An Azores Adventure
By Cathy Knutson
When I first saw pictures of the Azores Islands a couple of years ago, they were immediately added to my “wanderlist.” This past April, I made the journey to these magical mid-Atlantic volcanic islands – a true nature lover’s dream.
The Azores are a group of 9 volcanic islands about 900 miles off the coast of Portugal full of crater lakes, thermal hot springs, volcanic peaks, miles of blue hydrangea hedgerows and eye-popping azaleas. Think the Hawaiian Islands meet Iceland and Ireland, with Portuguese food, architecture and language all while embodying its own independent spirit. The Portuguese settled these islands back in the 1400s producing oranges, pineapples, tea, grapes, wine and now most known for dairy and the award-winning Sao Jorge cheese.
The Azores are for those looking for wild landscapes, charming small villages, and big views while spending time in nature both on land and on the water. Friendly cows are the most common animal you’ll see on these islands, but the Atlantic waters offer spectacular whale watching and other abundant marine life.
The best time to visit for good weather and maximum hydrangea viewing is typically May – Sept, we visited in early April and were fortunate to experience calm, clear and sunny weather. The islands are known to be windy, and flights can be delayed (sometimes for days) due to poor weather in the winter and early spring months.
The Azores are a destination all on their own, but also can be experienced as a stopover on the way to mainland Portugal, basing on the largest island of Sao Miguel will give a great flavor of the islands. We flew from Minneapolis to Boston then caught a nonstop flight from Boston to Ponta Delgada on Sao Miguel – a fairly quick 5 hr flight.
We visited 4 of the 9 islands – Sao Miguel, Faial, Pico, and Sao Jorge and learned how each is individually fascinating. We chose these islands for their unique landscapes, experiences and inter-island flight/ferry schedule. We based on Faial for 3 days to take advantage of the easy public ferry from Faial to neighboring islands of Pico and Sao Jorge (known as the “triangle islands”).
We started our journey on the “green island” of Sao Miguel. It was full of excellent hiking, a beautiful stretch of sandy beach at Santa Barbara, thermal waters in Furnas (like a mini-Yellowstone) and crater lakes. The capital city of Ponta Delgada, city of Furnas and beach town of Santa Barbara are all good base options on Sao Miguel. There are two excellent Virtuoso hotels on Sao Miguel - the harborside Octant Ponta Delgada and the stunning Octant Furnas which boasts their own thermal pools.
Next, we flew to the island of Faial, known for its active volcano, shearwater bird population and wonderful view of the 7,000+ ft Mt Pico on the neighboring island Pico. The perfect cone shaped Mt Pico offers a dramatic view from the air! Our local guide was born and raised on Faial and showed us around the island including a stop at his Mom’s house to enjoy the local Easter bread – Folar da Páscoa. The next day, we took the ferry to the lava rock island of Pico known for its UNESCO protected wine production, the weather cleared for a perfect view of Mt Pico. Our last stop was the gorgeous island of Sao Jorge (my favorite!) known for producing award winning cheese and for its distinctive fajas, lava flows featuring small villages and natural swimming pools. We loved spending time with our local guide who invited us to his home to try his home made “aguardiente,” the local brandy-type fire water.
The Azores is a paradise for nature lovers - full of dramatic views and warm-hearted people. A beautiful adventure for all to experience!
Comments