MADEIRA
april 2022
10 days of hiking, 11 hiking trails
and other interesting locations
How I fell in love with beautiful Madeira!
Before the trip I’ve read a lot about Madeira on the Internet. The island of eternal spring! Read about its unique nature and wonderful mild climate. Since I’m not a fan of beach holidays, the water temperature did not interest me at all, so I didn’t care what time of year I go there. The choice fell on April: four days of vacation, taken in addition to the Easter holidays. We rented a tiny Fiat Panda. We must give her credit, although it had to struggle on terrible climbs and serpentines, it coped with all the difficulties. Since the plan was to go through trails in different parts of the island, we chose the policy to stay in a new place every night, closer to the start of the trek. Although the island is very small, only 57 km long, 22 km wide, the journey could take up to one and a half to two hours, taking into account the local terrain.
The trails in Madeira can be divided into two types. These are veredas and levadas. Levadas are water conduits, an irrigation system built to collect and redistribute fresh water, which was used by local residents both in ancient times and today. The total length of the levadas in Madeira is more than 2,500 km and this system is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Veredas are paths not along the irrigation systems, often these are old routes along which shepherds drove cattle or local residents walked to a neighboring village, until roads and numerous tunnels were built on the island.
Vereda Ponto de são Lourenço PR8
One of Madeira’s most popular trails brings you to the eastern point of Madeira, where the land meets the ocean. The landscapes here are completely atypical for Madeira. There is no lush greenery, valleys, or mountain peaks. At first glance, the trail may seem simple; there is no need to hike rocky paths or climb over huge boulders. However, do not e misled. This is not a walk in the park at all. And the main enemy for a hiker is the scorching sun and no shelter on the trail at all. There are also constant winds and change of elevation, although from the outside the trail might look almost flat and in some places even paved with steps for bigger comfort.
Along the way there will be many observation points with the most unexpected views after every turn. What a wonderful feeling provided be the contrast between the gentle ocean in the south and the harsh rocky coast in the north. Amazing fairytale-like grottoes and rock formations of volcanic origin are washed by foamy ocean waves. These views will not leave you indifferent.
Having walked to the end of the trail, you can go down to the southern coast beach and even refresh yourself by swimming in the turquoise ocean waves to refresh yourself before the back way.It was my first trail in Madeira and turned to be one of my favorites. It is really a very different hike from all the other routes here. In total, That day we walked about 11 km in approximately 4 hours. It’s my first day in Madeira and I’m already in love with it. We stopped for the night nearby in the town of Machico. It offers not only several ancient streets, but also a beautiful beach with white sand, which wins many other beaches with black volcanic sand.
Vereda do Larano
Many many years ago, in ancient times, this trail was the main trade “road” and was used by the local people to travel between the settlements of Machico and Porto da Cruz. Today it is a fantastic hiking trail along the north coast of eastern Madeira. This trail is rated as difficult. We were probably just lucky with the weather. The path was quite dry and not slippery, so it was not scary on the edge of the high cliffs. However, the Internet says it is not always as good as we experienced.
First you have to overcome a significant steep climb, after which the trail goes along the slope. The path goes along the edge of the sea up and down between the bushes of blooming mimosa, under the trickles of waterfalls, then the trail comes out to the edge of the cliff, revealing such breathtaking views that it is scary to lose your balance from dizziness and fall down several hundred meters. Then it again takes you into the thickets of either eucalyptus trees or pine trees with huge fluffy branches and needles 20 cm long. The wind drives black clouds from the south, pours short rain showers, refreshing the aromas, spins them like lambs around the mountains. The sun joyfully comes out of the cloud to dry your T-shirt and brown your nose, and quickly dives back into the cloud. It circles like this all day. In 15 minutes the air can warm up from a chilly wet +15 to +25 really steaming from the rocks and stones like in a sauna. If you feel cold, you can easily warm up by simply placing your hands on a stone or rock.
