The Excursion to the Gran Curral, on horseback or by litter (p. [20]), takes nearly a whole day. We start early and take provisions with us. From the W. suburb (p. [24]) we follow the Rua das Maravilhas and the Caminho de Santo Antonio (Pl. A, 1, 2), between garden-walls and vineyards, to the N.W. to the finely situated village of (2 M.) Santo Antonio (985 ft.; bullock-car from Funchal 800 rs.). We descend thence to the N.W. into the side-valley of the Ribeira do Vasco Gil, with its pine-woods and rich pastures, and soon obtain a view towards the W., extending to the Cabo Girão (see above) and the Pico da Cruz (p. [26]). We next ascend the steep side-valley of the Ribeira da Lapa to the (11 M.) Serrado Saddle (Eira do Serrado; about 2900 ft.), on the N.E. margin of the Pico Serrado (see below). From the top of the pass we have a grand view into the great and well-watered basin of the *Gran Curral, or Curral das Freiras (‘nuns’ valley’; once a pasture belonging to the convent of Santa Clara), enclosed by the lofty rocks of the central mountains. Far below us, above the rock-strewn bed of the Ribeira dos Soccorridos, we descry the village of Livramento (2018 ft.), with its little church and cypress-shaded churchyard.
Those who do not care to face the rugged descent to Livramento, and the steep clamber thence to the Bocca dos Namorados (p. [26]), should now ascend the *Pico Serrado (3347 ft.; ‘sawn-off peak’), whence we survey the mountain-range from the Pico de Santo Antonio (5725 ft.) and Pico Cidrão (5551 ft.) to the Pico Ruivo (p. [27]), the Pico Canario (5500 ft.), and the Pico Grande (p. [26]).
Longer, but still grander, is the excursion to the W. margin of the Gran Curral. From the Estrada Monumental (see above) we turn to the N.W. past the Quinta Nazareh, nestling amidst araucarias, to the (2 M.) village of São Martinho (765 ft.; bullock-car from Funchal 800 rs.), situated among several old craters; we then cross, to the W., the ravine of the Ribeira dos Soccorridos by the upper bridge and mount in zigzags to the (7 M.) village of Estreito (1510 ft.). Our route now ascends to the N. to the (8½ M.) *Bocca dos Namorados (3445 ft.), with its beautiful chestnut-wood, where we enjoy a superb view of the Gran Curral, and skirts the W. margin of the Pico dos Bodes (3718 ft.) to the (10 M.) Cova da Cevada, a basin affording a similar view. We next follow the top of the hill to the N.W., between the Gran Curral and the E. side-valleys of the Ribeira Brava (see below), to (13 M.) the *Bocca dos Corregos (4466 ft.), a narrow ridge at the foot of the perpendicular rocks of the Pico Grande or Rocha Alta (5420 ft.). An interesting return-route is afforded by descending from the Cova da Cevada across Jardim da Serra (2523 ft.) and past the Pico da Cruz (3288 ft.) to Camara de Lobos (p. [25]).
The Excursion to Rabaçal can, if time presses, be accomplished in one day. It is best to go by steamboat to Calheta (3 times weekly, in 1½–2 hrs.; or a small private steamer may be hired of Messrs. Blandy Bros., p. [22]). The steamer calls first at Camara de Lobos (p. [25]), then skirts the sombre rocky slopes of Cabo Girão and steers past Fajãa dos Padres, a village famed for its wine, to the village of Ribeira Brava (inn), where we obtain, through the curral of that name, a very striking glimpse of the Serra d’Agua (4610 ft.) and the Pico Grande (see above). We next pass the beach of Lugar de Baixo, formed by a landslip in 1803, the beautiful cape, Ponta do Sol, and the village of Magdalena, peeping out of vines and bananas amidst the grandest scenery of the S. coast.
At the village of Calheta (bad landing-place; no inn) we may find litters if desired (each man 800–1000 rs. per day), and we obtain provisions and torches (fachos, at 50 rs.). We now walk chiefly through pine-wood viâ Salão to the (1½ hr.) narrow and wet tunnel (about 650 yds. in length) of the lower Levada Nova do Rabaçal. At the N. end of it we obtain a very striking view of the highest part of the valley of the Ribeira da Janella, richly wooded with evergreen, oaks and laurels. A path over the rocks (which needs a steady head) connects this levada (or conduit) with the upper Levada Velha, constructed in 1836–60, and with (9½ M.) the engineers’ houses of Rabaçal (3750 ft.; adm., see p. [20]; fee). A little to the N.E., on the so-called Balcão, we enjoy an excellent survey of the *Waterfall of the Risco, which plunges from a rock, 330 ft. high, into a ravine overgrown with climbing plants and ferns, and a little lower down provides the water for the old conduit. Crossing the viaduct of the latter, we skirt the new conduit, and in a few minutes reach another luxuriantly overgrown ravine, that of the *Vinte e Cinco Fontes, where no fewer than twenty-five waterfalls issue from a narrow basin.
