A change of plan

 Today we were all set to walk the Caldera Verde or Green volcano. It is a very popular walk of around 10 km to the centre of the islands now extinct volcano. The route follows another of the by now familiar Levadas. Late last night I received a text from the walking company stating that the walk would be impossible due to a significant rock slide along the Levada. Crispy's heart sunk at the news as she was again keen to done her boots and trek the mountain paths. Just as she was sulking into her crisp packet I received a second test advising that an alternative route was available. A different Levada but slightly longer. I immediately accepted. This cheered crispy up no end and she happily finished her potatoes based snacks with a broad smile on her face.

The alternative Levada was from Ribeiro fria to Portelo. An 11km hike from high in the mountains to the coast. Perfect.

We boarded our transport at 8.45 and joined our group of walking companions for the ride up to the start of the hike.  It was a beautiful walk down the gently sloping Levada through thick cloud forest. The views were not as striking as the other Levadas as we were mostly within the trees but spectacular none the less. 4 hours saw us at the coast and after a cheeky beer safely returned to the city.  

After a quick shower and change we went for a walk around the shops and bars. There is a Christmas market that has opened on the main street near our lodgings. The typical little festive huts filled with all manner of tat. Food stalls and a stage where various artists sing and dance traditional Portuguese Christmas songs. At least we think they are Christmas songs but it's difficult to tell not being fluent in this Latin based language. The main difference in this market is that all the stalls are operated by the local charities and all money raised goes to good causes. This is a fantastic idea and is at complete odds to the money making rackets elsewhere. I think this should be adopted at home in the true spirit of the festive season. I would have no problem supporting this annual spend fest if all monies raised went to help people less fortunate than myself.

I forgot to mention. Last night Crispy received a face tube message from a school friend she has not seen for over 40 years.  It seems she and her partner are on the island at the same time as us. Unbelievably it seems she follows this blob and keeps a tab on our little adventures. After a brief exchange of messages we arranged to meet up after dinner. We spent a very pleasant couple of hours together. Crispy catching up on all the news about long lost school friends and me chatting to her husband Shep. Shep is a pilot for Jet2 and frequently flies to Madeira. He was a helicopter pilot in the RAF and was a very interesting guy to talk to as well as being a very nice chap. It was a lovely evening and we chatted into the wee small hours. It always amazes me what a small planet this is and how fate throws people in and out of each others orbit. 

Tomorrow is our last day here and we have really enjoyed our time on this majestic island. The scenery and walking is beyond description and I am sure that we will return in the future. We are returning to old Blighty for six weeks before once more heading off on our adventures to Thailand. We have not visited Thailand for well over 20 years and are really looking forward to it. This time we intend to try island hopping around the Andaman Islands. It should be fun.  But for now...,.

Bare and Crispy signing off for the last time

Nuns on the Run

 Today was a gentle stroll compared to the other walks we have done whilst we have been here. The walk is known as the Valley of the nuns. It is a steep sided deep valley about an hour's bus ride from Funchal. As it is served by a good bus service we decided to do this walk ourselves. A regular bus, number 81, goes hourly from the Funchal bus terminus adjacent to the cable car station. As this is a very popular easy walk the bus was full and waiting to go. Unfortunately we had no cash on us and expected the bus to take card payment. Everywhere else in Europe we have traveled the buses are fitted with a tap and go. As we climbed the steps of the bus I pulled my magic plastic payment device from my wallet only to be greeted by a shaking of the head from the driver. "No card" he said in a practiced voice. "ATM there" and pointed to the far side of the bus station.  It was 6 minutes to 10 and the bus was scheduled to leave at 10 precisely. "Have we time" I said and he responded with a smile and a hunch of his shoulders.  He slowly leant over the steering wheel to get a better view of our dash to the cash machine.  The people on the bus (mostly international tourists) looked on and tutted in annoyance at our ineptitude for not checking the procedure prior to boarding the bus. Quickly we dashed to the machine only to be intercepted by a German tourist who got there before us. He took what seemed an age and I was just going to break international relations and shout at him when he collected his cash and moved aside. Quickly we acquired our cash and ran back to the bus just as he was closing the doors. He looked at us dismayed through the glass and again opened them for us. We had won the race.

His face when I presented him a 50 euro note in exchange for a 6 euro ride was a picture. He searched every one of his pockets for enough change before reluctantly handing it to me with the tickets and a disgruntled scowl. We had won the race and the war. Job done!

The ride was interesting as he manoeuvred the 54 seater bus along roads designed for small carts and donkeys. The roads were steep and tortuous with steep drops on either side but in fairness he was an amazing driver and certainly knew his craft.