And flowers, flowers, flowers! Nasturtiums, amaryllis, callas… Everything we plant, fertilize, nurture in the North… They just bloom in the wild forest…
There are several options to walk this trail. Even the opportunity to walk from Machico, but we needed to return to the car, so we took the trek behind the link below.
The smart watch showed a distance of 9.5 km and a climb of 500 m.
Vereda Ponta do São Jorge
We walked this trail in the evening of the second day. The length of the track is only 3 km, but the elevation gain turned out to be more than 200 m. First the trail goes along the washed-out pebble base of the cliff, then it requires some rock climbing skills (there are ropes) and, at the very end, you have to take a rickety bridge. At the time of our visit it was in such poor condition that we did not dare to go all the way to the end. Although we saw brave hikers walking on the other side of the bridge. I still had a few days ahead and it was important to keep my limbs safe and sound.
Levada do Furado PR10
In my plan this levada was a backup option in case of bad weather. I didn’t give up that I passed it. Levada starts from the town of Ribeiro Frio. For about 2 hours I walked in a cloud, which in fact is just a suspension of microscopic drops in the air. I would say that the humidity was 300%, taking into account the fact that the water hangs in the air, flows in streams underfoot and flows down in waterfalls from above along the steep cliffs into the levada.
The path circles almost horizontally around mountains and canyons. There is a fairy-tale forest all around, intricately curved tree branches covered with moss, amazing succulents and curious birds that trustingly land on the palm of your hand as soon as you hold it out.
After a couple of hours the sun comes out and I notice that there are gorgeous views from the trail. I decide to have an adventure for myself. I look on the map for an unofficial path for the way back and begin to climb slippery rocks and narrow tunnels, periodically fording the old levada.
Based on my experience, I do not recommend following my footsteps and deviating from the official route. My path turned out to be very difficult, dangerous in places, and almost all the time it goes in the forest. When I climbed 400 m up I found myself right in a huge meadow with hundreds of sheep, and then I had to go down to the car on a path through the beautiful Vinhático Forest.
The final distance is 13 km.
Levada do Caldeirão Verde PR9
One of the most beautiful levadas, if not the most beautiful. This levada was built in the 18th century. It crosses steep cliffs and mountains and carries water streams from the highest peaks of Madeira Island to irrigate the agricultural lands in the area.
This levada is not flat, it climbs slopes. So for 17 km of the route I had more than 1500 m of elevation gained.
Do not turn back at 6.5 km, there is a sign that the trail is closed further due to a rockfall, that’s where the fun begins! Waterfalls, long tunnels, narrow, slippery, half-flooded, and you can only walk by bending over a 15 cm wide curb, under the waterfalls and periodically changing T-shirts along the way. It is mandatory to use a headlamp here, not your phone lamp. You have to be careful! Along the way there were cases of bleeding knees and foreheads, as well as iPhones drowned from sudden collisions with reality. The tunnels are 200-300m long and require physical endurance to overcome.
At the very end of the trail there is a huge, beautiful waterfall. Well, the way back along the same path. Be sure to bring a few spare T-shirts or at least a good raincoat.
Pico Areeiro - Pico Ruivo PR1
The trail PR1 from the peak of Areeiro mountain (1820) to the peak of Ruivo mountain (1860) was the main planned route for this trip. The trek is marked as difficult, but I would call it “medium difficulty”, 5.5 km one way (many people don’t go back, they go a couple of km down from Ruivo to the parking lot and grab a taxi).
I have already come to Areiro 2 times. Once to look at the sunset and once in the morning. That time it was no +5 and a hurricane wind.
This morning was +10, but parking lot was packed to capacity with cars by 9 a.m. I walk briskly towards the beginning of the trail (I must say that there is no other way to go than along the official trail. The trail is narrow and just at the beginning it follows a narrow ridge with cliffs of several hundred meters on both sides). There I meet a partition with a sign “trail closed,” apparently due to strong winds. There are a lot of people out there like me, people swearing in all possible languages of the world. A cordon of several guards has been set up to hold the crowd of protesters.
