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Four Azores IslandsFour Azores Islands
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Following two months travelling through Andalusia, Spain, we are going to the Azores Islands for three weeks. Five years ago, we spent three weeks on Sao Miguel Island and said that we would return to explore a few more of the islands. So here we are Read more
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  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    2
    Day 6–10

    On to Pico Island

    March 14 in Portugal ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    So now we are ready to visit our fourth out of the nine Azores islands. So far each of the islands have had a completely different feel about them. Surprising considering how close they are to each other. We may have to return to the Azores in the future to explore the last five islands.

    Pico Island, the second-largest in the Azores, is nicknamed the “grey or black island” because it is the most volcanic and basalt-y of them all. Dramatic landscapes with all kinds of lava formations dominate the scenery. It contrasts with the blue of the ocean and the white from the foam of the waves.

    Portugal’s highest mountain, also called Pico, rises 2,351 m above sea level on the west side of the island. When we were in Horta, we could see this huge volcano off and on depending on the openings in the clouds that swirled around it.

    We caught the ferry that would take us from Horta to Madalena at 9 a.m. We were a little worried as there is a ferry workers’ strike going on and the ferry only runs if the weather is good. Stronger winds were forecast for later in the day but luckily all went well and we were able to go.

    The boat isn’t very big - it only holds 12 vehicles and about 300 passengers max. Cars have to back into the hold. The trip between islands was short, only about 30 minutes and we couldn’t see the volcano at all. It was covered in clouds.

    Our BnB, Joe’s Place, is located in the town of Madalena (pop 6,500) about 1 km from the ferry terminal. There are four bedrooms in this 300 hundred year old, traditional Azorean-style house as well as common rooms and terraces looking out over the town. A healthy breakfast is served with regional products in the morning and the owners and their Dutch helper Sophie are very friendly. I think that we are the only ones here now as we haven’t seen anyone.

    Renowned as one of the ten wine-growing regions globally designated as a UNESCO Heritage Site, Madalena proudly holds the title of the Azores’ wine capital. A future footprint will tell more about the island’s wine industry.

    When we arrived, we took a little drive to check out the area and have a coffee before going to the BnB. This island looks intriguing. So different from Faial.    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 6

    Furna de Frei Matias

    March 14 in Portugal ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    The sun was shining so after getting ourselves set up in Joe’s Place, we went for a drive to a nearby cave in the country. The owner gave us a headlamp and told us about the unusual gold and silver colours in the cave that we were going to see.

    I think that most people would zoom by the entrance to these caves and never even notice them. But for the curious, there's 45 minutes of discovery to be had in these hidden caves.

    We drove and parked the car at a cattle gate and saw in the near distance three unassuming hills. We walked gingerly through mud, deep cow prints and cow patties to one of the hills and hidden at the back of the hill was a big hole in the ground leading to a cave. It was pretty wet but we scrambled down the rocks and entered a fantasy world. Fun stuff!

    Our BnB host was right. The inside of the cave glowed especially when we shone the light on the ceiling of it. I have been calling the area a cave but it is actually a lava tunnel.

    This cave is named after a hermit, Frei Mathias (Brother Mathias), who lived in this cave in fear of pirates. We read that the cave is 1,000 m long, but most of the cave is difficult to explore as you have to crawl on your stomach. Caving equipment and experience is necessary, so we didn’t go in too deep. What we saw though was very neat and we loved exploring the area that we could get into.

    From the cave we went on a road trip through the centre of the island past the volcano but the clouds hid her! The winds were pretty ferocious so we were afraid to open the car doors when we got out to take some photos of the interior landscape.

    Heading north, we visited the quaint town of Sao Roque (1,500 people) that was full of beautiful spots - a lovely municipal garden, rock pools in the ocean, a windmill and another whale industry museum. We chose to sit in the sun on the lava seawall and watch the waves before heading back to Madalena.    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 7

    Gruta das Torres Lava Tube

    March 15 in Portugal ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    The wind roared all night. You just can’t predict the weather on this island. One minute the sun is shining, a few minutes later the fog rolls in, then it rains, then it is cold, then hot. What a place! The weather changes very quickly and it’s good to be prepared for anything.

    We were somewhat worried about our ferry ride back to Horta to catch our plane on Monday afternoon. With the unpredictable weather, we were afraid that the ferry would be cancelled and we may miss our plane. Remember there is a ferry workers strike so the ferry only runs twice a day. We were also concerned about room the ferry for the car. Only 10 cars have spots. We decided to take the ferry back on Sunday morning after consulting with several people in the know and spend the night in a hotel in Horta. We bought our tickets immediately. Whew, there was still room for the car.