We arrived at the start of the walk without incident. It is a cafe, hotel and gift shop all rolled into one on the edge of a huge cliff about 1500 feet from the valley floor. The road ends here so the driver executed an amazing three point turn before continuing to back track his route to the valley below. At the end of the walk we would catch this same bus back to Funchal. The valley of the nuns is famous for chestnuts. The gift shop and cafe reflected this in its souvenir and culinary offerings. You could have anything as long as it was made from chestnuts. Chest nut coffee, chestnut cake. Chestnut biscuits. Roast chestnuts, boiled chestnuts, chestnut soup. The list seemed endless.

(I don't have a good relationship with chestnuts. I was dramatically Ill several years ago in Rome after eating chestnuts from a street vendor at the Spanish steps. I don't want to be too graphic but the end result was not pretty and involved a lot of laundry and clean bed sheets. All in a very posh hotel. I have never been so Ill and embarrassed at the same time. I am still emotionally damaged from the incident. Enough said.)

In an attempt to make good the broken relationship between chestnuts and myself I had a chestnut biscuit and Crispy had the chestnut cake. Gluten free of course. Whilst eating our chestnut feast I dropped some crumbs on the floor. We were immediately surrounded by hundreds of gecko. The floor was alive with the tiny lizards fighting for the crumbs. We have never seen so many and it was a lot more fun than feeding the birds.

After finishing our snack (for the faint hearted there are no horrible after effects developing) we made our way to the viewpoint before commencing our descent down the trail that leads to the valley of the nuns.

The valley takes its name from an incident that occured in 1566. The island was attacked by a vicious french pirate and to save themselves and their gold the nuns from the convent of St Clara retreated to the valley and formed a new settlement. Legend states that the gold they secreted here has never been found. On this trip we didn't find any of the gold or any nuns. Which is lucky as I find nuns a bit creepy.

The path winds its way down the steep sided valley to the small town of Curral das Freiras. A small village at the end of the valley. There is not much here if truth be known with the exception of a couple of cafes selling chestnut based foodstuffs and little else.  The path takes one and a half hours to complete and is a steep but easy descent.  It's short but the views are spectacular. We avoided any chestnut based goodies and had a beer instead. After our brief rest we caught the next bus back to Funchal. It was a different driver which is a shame as I was going to use the remaining 50 euro note I had saved.

Back to Funchal and dinner. Tomorrow is another busy day with our last remaining Levada walk. I'll get Crispy tucked up in bed with a bottle of pop and packet of crisps in readiness as it's a long walk tomorrow.

Bare and Crispy signing off Funchal. Madeira

Livin' the Levada Loco

 Levada, to carry

The Levadas (from the Portuguese verb “levar” – to carry) are a system of channels or aqueducts of many kilometres in length, mostly bordering mountains but also going through them, with several stretches over rugged rocks, to bring water from different sources to its intermediate or final uses.

 Today was our first Levada walk. Apart from the peaks of Pico Ruivo and Pico Arievio the Levadas were the main reason for visiting Madeira. These amazing fresh water channels were built in the 15th century to provide fresh drinking water from the rainy north of the island to the sunny, drier south. They snake their way down from the high places at a precise angle to limit the flow of the water. A little like the Roman aquaducts did when supplying water to Rome.

The restriction of flow prevented spillage and ensured a steady, reliable supply. Roman aquaducts had a fall of on average 1" to 500" distance. This fall was maintained over tens of miles through all kinds of terrain. (Oops im going all Roman fanatic again)

Because of the controlled flow rates the Levadas run through incredible scenery and hand carved tunnels which make the Levadas so much fun to walk. The fact that they flow so slowly also makes them relatively easy walking. A fact Crispy is very happy about.

Crispy's legs are better. She is pain free after the mountain walk and was eager to get going again into the great outdoors. Because of the difficulty in getting transport to the start of the walk I again booked a tour. It's so much cheaper than a taxi and provides a pick up from and drop off to our lodgings. Plus once on the trail you can either choose to be by yourself or join the group. Today's group consisted of Crispy, a young polish couple and me. Plus Leon the driver. 

He picked us up at the pre arranged time of 8:30 in a Land rover Discovery. The roads to the Levada are better suited to a 4x4 option. The start of the walk was 4000 feet but this time we were to follow the Levada to its source along a relatively flat course. Crispy gave me a very hard stare as I described what today would entail before we started. If there was any climbing involved I knew I would be a dead man walking.

