Trilha Fontes do Ipiranga (Parque CienTec / PEFI)

The Trilha Fontes do Ipiranga runs through the Parque CienTec inside the Parque Estadual das Fontes do Ipiranga (PEFI) in the Agua Funda district of Sao Paulo, part of the same reserve as the city's Botanical Garden. Access is by metro to Jabaquara station (Line 1-Blue) followed by a bus toward Agua Funda, or by car using the free on-site parking. The park is open Tuesday-Saturday, 9am-4pm, and the trail is walked as a guided nature loop of about 2 km, flat throughout with negligible elevation gain, following packed dirt-and-gravel paths through a 121-hectare remnant of Atlantic Forest. The route passes the springs that form the headwaters of the Ipiranga river, giving the reserve its name, as well as a sanctuary for native stingless bees maintained as part of the park's conservation program. Long trousers are recommended, since the forest sections have dense undergrowth and insect activity. There are no refuge huts, but the spring area and bee sanctuary function as the main landmarks and a natural pause point partway around the loop. Because the trail is guided, groups move at a set pace over the roughly 1-1.5 hour circuit.