TRIP 14: MADEIRA I knew nothing about Madeira prior to this trip apart from three facts: it is part of Portugal; it is in the Atlantic Ocean somewhere to the north of the Canaries; and it produces a sweet wine which used to be popular in Britain: “Have some Madeira, m’dear”. Now I know it’s the birthplace of Cristiano Ronaldo (they’ve even renamed the airport after him); it is quite small (about 60k from east to west and 24k from north to south); it is all hills and valleys with no coastal plain and some quite big mountains in the middle (the highest is 1862m, almost twice as high as Scafell Pike); and it is irrigated by a system of ‘levadas’, relatively level concrete channels descending from the hills, where most of the springs and rains are, to the cultivated areas lower down the slopes. Many of the guidebook-recommended walks are along these levadas which wind into, round and out of valleys along a very winding trajectory. I chose to avoid these levada trails, predicting that they would be boring for two reasons: they wind in and out of the same terrain over long distances and they are often enclosed by dense forest which restricts the views. Since two of my main reasons for walking are varied terrain and spectacular views, I went for two coastal trails, two mountain trails and one, short, levada trail to a spectacular view. Here’s a map showing the location of my trails – I hope you enjoy (or can forgive) the images of what the Madeirans consider most attractive about their island: Photo 8917: postcard with the numbers of my trails superimposed; www.dima.pt Travel around Madeira can be rapid if you have your own transport (thanks to a recently upgraded road system that relies on tunnels to prevent having to go round each valley) or slow if you are using the local buses (which go more or less everywhere but serve the locals and therefore stop frequently and visit each village along a winding route that avoids most of the tunnels). Accommodation is relatively cheap unless you are staying in one of the swanky hotels to the west of the capital, Funchal. I used Paddy Dillon’s excellent ‘Walking in Madeira’ (Cicerone, 2013) to choose my trails and provide some tips. Route-finding was not a problem as all these trails are well signposted and easy to follow. I shall refer to his guide-book as ‘Dillon’. I also found ‘The Unofficial Madeira Bus Guide’ extremely useful, available online for £3.77 at www.tjwalking- madeira.com. My visit was in May 2017 and the guide was up-to-date to 27th March 2017 and provided correct bus information every time. 169: Ponta de Sao Lourenco Ponta de Sao Lourenco is a thin, straggly peninsular, shaped like a crooked finger at the eastern extremity of Madeira and has one of the best – and most popular – trails on the island (Photos 8901, 8590). It is Walk 6 in Dillon. Photo 8901: Ponta de Sao Lourenco from the airport as I was leaving Photo 8590: from Freytag & Berndt, Madeira WKP 1; www.freytagberndt.com The trail kicks off from the car-park at Baia d’Abra where the bus terminates and appears to be a mountainous prospect (Photo 8605). Photo 8605: view from the start of the trail However, you don’t have to climb all these hills as the trail winds its way across their flanks. There is little shrubbery, just a few flowers and some palm trees around Casa do Sardinha (see later), but there is a variety of rock formations (Photos 8611, 8631, 8637, 8665). Photo 8611 Photo 8631 Photos 8637 and 8665 The first point of interest is Pedra Furado, a striking bay with a balcony view-point, reached after about 1k (Photos 8614, 8615 & 8616). Photo 8614 Photo 8616 Photo 8615: view along the coast from Pedra Furado Then you go round a bend to reach a second bay surrounding Ilheu do Guincho, a sea-stack at the entrance to the bay (Photo 8627). Photo 8627: Ilheu do Guincho and its bay Just before the path descends a flight of steps to reach a view-point above the bay, notice a pile of stones to your left and an orange/brown stripe in the rocks above it (Photo 8669). Photo 8669: the pile of stones and the stripe Follow the stripe uphill if you want to find my first spot, which is at the top of the ridge where the stripe ends. But be warned, if you venture too near the edge or further down the ridge, as I did, things become dangerous. As I was writing my notes, a local guide came up to warn me that they have had several deaths from rock-falls up here. “Ridge above Ilheu do Guincho Bay” From my spot, you get the best view of the bay and its cliffs. You can also see the path ahead (Photo 8628), back to the start of the trail and two of the Ilhas Desertas out at sea to the south-east. You are surrounded by the black laval tufa which is liable to crumble near the cliff edge. Photo 8628: view-point and path ahead at Ilheu do Guincho Bay Time for some light relief after all that excitement. Here is a selection of flowers I came across (Photos 8625, 8642, 8651 & 8652). Photo 8625 Photo 8642 Photo 8651: this one was taken to catch the indigenous local butterfly Photo 8652: poppies near my second spot a couple of pages ahead Round the next corner, you come to Estreito, a narrow ridge connecting the trail to the furthest part of the peninsula (Photo 8643). As usual, this is much easier than it looks – there is no danger with guard-rails on both sides. Photo 8643: Estreito Another short traverse brings you to a parting of the ways from where there is a good view of the rest of the trail (Photo 8647). Like most people I went left along a fairly flat path towards Casa do Sardinha in the distance. Photo 8647: my next spot is above the gap on the left; the hill is Pico do Furado; Casa do Sardinha is below it When you reach a view-point by another bay, I recommend you keep going uphill, rather than turning right towards the Casa. Head for a boulder with a pile of stones on top near the edge of a small cliff – again don’t go too near the edge as this ground looks as crumbly as at the previous spot. “Boulder to the East of Casa Do Sardinha” I had spied out this spot from the parting of the ways, predicting that it would afford a good view of the islands separated from the end of the peninsula by a strait called Boqueirao, thus saving me the exertion of climbing (and descending, which is even worse) the hill of Pico do Furado for the view from on high. I was right: the views are terrific (Photo 8655) and include all three Ilhas Desertas way beyond Punta de Sao Lourenco (Photo 8662). Photo 8655: islands off the end of Punta de Sao Lourenco Photo 8662: the Ilhas Desertas – an uninhabited nature reserve You also have the schadenfreude of seeing your fellow hikers slogging up and down Pico do Furado (Photo 8664). Below you, the oasis of Casa do Sardinha beckons with a distant view of Madeira’s mountains behind the Baia d’Abra (Photo 8657). Out at sea to the north-east, you can just make out the ancillary island of Porto Santo. You are surrounded by gravel and long grass but this detracts nothing from the magnificence of the views – and there are handy boulders to rest upon. I make no apologies for including so many photos from this spot (see my Introduction where I promise not to) since these are among the best photos I took in Madeira. Photo 8664: you can just make out the people on the slope of Pico do Furado Photo 8657: Casa do Sardinha, Baia d’Abra and the mountains of Madeira You can find your way to the Casa do Sardinha by continuing along the cliff-top and turning right on a brown path. Casa do Sardinha must mean ‘House of Sardines’, thus betraying its original use, but it’s now a nature centre for a Parque Natural which includes ground covered by this trail. Someone should negotiate a concession to sell drinks, ice-creams and snacks – they would make a fortune. As it is, there are tables underneath the palm trees where you can vie for the little shade there is with other sweaty hikers and eat your packed lunch. The convention is to return by the lower route to the left which descends gradually to the sea where there are a few more picnic tables and the opportunity for a dip before climbing back up to the parting of the ways. If you are tired, the higher route is easier. From here, you have to return the way you came but there are more good views, perhaps not noticed on the way out (Photos 8667 & 8670). Photo 8667: looking back from the top of Estreito to the start of the trail and Madeira Photo 8670: from the early part of the trail towards Pico do Furado and the Ilhas Desertas When you reach the car-park at Baia d’Abra, there is usually a van there selling the drinks, ice-creams and snacks that would have been so welcome at the House of Sardines.