The start of the walk was a tunnel of just over 1km through the mountain. Dark wet and cold. A sign above the entrance in Portuguese said "abandon hope all ye who enter here". ( It actually read "mind you're head" but I prefer my interpretation.) The tunnel went on forever in pitch darkness and with only the meagre light from our phones torches seemed quite foreboding. Eventually we exited the tunnel into brilliant sunshine and the most amazing verdant valley. High sided and filled with Eucalyptus and Laurel trees.  The Levada snaked its way along the sides of the valley towards the 25 fountains from which the walk takes its name. They are not fountains in the romantic sense but waterfalls of varying degrees. It's still the dry season so most were a trickle and not raging torrents. Never the less they were still beautiful in there own way. The Levada wound its way around the valley for three miles before terminating at the largest of the falls. Although the paths were busy they were not overcrowded. Being an easy walk this route is popular with a lot of tourists and most of them were at the final point enjoying the sights. Some brave souls were even swimming in the small pool formed by centuries of water erosion. Crispy and I are not fans of cold water. It always seems a form of self flagellation to immerse yourself in cold water for any reason other than self preservation. We like warm water. The med in summer. The Arabian sea. Never ever the North sea or some remote mountain tarn. We have tried it but don't like it and have no intention of trying it again. We sat on the rocks, ate our butties and watched the young and reckless cavort in the cold waters. 

 From the terminal point it was a simple matter of backtracking along the Levada to the tunnel and our waiting 4x4 transport.  At one point the path is very narrow and a one way system is in operation to avoid congestion and people being elbowed into the abyss below.. We were forced to climb a rough staircase to a higher path. I avoided Crispy's gaze at this point as I could feel her dark gaze boring into the back of my head. I could sense her venom but thankfully the climb was short and I got away with once again not being the subject of her scorn.

Once back at the Land rover Leon took us to a restaurant for lunch. I hadn't read the days itinerary properly so had prepared for us a packed lunch. It was a surreal place called "The Jungle Rain". Perched high on a remote peak on a Portuguese island the owner had decided, and I know not why, to make it a jungle themed establishment. On entering its lush plastic foliage clad interior several animal shaped automatons sprung to life. A Roaring lion, Dancing monkeys and a life sized elephant being just a few. All chattering, growling and trumpeting loudly at the same time. We bought a drink as quickly as we could and sat outside in the sunshine eating our butties and enjoying the view away from the plastic zoo going on inside inside.  It was and will remain, no doubt, one of the strangest and most surreal places we have ever been. 

After lunch was a steep descent on unadopted roads back to the coast. Leon was a safe and confident driver and navigated the steep twisting roads  with ease. 

The last stop on our days itinerary was the Cabo Girao. The skywalk.  Madeira has the tallest sea cliff in Europe and only the second tallest on the planet. The government have built a glass floored platform out from the top of the cliff at a height of over 1500 feet. It's only 2 euro to walk on this platform and affords amazing views over the coastline to Funchal. We wouldn't necessarily make a special effort to visit this spot in the future but as we were already there it seemed rude not to partake.

After the skywalk we once more boarded our trusty land rover back to Funchal. Crispy bless her was very tired after a full day of guided adventuring and needed a quick Forty winks. When she wakes I shall make her have a shower and take her out for Dinner.  We have another busy day walking tomorrow in the Nuns Valley. This is not far from Funchal so we intend to try and utilise the public transport. She's so looking forward to getting back on the mountain.

Bare and Crispy signing off. Funchal

Basket case

 Crispy is still not happy. Bless her, her legs have still not recovered which is troublesome as tomorrow we are walking the Rabacal waterfalls. A 12 km valley walk along a Levada containing 25 fountains. It's not a strenuous walk like the mountain but still rough country . I need her back in peak physical condition.  Despite my remonstrations regarding exercise she was reluctant to get moving again this morning. Even with my promise of a packet of crisps and a bottle of pop it seemed that she was reluctant to climb out of her pit. After several attempts I finally got her moving and once up and about she seemed to improve in mood and performance. She is talking to me again which is an improvement on yesterday. 

Today we again attempted the cable car and sledge run.  This time successfully.  We made our way to the cable car station and joined the already busy queue for the gondola ride to the village of Monte.  Once alighted from our transport we made our way to the botanical gardens. Botanical gardens are always a great way to spend a morning. Usually in the heart of a city they provide a quiet refuge in beautiful surroundings. In Asia they are always free and a cheap day out but in Europe they usually involve a hefty entrance fee. 

We spent several hours walking the paths and sitting in the warm sunshine. The views from the gardens were amazing. One part of the gardens was fashioned on an oriental pattern and to all outward appearance we could have been in Malacca or Singapore.

After a very pleasant couple of hours we left the gardens and made our way to the start of the toboggan run. It was heaving with people. A long winding queue lined a small road adjacent to the start of the sled run.

It took over an hour waiting in line until it was our turn but turned out to be well worth it. Crispy had been really looking

 

forward to this activity and was very excited. The queue moved quickly and time passed as we got chatting to a young couple from London who were holidaying here.  Before long we were at the front of the queue and it was our turn to board our basket. It seems the toboggan run started over 200 years ago as a way for the young guys from Monte to quickly descend into Funchal for both work and pleasure. Usually carrying goods for market.

