Paddling near Maracanaú, Ceará

Maracanaú sits in the metropolitan region of Fortaleza, in Ceará, where the semi-arid interior meets a coast shaped by steady trade winds. The nearest paddling water is the Rio Cocó, and the Açude Gavião reservoir lies close to the city. Fortaleza's coastline, just to the north, has an established open-water paddling and surfski scene, anchored by events such as the MolokaBRA festival, which has drawn international canoe ocean racing competition to the Ceará coast.