Três Picos State Park, Protected nature reserve in Rio de Janeiro metropolitan region, Brazil.
Três Picos State Park covers 65,113 hectares across Cachoeiras de Macacu, Guapimirim, Nova Friburgo, Silva Jardim and Teresópolis. Its name comes from the Três Picos de Friburgo, granite peaks reaching 2,366 metres, the highest point of the Serra do Mar. Vegetation ranges from dense sub-montane rainforest to cloud forest and alpine meadows between 100 and 2,366 metres.
The park was created in 2002 when authorities decided to protect portions of the Atlantic Forest from further degradation. This action aimed to safeguard the remaining forest areas still standing in the Rio de Janeiro region.
The park's name comes from the Três Picos de Friburgo, the granite peaks that mark the highest point of the Serra do Mar. Birdwatchers come to the Pico da Caledônia area to look for the grey-winged cotinga (Lipaugus conditus), described in 1980 and found only in this region, which draws observers from other parts of Brazil and abroad.
The reserve sits across mountainous terrain and can be accessed from several towns, with varying difficulty levels for different routes. Visitors should prepare for trail hiking and watch weather conditions, as elevation changes rapidly throughout the area.
The shifting elevations create different forest types, with mist often wrapping around the peaks in higher zones. These cloud forests look remarkably different from the lush lowland areas below them.
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