The Beginning

Today we walked our very first levada. Hanging above Funchal, this mostly flat walk offered panoramic views across the city and beyond. It was relatively short compared to other levadas, only taking three hours. But we did stop at the Hortensia Gardens Tea House for a light snack and tea. We ordered an apple pie, orange cake, coffee and an English breakfast tea. The food was homemade and delicious, from cinnamony pie to fluffy cake. The coffee was ‘apparently’ bold and bitter, so great (?), whereas the tea was subtly flavourful, with a milky smooth surface (mmm).

After eating we set off again, this time it was a bit more gnarly. We struggled through thick mud, fallen trees, and more; but the reward was worth it. There were many small streams flowing over the path in a controlled fashion, tipping off the edge as wide waterfalls. Luckily we had hiking boots on so we didn’t get wet feet. Trees, bushes and grass bordered the path, with blossom, fruit and leaves dotting the ground. At the end we continued on towards Monte, the path becoming a little more uppy…

Getting to Monte

Parting with the levada we ended up in an urban area with old crumbling buildings. We navigated to the beginning of the next section as there weren’t many signs. Starting again you could immediately see the difference in this trail. After about 500 metres we found ourselves facing multiple hairpin bends leading down into the valley. One could only imagine about getting back out.

Making our way down, we caught glimpses of a massive historic stone bridge. At the bottom we crossed the bridge, spanning over a raging river. Then we began the climb. A couple of hills later we had made it to the top. Straight in front of us lay the Botanical Gardens Cable Car Terminal. After a few minutes of watching cable cars we walked up the very last hill on our journey. That done, we were greeted by some restaurants and the Monte Cable Car Terminal. 

Going home

We found our bearings and began descending down the very steep and narrow street. After a while we managed to make it to the bottom of that hill. Crossing the junction we had a brief stretch of flat before, you guessed it, more steep streets. Finally we managed to get down to the same level as the house, and after a couple hundred metres, we made it home.