    Now that that was taken care of, we could enjoy ourselves with a tour of another long lava tube.

    The Gruta das Torres Visitors Centre is a 10 minute drive from Joe’s Place and luckily for us an English tour explaining the formation and characteristics of a lava tube was going to start at 11 a.m.

    The Gruta das Torres is the largest lava tube in Portugal, with a length of 5150 metres, and it is part of a bigger complex. It is estimated that it was formed about 1500 years ago during an eruption of the volcano in Cabeço Bravo.

    We were given helmets and flashlights and watched a short film showing how the Azores Islands formed before heading down into the tube.

    Our visit took about 1 1/2 hours and cost five euros each. The guide did a great job of explaining all that we saw and suggesting easy ways to negotiate getting around the slippery rubble and giant lava rocks, without getting hurt. There are no artificial lights down there, just our flashlights. The cave walk was about 450 metres long.

    At one point we all turned off our flashlights and stood silently in a cave. We couldn’t see a thing as there wasn’t any light at all and we couldn’t hear anything either. (maybe some ringing in our ears) but the dripping water from the top of the cave falling on us became quite noticeable.

    The guide did an excellent job and we had fun.

    Joe, our BnB host told us that in Pico you have to ‘Chase the Sun’ as you travel so that’s what we did. Stay one step in front of the dark fog clouds. Good advice!

    From the caves, we took a lava road through the island to the coast. We saw lots of twisty trees and volcanic rocks as well as cattle and goats. We looked for houses but didn’t see any. The land is way too rugged.

    Our goal was to have a late lunch at a recommended restaurant called Fonte in Lajes so we went down this coast admiring the huge waves as they crashed on the giant lava rocks. We could sit and do this for hours!

    The lunch special was delicious and inexpensive - soup to start, and then a plate with fish, boiled potatoes and a green salad followed by a chocolate mousse with peanuts on top. A very full glass of Azorean wine and a beer were included, all for about $15 Cdn each. What a deal. We have not been in restaurant that serves vegetables. Who knows why as they grow all sorts of vegetables here. It’s always meat or fish, French fries and a salad -the closest thing to a vegetable serving. Not sure what vegetarians eat here…

    Heading back to Joe’s, we took the road that passed by the volcano with hopes of seeing it without the clouds. Not the greatest luck, but Chris did manage to get a photo in the 2 seconds that the clouds separated a bit. He was lucky,

    The day started out very windy, rainy and foggy and ended up being a glorious sunny day. Another great day in Pico. One more to go.    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 7

    Flowers in Joe’s Garden

    March 15 in Portugal ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    For Diane and Claude...

    They say anything and everything grows in the Azores, and this is because of the mineral-rich volcanic soil that allows that plants to flourish here.

    Chris went into Joe’s backyard and took these photos of just some of the flowers and plants he saw. Beautiful.

    .    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    1
    Day 8

    Where’s the Dog in Cachorro?

    March 16 in Portugal ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Not far from Madalena, on the north shore of the island is a little village near the airport called Cachorro. It is in this village, which has close to 30 basalt houses, that we went on a hunt to find the dog in the Arcos do Cachorro. Arcos = Arches

    In this village there is an impressive group of lava formations right next to the sea, filled with grottoes and tunnels. Volcanic arches soar over the sea. Rocks have curious shapes, and one of them resembles the head of a dog which possibly gave the place its name (Arcos do Cachorro means Arches of the Puppy). That’s the dog we were hunting for.

    And it wasn’t easy for us to find. We would look around and see clowns in the rocks, an elephant's trunk, a bear, human faces but we almost gave up looking for that famous dog.

    But finally we saw it. Chris spotted its two ears. The dog looks like it was carved out of the rock and is looking out over the sea, mesmerized by the waves.

    For many of the villagers, the dog is loved as they feel that it is watching over the island's safety. There is even a group called the Friends of the Puppy who take care of it.

    We spent a morning driving on the coast road through several old villages from Madalena to Sao Roque. In the distance, the Pico Volcano appeared and quickly disappeared. The land is very rugged, yet beautiful, with its volcanic landscape and coastline. The lava block houses built closely together with their red doors, outdoor kitchens and walled gardens are lovely. We didn’t see many people though…    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 8

    Pico’s Windmills

    March 16 in Portugal ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    We have seen several windmills and remains of windmills on the island.

    Windmills began to be built in the 16th century and were important to the development of the islands’ economy. Grinding grains was a necessity in food production. Historically, windmills are remnants of the island’s colonisation by both Flemish and Portuguese settlers.