So, we had to move away after resultless negotiations with the guards. I was very upset. It took about 1 hour to drive to the end point of this route, to Ruivo Peak parking lot. There start several different trails. I chose PR1.2 to Pico Ruivo. (More about this trek below).
On the way back to the car I decided to take a look and see how this treasured path of mine looks on the other side. And, oh God, the same barriers and sign “closed”, but there are no guards! I decide to walk a little, then a little further. Then a couple of young guys come towards us; it turns out they are Germans, who were also deployed from Areeiro in the morning. They walked the entire path back and forth from this side!!! I look at the clock, it’s half past three! Typically this route takes 3-4 hours one way. But, since I’ve decided, I must RUN! I made it back to the car just as it got dark.
The route is amazing! And with a normal speed of walk, not running like me, it is quite an “moderate” level of difficulty. The views are stunning! We were lucky with the weather! This is a mountain trail with many elevation changes, so you need to be prepared for this. However, the effort expended is worth the extraordinary breathtaking views along the way. Well, you shouldn’t take this route if you’re afraid of heights.
The distance for both tracks is 17 km, the elevation gain is 1700 m, it took 6 hours 20 minutes. I was tired!
To avoid getting into trouble, you can check in advance if the trail is open here.
Vereda do Pico Ruivo PR1.2
This incredibly beautiful trail leads to the highest point of Madeira Island, 1862 m. I called it “a walk above the clouds.” What an amazing feeling to watch the clouds floating under me, flooding one valley, and then flowing over the pass into another and revealing villages located somewhere far below. Though this trail can be walked all year round, be aware of the rapid climate changes, be prepared for this and think about equipment in case of rain and possible freezing temperatures, even if in the valley is quite warm.
Mysterious laurel forest Fanal
I read a lot about this wonderful place before the trip, but to get into this fairy tale you need a lot of luck and analysis of weather conditions, although the weather in Madeira is completely unpredictable. However, it was on those days when the stars aligned. Even though in the morning in Porto Moniz, where I spent the night, it was sunny and +20, the tail of a dense cloud slowly flowing up the mountain was beckoning.
The distance from Porto Moniz to Fanal is only 13 km, but taking into account that you need to climb from the sea level to a height of approximately 1200-1300m, the journey took almost half an hour and… at the very best moment that I found myself in a fairy tale!
Here, in a thick cloud, the temperature is about +10 and the humidity is so high that after a half-hour walk my hair was dripping water as if I had just come out of the shower. Later, while walking along the path on the neighboring peak, I saw this forest completely illuminated by the sun. Curiosity got the better of fatigue and I had to go up and down the serpentines to take a few shots for comparison.
Fanal is the name of this particular point. In general, this forest is called Laurisilva – laurel forest, included in the UNESCO heritage list. This is the oldest relict forest. Such forests are called monteverde – literally “green mountain”
There are also trails for hiking, for example Vereda do Fanal PR13, but in such weather conditions I decided not to get lost in the fog, but to follow the trail where at least something is visible. Later I greatly regretted it. The Levada das 25 Fontes I chose was the most boring levada I had walked in Madeira, and the Risco waterfall at the end of it was also not encouraging after what I had seen earlier. That’s why I won’t put it in a separate post. Levada is quite easy, you can walk with children. The only difficulty is the steep descent at the beginning (it’s an uphill on the back way), but there is a minibus for lazy people. Apparently this is why this levada is one of the most popular in Madeira.
