Hike Santa Maria GR01SMA Pico Alto to Anjos

On Wednesday 22 June 2016 we walked from the marina up the hill to the taxi rank in village of Vila do Porto at what we thought was around 1200 hrs - turned out to be 1100 hrs - had not realised that the Azores is 1 hour later than Madeira!

The taxi dropped us off at around 1135hrs at the tarmac road at the bottom of Pico Alto, the highest peak on Santa Maria ( )

 

 

Walked up the tarmac roadi

 

With views of the east side of the island

 

 

 Through the Japanese red cedar forest

 

 

The last part of the route to the top was up steps

 

Superb alround views of Santa Maria from Pico Alto's 587 m elevation

 

 

 

 

After returning down the steps, the trail followed the narrow but wooded summit ridge in a wide loop

 

 

 

 

Views over the east side of the island towards Anjos

 

 

The route was well marked as part of the GR 1 route

 

Abandoned forestry house

 

 

 

The trail went around the edge of the Barreiro da Faneca ( Red Desert of the Azores) , a unique ecosystem of reddish clay

 

 

An abandoned house on the Baia da Cré

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our destination, Anjos, in view

 

 

 

Arrived at the statue of Christopher Columbus in Anjus at 1730 hrs

 

  

 Anjos 

  

 

 Called up our taxi from Vila do Porto and were back on Dutch Link around 1900 hrs