    One of the windmills that we saw is called the Moinho do Frade. This mill is surrounded by acres of vineyards. Tourists started coming to see it and the community got the money to fully restore the mill in 2003/4. The mill apparently is in working order, driven by its 4 bladed propeller.

    Another restored windmill is called Moinho do Monte. The door was open so we could go up the steps and look inside to see how the mill’s mechanism would ground wheat for flour.

    In many places, we just saw the round stone bottoms of ruined mills in lot with overgrown vegetation.    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 8

    Old Vineyards and Wine

    March 16 in Portugal ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    What we first noticed when we arrived on Pico and drove to a lunch cafe, were numerous walls of black basalt stones placed close to each other and seemingly helter skelter in the fields. We asked the waitress in the restaurant why they were there and she looked puzzled. She answered, “You mean the vineyards?” They sure didn’t look like vineyards to us.

    But yes, we were looking at the imperfect squares of Pico’s vineyards, built by hand to protect the grapes from the fury of the elements. You really have to see them to understand what they look like. We wondered how many years and man hours did it take to build them.

    The cultivation of grape vines on Pico began in the late 15th century, when the island was first settled. A couple of factors provided exceptional conditions for ripening grapes:
    The volcanic soil rich in nutrients.
    The dry, warm microclimate of the slopes protected from the wind and salt spray
    by walls of rough, dark stone, heated by the sun,

    The most famous wine from Pico is the Verdelho variety. This wine was exported to many countries in Europe and America, and even arrived at the table of the Russian Court. The vineyards that dot the landscape of the island, still produce a crisp, fruity, dry and mild wine that is ideal for a pairing with seafood or fish. They also have another wine called vinho de cheiro (a fragrant wine) that is popular during feast days.

    In 2004, UNESCO recognized Pico’s unique viticulture system as a World Heritage Site, “Landscape of the Pico Island Vineyard Culture”. The man-made grid of walls is called Criação Velha or ”old creation” and cover more than 2000 acres on the island’s west coast. They are supposed to be the best remaining example of what was once a more widespread method of grape growing.

    As these vineyards became more successful, manor houses, wine-cellars, distilleries, warehouses and ports in tiny hamlets sprang up around them. It is amazing but this culture has survived and thrives to this day.    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 9–10

    Back in Horta for 30 Hours & Tall Ships

    March 17 in Portugal ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    Happy St. Paddy Day!

    This morning, we left Pico. Our wonderful host, Johannes (Joe), got up early to prepare another tasty breakfast for us. Every day it has been different and always presented in a creative way with edible flowers. So much care is put into each part of the breakfast.

    The ferry terminal is only 1 km away from the house so we left at 7:40 a.m. for the 7:45 a.m. car loading. The ferry left for Faial Island at 8:15 a.m. a the 7 km trip across the strait takes only 30 minutes but with the winds it was somewhat rocky. We chose an earlier time to cross as the weather was supposed to get worse. We are happy that we did that.

    I booked a room with a breakfast in Hotel do Canal that is right on Horta’s harbour, not far from the airport. It is in a good location and has good reviews. Check-in is at 2 p.m. but they said we could move in earlier if we wanted to.

    Instead, we went for a drive on the north side of the island where it was a delight to see green grass and flowers as well as grazing cows, horses, goats and sheep. Pico’s pastures had pretty sparse pickings for the livestock. So rugged. We didn’t go that far but took a lot of side roads down to the ocean and checked out the thriving tiny towns on this side.

    Returning to Horta we noticed that two Tall Ships were moored in the harbour. They were amazing to see. We decided to checked them out after lunch.

    We got back to the hotel at about noon, checked in and went to a Sports Bar for a ribeye steak. It was huge and the price was right! Half of it came back to the hotel with us to eat later.

    And then it was time for a little siesta.

    But we had to see the Tall Ships!

    One of them was called the Thor Heyerdahl and it is actually a German school for 32 high school kids and young adults (15-25 years old) who are learning how to sail. They are on this 50 m triple-masted Topsail-schooner for 6-7 months.

    The other Tall Ship was called the Eye of the Wind and what an interesting history this ship has. I copied the following from the Sail Training International website -

    “Eye of the Wind, originally called Friedrich, was built in 1911 in Germany for the South American hide trade. In 1923, she was sold to Sweden and carried general cargo under the name Merry. Three years later her first engine was installed and gradually her rig was reduced and altered to a ketch, but after a fire in 1969 when her wheel house and poop deck were destroyed, her old iron hull was sold to square rigger enthusiasts who began rebuilding her.

