Madeira
Madeira is one of the two Autonomous Regions of Portugal - the second region is Azores.
Madeira is an archipelago (Madeira, Porto Santo and Desertas) in the North Atlantic Ocean and sits on the African Tectonic Plate at the top of a massive shield volcano that rises about 6 km (20,000 ft) from the floor of the Atlantic Ocean (wikipedia).
The island is 57 km long, 22 km wide, the coastline is 150 km.
Laurissilva Forest
Laurisilva or Laurel Forest covered southern Europe 15-40 million years ago. Today it exists only in the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands.
The Laurissilva forest of Madeira is approximately 20 million years old and is protected within the Madeira Natural Park area, included in UNESCO's list of Natural World Heritage sites it is a Biogenetic Reserve of the Council of Europe. Laurissilva is a relict from the Tertiary period and exhibits high biodiversity. It contains evergreen trees with glossy leaves and shrubs. Madeira's fauna includes many endemic species such as the Madeiran laurel pigeon Columba trocaz , two very rare and endangered species of bats Madeira pipistrelle (Pipistrellus maderensis) and Nyctalus leisleri verrucosus - a subspecies of Nyctalus leisleri. There are more than 500 endemic species of invertebrates, including insects, arachnids and mollusks.
The forest alway kept the island´s hydrological balance. The settlers of Madeira constructed water channels levadas, which provided water to the lower parts of the island. Today the levada system is maintained and protected, as the narrow paths along the water channels allow access to the forest.
UNESCO website https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/934/
going up :
Radar Station - easily visible from the road, the path entrance, a shop, arestaurant and the main parking area
Pico do Arieiro
Cable cars are available in a few places in Madeira. The most exciting ride appears to be the Teleférico das Achadas da Cruz, about 20 minutes from Porto Moniz. Unfortunately, we couldn’t try it, as it was closed for maintenance.
Teleferico Das Achadas Da Cruz
Porto Moniz
Natural, salt water pools, formed by volcanic lava
There are two pools in Porto Moniz - in the left photo, there are artificial pools built into the lava rocks to resemble natural pools, with a beach, bars, and a small entrance fee.
In the right photo, there are natural pools with no entrance fee. There is a bar/restaurant and toilets next to the pools.
Calheta
Most of the main roads run in tunnels, however, it’s better to choose scenic routes, as the views are amazing.
Madeiran wall lizard (Teira dugesii) is an endemic species and very common – we saw them everywhere, including in large numbers in the garden of our hostel.
