The Espinhaço Mountains (, ) are a mountain range in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. The range runs roughly north and south through the states of

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

and

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest b ...

, extending for approximately . It forms the divide between the upper watershed of the São Francisco River and those of the shorter rivers which flow east into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

, including the

Doce Doce was a Portuguese female band from the 1980s. It was one of the first girl bands in Europe. The girls took part in the Portuguese national final in order to represent the country in the Eurovision Song Contest 1980 with the song "Doce" ("S ...

, the

Jequitinhonha Jequitinhonha is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais. Location The population was estimated to be 25,474 people living in a total area of 3,518 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Jequitinh ...

, and the

Pardo ''Pardos'' (feminine ''pardas'') is a term used in the former Portuguese and Spanish colonies in the Americas to refer to the triracial descendants of Southern Europeans, Amerindians and West Africans. In some places they were defined as ne ...

rivers.

Pico do Sol Pico may refer to: Places The Moon * Mons Pico, a lunar mountain in the northern part of the Mare Imbrium basin Portugal * Pico, a civil parish in the municipality of Vila Verde * Pico da Pedra, a civil parish in the municipality of Ribeir ...

, its highest peak, rises to , in

Catas Altas Catas Altas is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Minas Gerais. The city belongs to the mesoregion Metropolitana de Belo Horizonte and to the microregion of Itabira. As of 2020, the estimated population was 5,421. See also * Lis ...

town (

Caraça National Park António Joaquim Caraça, known as Caraça (born 7 February 1932) is a former Portuguese football player. He played 13 seasons and 272 games in the Primeira Liga for Lusitano Évora and Vitória de Guimarães. Club career He made his Primeira ...

). The historical town of

Diamantina Diamantina may refer to: Geography Australia * Diamantina Bowen (1833-1893), ''grande dame'' of Queensland and the wife of Sir George Bowen, the first Governor of Queensland. * ''Diamantina Cocktail'', 1976 album by Little River Band * Diam ...

are located in the Espinhaço Mountains. The Espinhaço Mountains were a major route through which Minas Gerais was settled during the Gold Rush of the 18th century.

References

Mountain ranges of Brazil Biosphere reserves of Brazil {{MinasGerais-geo-stub