Abaporu 9b (5.15b)

Abaporu is a sport route on the limestone of Serra do Cipó in Minas Gerais, Brazil, graded 9b (5.15b). It takes its name from the 1928 Brazilian painting by Tarsila do Amaral, a touchstone of Brazilian modernism, a choice that ties the climb to a specifically Brazilian idea of originality rather than an imported one. The route was the first of its grade established in South America, placing a Brazilian home crag among the venues producing the world's hardest confirmed sport climbs.

History

Felipe Camargo made the first ascent after falling nine times on the final boulder problem on what he described as probably the last good climbing day of the season. It was his second 5.15b overall, after El Bon Combat in Spain in 2019, and followed his first ascent of Auto Retrato, South America's first 5.15a, at the same general area of Serra do Cipó in 2023. Camargo called Abaporu the culmination of years spent traveling and climbing in Europe, learning from some of the world's strongest climbers, before finding a route of that caliber at home. He praised the rock quality and the variety of moves on the line, describing it as one of the most beautiful routes he has climbed.

On film

The North Face film Abaporu (2025) is built around Camargo's ascent, taking its title and its argument from the painting: that what comes from elsewhere can be absorbed, reworked, and made local. The film follows Camargo's process on the route at Serra do Cipó, from the repeated falls on the closing boulder problem to the final successful redpoint, and situates the climb within the wider story of South American sport climbing reaching the top grade tier.