The tradition gained popularity once tourists cottoned on to it and it is now the most popular tourist activity in Madeira. The guys wear traditional white clothing and a straw boater in homage to their forbears. 

It's very quick and well practiced. Crispy's posterior had barely touched the seat before our two "drivers" were tugging on the ropes connected to the basket sled and slinging us down the metalled road. The journey takes less than 10 minutes as the guys steering the sled push pull and slide the basket down very narrow side roads towards Funchal. Crispy loved it and has already posted a video of the experience on face tube.

We were only feet from the sled in front and at one point nearly collided but the drivers are very good and know what they are doing. at no point did it feel scary or unsafe.

It was a very worthwhile wait for the ride and we are so glad we got the opportunity to experience this unique activity.  If you are ever in Madeira our advice is to give it a go. You won't be disappointed.

After the ride it's a short walk down into Funchal. We walked down with a couple who had witnessed us wizz by in our basket and we're impressed with Crispy's howling.  They are from York and the lady worked at the Masonic care home there. We got chatting and ended up sharing several drinks in a small bar in one of the alleyways of the old town. It was a very pleasant few hours as we discussed our past travels and plans for future adventures.

Out for dinner and an early night as tomorrow involves another full days walking. Crispy can't wait.

Bare and Crispy signing off. Funchal. Madeira

The best laid plans of mice and men

 Crispy is suffering. After her stalwart efforts on the mountain she has this morning paid the price. She is in pain with stiff legs. The  over use of her aged legs in their battle against the ancient mountain may have proved too much. This morning it took a long time and no end of bribes to persuade her to move from her bed. Bless her she can hardly walk. I've told her that the best cure is exercise but her response was to explicit to publish here in full. I never even knew that she could use such language.

Today is thankfully a rest day before our next little adventure. We had planned to take the cable car to the village of Monte in order to sledge on the infamous Funchal toboggan down to the botanical gardens. I did suggest we walked up to the village but her response was not favourable.  However on arrival at the cable car station we were informed by the ticket seller that the toboggans don't operate on a Sunday. This negated the need for a cable car ride as it meant we would have to do it again another day. The sled run is a definite must do whilst we are here in Funchal and Crispy is insistent that she wants to do it. 

A quick reshuffle of our busy itinerary meant that today was going to be the whale watching trip. The skies were forecast to be cloudy in the afternoon but this didn't put Dear old Crispy off. Since Tuna fishing in Lanzarote several years ago she is now quite the sailor. Prior to that trip even looking at a boat made her green and nauseous. 

It's a consolation because if we are ever short of a few euros I am confident that I could get her a part time job on a North sea trawler without worrying over her well being.   It's always wise to have a fall back plan.

Switching to whale watching meant we had the morning free. We had a walk (hobble) around the old town so Crispy could do a little shopping. This was the perfect day for such an activity as being Sunday all the shops were closed.

She spent a fantastic couple of hours gazing into the shop windows looking at what she could have had. 

We made our way back to the lodgings in readiness for our nautical excursion. Poor Crispy was struggling even after several liberal applications of ibuprofen cream. Whilst hobbling down the street. In a distressed manner, several good natured passers by offered to help but I dismissed them by informing them that it was purely attention seeking.

Once back at the lodgings she had a short lie on the bed to try and ease the pain in her tortured legs. During our stay she has had several tiny midgie bites but is now convinced that our bed is infested with bed bugs and that the last guests must have been French. I know it is not. The apartment is spotless and beautiful.

As she lay there nursing her tortured limbs I waited my time before pointing at the bed and shouting "Oh shit! Look at the size of that". She looked startled and replied "Oh f@ck" as she swung her painful legs wildly like a counterbalance to get off the bed as quickly as possible. It took several attempts before she managed to alight from the mattress.  She was not happy with my little joke and is still not talking to me.

The whale watching was good. A large catamaran that took us from the harbour out into the bay. We had not been sailing 30 minutes when we spied our targets. A group of pilot whale with calf's. It's the first time we have seen whale and it was incredible. Pilot whales resemble dolphin but can grow to a length of 6 meters. We were so lucky to see them and the trauma of Crispy's legs faded into oblivion for a few moments. The rest of the trip was pleasant but a tad cold out at sea. After another hour or so we spotted a pod of bottlenose dolphin and watched them cavort around the boat for a good few minutes.  

After the boat Trip it was a short walk back to the lodgings for a shower and another liberal application of ibuprofen before dinner. 

Tomorrow we will again attempt the cable car and toboggan run. She's in bed now all comfy but is still not talking to me. Every cloud as they say

Bare and Crispy signing off. Funchal. Madeira

Not my pic but one I wish I could have taken