Monday, December 9, 2013

Azorean Adventure+


At last! We have eventually got around to sorting out our holiday photos from June!  Here are a few highlights from our trip to the Azores...

Lisbon airport


We stayed on the island of Faial, one of three islands in the central region of the archipelago.  It is a fairly small island (about 60km circumference) but much bigger than Enlli and with lots to be explored in 2 weeks!  The island rises almost symmetrically on all sides, gently ascending from the coast to the Caldeira.  The highest peak on the island, cabeco Gordo rises to 1043 m near the rim of the crater and on the coast steep cliffs alternate with sandy bays.  It is very lush and beautifully vegetated, with Hydrangea hedges separating  small fields and a diverse flora.



For the first week we stayed in a small cabin which had a spectacular view of the volcanic cone of Pico, a mountain on a neighbouring island (the highest in Portugal).  The view of this mountain frequently popped out of the clouds and kept beckoning us over....










So, on a perfectly clear day, we left our bikes behind and took the ferry over to Pico.  

A taxi took us to the start of the trail - at 1220 metres and we began our ascent, across slopes covered with heather and thyme, and then volcanic terrain....



At the crater of Pico Grande (2350m) , there's anoother inner peak (Piquinho) which was worth a scramble to get the magnificent view and to see the steam rising out of a small hole into the volcano!







The descent was pretty gruelling, and my and Steve's legs took about a week to recover!  
We drove back to the ferry via an area of walled vineyards, now a UNESCO Worlf Heritage Site.

We ascended the Caldeira on Faial on mountain bikes.....which included having to carry them a fair distance in order to connect the trails!






The route back took us along a very pretty levada...








In fact, we thoroughly explored the island by bike...







For the second week we stayed in another cabin, this time near the coast.


Rachel and Ben had different ways of enjoying the beach....





We also found some natural rock pools that had been made into the local swimming pool!


A small chain of volcanic comes runs from the Caldeira along to the west of Faial, this is the geological backbone of the island.  at the end of this line of volcanoes, the Vulcao dos Capelinhos emerged from the sea in 1957 creating a barren landscape, in contrast to the rest of the island:

The island is very agricultural, but not intensively so.  Most dwellings seemed to have their own house cow tethered in a nearby field:




Another adventure involved exploring one of the river gorges all the way down to its source:






We took a boat trip one day to see the ocean life....


We managed to see Harbour, Bottlenose and Rissos Dolphins,....




For many centuries, the capital city of Horta was the most important stop for ships sailing between Europe and America.  Even today transatlantic yachts arrive from all over the world.  Traditionally each yacht passing through adds a painting to the harbour wall, so there are hundreds of colourful pictures around the harbour;



Jo was in her element with so many ferns to look at!

And Rachel discovered some amazing nature art...






A very good time was had by all!












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