From Rabaçal we may ascend towards the E. (with a guide) to the (2 hrs.) plateau of Paul da Serra (4656 ft.; ‘mountain swamp’), where fogs often prevail, and the two Tanquinhos Houses (about 4900 ft.; used by the engineers; poor quarters). Near them rise the Pico dos Tanquinhos (5260 ft.) and the *Pico Ruivo do Paul (5388 ft.), both of which afford grand views of the mountains.
Scarcely less repaying is the two days’ Excursion to Santa Anna on the N. coast, to which a third day may be added for the ascent of the Pico Ruivo or the Pico Areeiro. We start from the Campo da Barca at Funchal (Pl. D, 1) and follow the Estrada do Conde Carvalhal (Pl. E, 1), which ascends to the N.E. in windings to (3¾ M.) Palheiro do Ferreiro (1857 ft.; bullock-car from Funchal 1200 rs.), the finest quinta in the island, the property of Mr. John Blandy of Funchal (adm. on application). Farther on we follow the road, uphill and downhill, to (6 M.) Camacha (2369 ft.; no inn; bullock-car 2500 rs.), a well-to-do village of basket-makers in a charming wooded region, with many villas owned by English residents in Funchal. Beyond the Pico dos Iroses (p. [21]) the road, now less attractive, crosses the gorges of the Ribeira de Porto Novo and Ribeira de Santa Cruz, and then, turning to the N., reaches (13 M.) Santo Antonio da Serra (2320 ft.), a poor village on a grassy tableland. We descend thence to the N.W. into a sequestered valley carpeted with flowers (Amaryllis Belladonna, etc.), where a rough path leads to the (15½ M.) Portella Pass (2021 ft.), which commands a superb *View of the mountains at the head of the Metade Valley (see below), of the N.E. coast from the Penha d’Aguia (see below) to the Ponta de São Lourenço (p. [20]), and of the island of Porto Santo (p. [20]). We now descend, at first by a zigzag path, through vineyards and sugar-cane plantations, to (18 M.) Porto da Cruz (no inn), a picturesque little seaport at the S.E. base of the abrupt *Penha d’Aguia (1949 ft.; ‘eagle-rock’), the most curiously shaped hill in the island. We next ascend the saddle to the S. of the Penha d’Aguia, noteworthy for its marvellously rich vegetation, and descend the ravine of the Ribeiro Frio (see below) to Fayal, a village not far from the charming Pescaria, a little bay to the N.W. of the Penha d’Aguia. The church-terrace here affords a grand survey of the valleys of the Ribeiro Frio, the Ribeiro da Metade, and the Ribeiro Secco (all mentioned below). From Fayal we then cross the Cortadas Pass, or Bocca do Cortado (1985 ft.), to (24 M.) Santa Anna (1408 ft.; Hot. Figueira, very fair; pop. 3200), a village well adapted for some stay, the capital of the Comarca de Santa Anna, the most fertile region in the island (sugar-cane, sweet potatoes, yams, etc.). From Santa Anna a rough mule-track, very indistinct at places, ascends past the curious basaltic Homem em Pé (‘man on foot’), and lastly over the saddle by the Encumeada Alta (5948 ft.), to the top of the Pico Ruivo (6060 ft.; p. [18]), which commands a most imposing, but seldom very clear panorama of the central chain, part of the Gran Curral (p. [25]), and the E. half of the island.
Turning back from Santa Anna, we first wend our way towards the S. to the Cova da Roda, where we again overlook the N.E. coast as far as the Portella Pass and the Porto da Cruz; we then cross the Ribeiro Secco and the (29½ M.) Cruzinhas Ridge, and descend into the valley of the *Ribeiro da Metade, a gorge vying in grandeur with the Gran Curral. A zigzag path (‘Quatorze Voltas’) ascends thence to the little venda (inn) of Cedro Gordo, and then crosses the Serra de Caramuja into the (33 M.) valley of the Ribeiro Frio, with its splendid groves of tilwood trees (see p. [19]), laurel, and erica. Above the village of that name rises the Balcão, a rock of basalt (near the not easily accessible Levada do Furado), where we have a grand *View of the Metade Valley with mountain-background. Our route winds up the rocks of the Feiteiras (‘ferns’) and the Pouso Saddle, with its fine views, to the (34½ M.) Pouso or Poïzo Refuge (4603 ft.), situated on a dreary plateau. From the Pouso Refuge we may without difficulty climb the Pico Areeiro (5893 ft.; 1¼–1½ hr.), a famous point of view, but almost always capped with clouds. The bridle-path ascends past the Observatorio; we may then descend direct to the Vista dos Navios.
The next part of our route, from the Pouso Refuge to the Monte (p. [24]), is uninteresting. From the Vista dos Navios (‘view of ships’), whence the bay of Funchal is visible, the track descends to the head of the valley of the Ribeira de João Gomes (p. [23]), rounds the E. slope of the Pico do Arrebentão (3842 ft.), to which point a running sledge (p. [20]) may be ordered from Funchal, and then descends rapidly, partly in windings, to the (39 M.) Monte. Thence to (41½ M.) Funchal, see p. [24].