for his devotees. In the 1950s exotic pine and eucalyptus replaced the original cover; a plan was later drawn up to remove them and restore the meadows, and the facilities and lookout were rebuilt in the 2010s. It suits a short walk and a view over the town; check the hours.
Local legend.
Over Lapa.
And fields.
Lapa, Paraná
A wanderer named João Maria who preached here in the 19th century and is thought to have lived in the cave.