Sao Miguel, Azores, trek and whale watching

São Miguel

8 day trek and whale watching

The programme generally involves easy walking on good trails though some may be steep.

A guide accompanies the group on all of the walks.

1. Fly from London Gatwick at 12.45 to arrive in Ponte Delgada at 15.30. Transfer to the Terra Nostra Hotel visiting the Gorreana Tea Factory which includes a tour of this small family run business and a tea-tasting session to finish. This is magnificently located in a botanical garden, by a hot, natural, open-air swimming pool.
2. Drive to Faial da Terra on the south east tip of the island from where a short, steep walk takes us to the ruins of a village, we continue through forest to a waterfall where it is possible to have a swim before we return Furnas (2 hours walking). In the afternoon we walk to lake Furnas returning by a different route (3 hours). There will be some time left in the late afternoon to look around the botanical gardens.
3. Drive to the rugged north east corner of the island to walk up to the Pico da Vara, the heighest summit on Sao Miguel (2-3 hours). Some time will be seen touring this beautiful area making this a full day trip.
4. Drive to Água de Alto from where we walk to Fogo lake itself. After a picnic lunch we retrun by a different path and spend an hour or two on a small beach by the sea. 4 hours walking. Transfer to Hotel do Colégio, a small, old-style four star hotel in Ponta Delgada. There will be free time to walk around the town.
5. Transfer to the area of Sete Cidades, a beatiful caldera with several lakes and a picturesque small village. We will walk along the crater rim, amongst the lakes and drop down to Mosteiros, a small old town by the sea. Several walks are available in the area here and the best walk for the prevailing conditions will be selected by the guide (4 to 5 hours gentle walking).
6. Walk to Rocha da Relva (2 to 3 hours) in the morning. This is a short walk along coastal paths to a beautiful view point. In the afternoon there will be free time in Ponta Delgada or, as an optional extra, it is possible to organise a boat trip to view whales, dolphins and sharks. The trip starts and finishes at Ponta Delgada and there is generally a 99% success rates of obtaining good views of one or more of these cetaceans. The trip is about 3 hours long.
7. We drive to the small village of Lombadas from where a short, steep and rugged path (hands needed for balance) leads to the edge of the caldera overlooking the most beautiful of the Azorean lakes - Lagoa do Fogo, this time from a completely different direction. From here the path descends easily to Vila Franca (total of 3 to 4 hours walking).
8. Transfer to the airport, return to Gatwick 1140 am.

Note This programme can be carried out at any time of the year as a private trip, guided or unguided. If unguided your driver will take you each day to the correct start point for your trip and will pick you up at a pre-arranged location and time unless you arrange to communicate with him by telephone. You will in this case be provided with a simple map and route notes.

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4 islands and Pico
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Lagoa do Fogo
 

Hotel do Colegio