Launch ramp
World-class flying.
Cristina C. Lima — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Santiagogvmgbra — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Joel Márcio — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Danilo Carvalho — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Aline Vitor Bucker — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Carlos Daniel — CC BY-SA 4.0 · HVL — CC BY 4.0
Pico da Ibituruna is a mountain massif towering over Governador Valadares in eastern Minas Gerais; its Tupi name means «black mountain». It formed in the Precambrian, and the first European to explore the area was Sebastião Fernandes Tourinho in 1573. The first road to the summit was cut in 1962 to install a religious monument inaugurated in January 1963. Its best-known chapter began in 1977 with the first hang-glider flight from the top: word spread among pilots, the town's free-flight club was founded in 1983, the same year the peak first hosted a stage of the Brazilian free-flight championship, and it grew into one of Brazil's best-known launch sites. The peak was protected as state heritage and a natural monument in 1989. The top gives a wide view over the city and the Doce River, and you can watch pilots take off or try a tandem flight with an instructor from one of the local schools.
World-class flying.
Sweeping view.
With an instructor.
South of Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais
Yes, local schools offer tandem flights with an instructor, weather and wind permitting.