Route: Santana to São Jorge
Area: Madeira
Date of walk: 29th January 2025
Walkers: Andrew and Gilly
Distance: 3.1 miles
Ascent: 1,800 feet
Weather: Sunny at first, clouding over later on
We’d enjoyed a stunning coastal walk along the peninsula at São Lourenço two days ago and decided to return to the coast today to explore more of Madeira’s spectacular cliff top scenery. Today’s linear walk took us to the north coast of Madeira where we parked our hire car in a large car park near the Hotel Quinta do Furão at the edge of Santana. After admiring the wonderful view from the mirador in the hotel gardens we followed a path which skirted around its boundary and continued along the cliff tops. There were lovely sea views on our right and across to the Ruivo mountains on our left
The undulating path followed the cliff top for a while after which we joined an old cobbled track which zigzagged down the steep hillside to the settlement of Calhau where there is a stony beach, a restaurant and an outdoor swimming pool. We’d read about a diversion to Cais Antigo, but the route was closed due to the danger of rockfall, so we carried on along the old cobbled path which weaved its way uphill and eventually regained the height we’d surrendered earlier. The retrospective views from the path were wonderful
At the end of the steady climb we arrived in a cobbled square on the edge of the small village of São Jorge. We climbed up the road into the village and from the bus stop near the baroque church we caught the number 103 bus back to the start.
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After parking near the Hotel Quinta do Furão near Santana we follow the sign to the mirador
Looking along the coast to Ilhéu da Viúva, and we can just make out the Ponta de São Lourenço in the distance, where we'd walked a couple of days ago
The path takes us around the back of the Hotel Quinta do Furão
Views over the Atlantic Ocean as we leave the hotel behind us
We follow a narrow path along the cliff tops
Looking inland to the Ruivo mountains
We'll be descending to the foot of the cliffs ahead and then climbing back up again...
We pass above a small farm
The Ruivo Mountains
The start of a long descent along an old cobbled path
Numerous zigzags take the sting out of the gradient...
We arrive in the small settlement of Calhau, where there is a stony beach, a restaurant and an outdoor swimming pool
We follow the cobbled path and turn right onto a stony beach
View through an old gateway of a ruined building - either a church or a sugarcane mill, I'm not sure which
We'd read about a short there and back diversion to Cais Antigo so decided to continue along the coastline
View back along the cliffs which we'd descended from earlier
It turns out to be a very short diversion, as the path is closed
Having descended to sea level, we now have to climb all the way back up again, and follow this cobbled path
Looking back to Calhau
Looking back, it seems impossible that we'd safely descended the cliff face ahead
Zooming in, the zigzag path can now be seen
We continue uphill towards São Jorge
Speckled Wood butterfly
We pass by a rock cutting
Approachng São Jorge
We pass by Capela de São Jorge and its cemetery
We continue into the centre of São Jorge and catch a bus back from near its old baroque church, Igreja do São Jorge
Back to the start, we return to the mirador at Hotel Quinta do Furão lookout to admire the view again