    During the 1970s she was fitted out as a brigantine in Faversham, Kent and circumnavigated the globe as her first voyage as the Eye of the Wind. She has since appeared in many films including Blue Lagoon, Savage Islands, Taipan and as the ill-fated Albatross in White Squall. Eye of the Wind raced in all five races of Tall Ships 2000.”

    I enjoyed this article about its history - https://www.eyeofthewind.net/en/ship/history

    We spoke to a lady who had been sailing on this ship and she said that it had been hard for her as she got seasick. The waves at times had been 6 m high and we are not sure if the experience was the best for her. She was going to rest for the next 3 weeks in the Azores.

    As we were leaving, we noticed a large sailboat the was experiencing difficulty trying to dock. The four member crew seemed to be really young (2 young men and 2 young women) and every time they brought the boat close to the pier the wind would push the nose of the boat away from the pier. They had to circle around and try again and again.

    Chris went out to see if he could help and finally was able to catch the rope that the girl threw out to him. By that time several experienced sailors came over to help and after a good half hour, they got the boat tied up securely. I got a bit of the rescue on video.

    It was starting to get colder and windier so we walked back to the hotel and just relaxed and watched T.V. Lots of English channels and some golf too! The Players Championship in Florida.

    Tomorrow’s flight is at 3 p.m. so we have the morning to do whatever in this great town.    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 10–17

    On to Terceira Island for a Week

    March 18 in Portugal ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    A week ago, we were on Terceira Island for 2 nights. It was really just a stopover before going to Faial and Pico Islands, so today we flew back and will stay here for a week.

    In the morning, we had an excellent buffet breakfast at the hotel, then walked around Horta, picked up some sandwiches and filled up the car with gas before going to the airport.

    The weather reports didn’t look great - rain and winds for our 3:50 pm flight and the flight was delayed for 2 1/2 hours. Azorians are used to this happening and they take it with a grain of salt. No one got excited. They just accepted that it was happening. In fact, one group of young people turned up their music a bit and started dancing.

    We boarded the plane at around 6 pm. It is only a 25 minute flight to Terceira so we just got up above the clouds and then came down.

    We were a little worried about not making our rental car time slot but the company is used to this happening and we had no issue picking up the car.

    The drive to our home stay was only supposed to be about 1/2 hour but it took us a little longer. It was already dark outside when we started out as well as heavy rain and fog. Winding unfamiliar roads and no street lights didn’t help. Chris seemed to be okay but I wasn’t a happy passenger!

    Now, we had another problem - we were starting to get hungry. But where to eat… Lo and behold, on the road ahead of us was a KFC! Now we haven’t eaten at a KFC for years but we didn’t hesitate to stop to eat a meal deal. Lol. We remembered why we haven’t eaten in a KFC in years, but it did the trick.

    Then on we continued. We arrived at the home stay we will be in and entered a ‘museum’. The house is a 300 year old Azorean manor house. Lucilia, the hostess, brought us in and showed us our room on the main floor. The bed frame is from Mozambique and the mattress top comes to my waist. So high. She said that only nobility slept on high beds. We need to use a step to get into it!

    Our sitting room is where the old wine press is. Strange decor - a stuffed bull’s head, yokes, an old wagon, old pottery, and big wine barrels and jars.

    It was getting late and we were tired so we just put on our pyjamas and jumped into that high Mozambique bed. I wonder if any nobility ever slept in it…    Read more

  • LadyandtrampFour Azores Islands
    Day 11

    A 300 Year Old Azorean Manor House

    March 19 in Portugal ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    The house we are staying in is a 18th Century country manor house in the little village of Sao Bartolomeu.

    Fernando, the host, said that it has been in his family for many years but was damaged during the New Year's Day 1980 6.9 magnitude earthquake on Terceira. He told us that roughly 70% of the houses on Terceira were completely demolished, including the historic quarter of the island’s capital, Angra do Heroísmo. Public buildings such as churches remained intact, while several buildings caved in on themselves. Fernando is a historian so decided to renovate the house but to keep as much of the original as possible.

    Every morning we are invited to have breakfast with Fernando and his wife, Lucillia. Breakfast consists of coffee, an assortment of breads, honey and homemade jams, as well as local cheeses from the neighbouring islands.

    The house follows the traditional floor plan of having the farm equipment and wine press on the first floor and the main house with a kitchen, dining room, living room and bedrooms on the 2nd floor. The third floor has bedrooms too. We have a room on the bottom floor. It used to be a storage area for tools.

    The whole house is full of antiques. Fernando used to be a museum curator so he has quite a collection.

    The walled yard is quite large and has many fruit trees and flowers on it. There is also a chicken coop and a pasture that is rented out for cows.    Read more

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