Southwest Goiás state in Brazil

This little town is close to some remnant

forest that clings to a series of small table-top mountains in the flat sea of soya, which is gradually taking over Goiás. Important cave paintings have been found here; these are now carefully protected and can be reached via a series of well-maintained trails. There are a few simple hotels in town and two excellent forest

, which are carefully designed, wonderfully peaceful and great for birdwatching or just relaxing.

This 133,000-ha park, protecting low

forests, black water rivers and savannah is Goiás's third UNESCO World Heritage Site - the others being Chapada dos Veadeiros and Cidade de Goiás. The park protects large populations of maned wolf, puma and jaguar as well as many rare

bird species. These include red-shouldered and blue-winged macaw, greater rhea, bare-face currasow and diverse tyrant flycatchers and woodpeckers, as well as several species of macaw. It is a favourite destination for wildlife documentary film crews.

The most convenient base for visiting the park is

, www.chapadaodoceu.go.gov.br, about 30 minutes to the east. This newly created soya town has some decent hotels and tour operators to take visitors to the park. Four-day, three-night visits to the park can be arranged through agencies and tour operators such as

in Pirenópolis, www.drena.tur.br, the

in Cuiabá, or

.