Caminho do Pináculo e Folhadal - Bica da Cana PR17
By the time of my trip PR17, Camino do Pinaculo e Folhadal, had been closed for two years, but since there were no police, that didn’t stop me. The trail is designated as “difficult” in all guidebooks. For me it was more difficult to pass yesterday’s “easy” levada, simply from boredom and from the crowds of slowly crawling crowds of people. Today, God forbid, there are 20 people on the 18 km route! Fabulous weather! Dozens of refreshing waterfalls that you simply can’t get around, you’ll have to get wet! Two long tunnels, 500 and 750 meters, a steep descent (admittedly, in bad weather this trail should be closed precisely because of it), views of the main peaks of Madeira – Ruivo and Ariero.
A beautiful sunny day allowed us to simultaneously enjoy both the southern and northern coasts of the island! Visibility for tens of kilometers. Another fabulous day in paradise!18 km and gain 1800 m.
Cabo Girão Viewpoint
This observation deck offers truly stunning views. The cliff is 580 meters high! Thrill-seekers would love walking on the glass floor. However, there are a lot of people, a crowd on the site and traffic jams in the parking lot. But it’s worth a visit once!
Nuns Valley Curral das Freiras
The Valley of the Nuns is a natural valley located between almost vertical mountains in the middle of the island. The nuns of the Santa Clara monastery moved here to hide in 1569 during a pirate invasion. The valley is completely hidden from the coastline by steep mountains. Even in the 19th century, it was impossible to get here, but nowadays an excellent nerve-wracking serpentine road has been built, on which two cars can barely pass each other. The view from the view point is stunning, but I didn’t want to go down into the valley.
Trail to Penha de Águia mountain
This trail was not in my plan, but I did not want to spend the last day in Madeira in hot Funchal, so I chose a short, but physically difficult and completely unpopular route: 5 km of hiking, of almost 600 m elevation gained; no fences, steps or other amenities.
The climb was difficult, on the hot side, with unstable stones flying out from under your feet. The slope was so steep that sometimes we had to work with all four limbs, it was nothing like walking on levadas.
Difficult – yes, but not dangerous, there are bushes all around, you can’t fall hundred meters down, but, of course, you can get hurt. The stunning views made the pain worth it! The down hill, as always, is even more difficult. In the end, it felt like the knee joints were full of bottle fragments, every step was agony. I remembered the old climbing instructions that you need to descend “facing the slope.” With such a steep slope, you can’t trust your heel, because the toe slips forward. Climbing down my butt towards the views, nose towards sand, I have never walked slower: 5 km in 2.5 hours.
Funchal and surroundings
Funchal felt like a quiet, soulful town to me. It was nice to walk along its evening streets. But since I am more of a hiker than an urban tourist, it is unlikely that my stories here will attract you. Some of my favorite places are:
- Pontas Pintadas – a district with painted doors in Santa Maria, the old area of Funchal. Brilliant solution. This used to be a poor street in the outskirts of the old city. But one day one person came up with an idea on how to revive it and attract tourists. It started not so long ago, but now there are already more than a hundred of these doors “to the world of art”. Unfortunately, I was in this area only in the evening, when the street, already a magnet for tourists, was packed with tables of restaurants and cafes; many of the doors could not be seen. Here you can spend more than one hour looking at ingeniuos pictures, like in a museum of modern art. If you’re in Madeira, don’t miss it! And better to do it in the morning.
- Quinta do Palheiro Ferreiro. There are lots of gardens and parks in Madeira. I really liked this one. Quinta do Palheiro Ferreiro, also known as Blandy Gardens, is a private estate. Only part of it is open to visitors (with a ticket). A well taken care of area with ponds, a park and a huge amount of ever-blooming exotic flowers. You can spend the whole day here and there are not many visitors.
- Tropical garden Jardim Monte Palace Madeira. This place is unique in its beauty. There is not only thousands of flowers and tropical plants, but also a palace, grottoes, streams with waterfalls, and a wide network of paths. And all this overlooking the ocean on the slopes of Monte mountain. There are also pavilions with thematic exhibitions, cafes and other must to be stuff of the tourist area. The day I visited it was very hot and very crowded. By the way, you can reach the palace and garden by cable car from the city center.
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