Retired military officer Luiz Aragão, 60 years old, became the first person to traverse the long-distance trail "Volta ao Rio," inaugurated in May of this year. Over 127 days, he crossed more than 50 municipalities in the state of Rio, totaling 2,200 kilometers traveled on foot, with some sections done by bicycle and canoe.
Aragão is a volunteer for the National Trail Network and offered to test the logistical feasibility of the route, which crosses the state of Rio de Janeiro. He had already been working with the responsible agencies on the trail studies and decided to volunteer to inaugurate the trail.
The project is an initiative of the Brazilian Trail Network, the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio), and the State Environmental Institute (Inea). On Tuesday, Aragão completed the journey, returning to the starting point: Christ the Redeemer, within Tijuca National Park.
Along the way, he took note of a series of observations about the trail, which will be used to improve the experience for future hikers who wish to traverse the "Volta ao Rio."
