Day 3: São Miguel Island, Azores

Today was our last day on Sao Miguel and before checking out of our hotel, I took a quick walk to the beach to dip my toes in the middle of the Atlantic and collect a shell or two.

Beach in Povoacao

Dipping my toes in the Atlantic

Calçada portuguesa in Povoacao

Our first stop was Farol do Arnel, the oldest lighthouse on the island. It sits on a small peninsula down a short road too steep for cars, and almost too steep for me. It was a little disappointing that the lighthouse isn’t open to the public, but the views of the surrounding coastline were gorgeous as we hiked back out. In the end, my favorite view of the lighthouse itself was from a nearby overlook. 

Farol do Arnel, up close after hiking down the road

Coastline near Farol do Arnel while hiking back up the road (our car is at the top of these cliffs)

overlook of Farol do Arnel (just a few feet away from our car)

Our next stop was Jardim Botânico da Ribeira do Guilherme, a combination of landscaped gardens and outdoor museum honoring the natural and agricultural history of the region. We briefly hiked along waterfalls and down paths past old mills-turned-exhibits, and capped our visit with sampling a brand of ice cream using local milk. I tried a flavor called “Queijada Graciosa” and can only say it was delicious.

Gardens and kinetic sculpture at Jardim Botânico da Ribeira do Guilherme

Waterfall at Jardim Botânico da Ribeira do Guilherme

Historic mill-turned-exhibit space at Jardim Botânico da Ribeira do Guilherme

Water channeled into the mills to power the grindstones at Jardim Botânico da Ribeira do Guilherme

Overlook at Jardim Botânico da Ribeira do Guilherme

Local gelato

Hydrangea hillside

Stopping in Ribeira Grande, I enjoyed a light vegetable soup for lunch overlooking the ocean and a brief walk around the pretty town, including a stop for pastries.

View from a bridge of the other historic bridges in Riberia Grande

Town hall in Riberia Grande

Fueled and with a free afternoon, we returned to Sete Cidades and were finally rewarded with views! Albeit, intermittent views. We went on the short Miradouro da Boca do Inferno trail which was mostly cloudy, but waiting it out revealed dramatic cliffs and a gorgeous view of the lakes below.

Lagoa Azul, at last!

What the view usually looked like: peeking through the clouds

When the clouds lifted, I saw the dramatic cliffs on either side of the trail.

More of the beauty of Sete Cidades

Afterward we returned to the coast and visited another overlook called Miradouro da Ponta do Escalvado. 

view from the overlook

By this point we’d nearly driven all the way around the island, so we completed the loop before returning the rental car and taking a taxi to our hotel downtown. The way the hotel was managed was a little quirky, but the location was great. It was a short walk to the waterfront where we found one of the few open restaurants for dinner, and while the service was slow the key lime pie was wonderful. It was a sweet ending to our time in the Azores.

A sweet finale to the Azores

Day 2: São Miguel Island, Azores

Our day started with a visit to a small church called Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Paz, which sits at the top of a hill and has tile images at each landing on the stairs leading to it. Of the handful of scenes depicted, I was surprised to see Gethsemane since it’s not as common in Catholic art. But by then I was less surprised to see hydrangeas in the landscaping, as they were planted along the roads all over the island. Beautiful, and no small feat to keep them trimmed! 

Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Paz

View from Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Paz

From there, it was a short drive to our hike to Lagoa do Fofo (another volcanic crater lake, but on the opposite side of the island from Sete Cidades). The trailhead was unassuming and it almost felt like we were cutting through someone’s farm to start our rainy hike. During the steepest part at the beginning we crossed paths with a tractor, and I wouldn’t have minded hitching a ride. But once up, the trail flattened and we cut through a pine forest before following along a concrete water channel. This came in handy for me, as I was able to rinse off my muddy sandals repeatedly during that section. We entered a valley and it felt like a lost world of scrubby bushes and tiny birds before reaching the lake. 

Trail along the aqueduct

Hiking in the mud with adjacent aqueduct foot bath

Hiking in the caldera (Kara for scale)

Hiking in the caldera

Lagoa do Fofo

Enjoyed these fragrant flowers along our hike

The hike back wasn’t as grueling, but I was worn out by the time we got back to the car, so I only agreed to the idea of visiting a nearby lake because I thought it was a short walk to an overlook. Not quite–more like a short and steep hike down to the lake, but Lago do Congro also had its charms. It was also on the way(ish) to Furnas, so named because the geothermal activity that formed the islands is still going strong there. 

Lago do Congro

Again, my inner geology nerd geeked out as we walked around the Caldeiras park of mini geysers, calderas, and fumaroles bubbling away. Ever ones to tame nature, they had landscaped the areas around them and even put dainty tile signs near the named features. The sulfur smell was unavoidable, but that didn’t prevent me from sampling the cooled water from a drinking fountain–and wishing I hadn’t. Too many minerals for my tastebuds! Luckily they sold corn on the cob across the street that was steamed by the ground without tasting like it, which helped to clear up my taste buds.

Caldeiras park

fumaroles

River along Caldeiras park

At this point Kara truly indulged me with a trip to a nearby thermal bath called Poca da Dona Beija. There was a line to enter and a time limit, but it was just the thing to calm my tired muscles at the end of a long day. They had several outdoor pools of various temperatures, with the hottest water closest to the source.

Entrance to Poca da Dona Beija

Poca da Dona Beija

Fully relaxed, we drove back to our hotel and the rains picked up so as we arrived in Povoacao, it was pouring. I opted to brave the elements to find a place to eat on a Saturday night, and had the streets virtually to myself in the downpour as I walked to a nearby restaurant. I must have looked pretty bad when the restaurant owner gave me a paper towel to dry myself off with before even handing me a menu! It was a small family restaurant with good food, but the highlight was when the family celebrating a birthday at the table next to me shared a slice of their cake. A small but kind gesture before I sloshed back to the hotel and sleep

birthday cake from a stranger

Day 1: São Miguel Island, Azores

As we landed in the Azores, the cloudy skies matched my fuzzy knowledge of the islands. I’d heard of them, but knew little else. Fueled by excitement more than sleep, we headed straight to Sete Cidades, an extinct caldera with several lakes. The pictures in our guidebooks were incredible, but at the overlook we were in the clouds with nothing to overlook. Still, we enjoyed a brief hike to see the remains of an aqueduct called Muro das Nove Janelas, and driving down into the caldera enjoyed the village of the same name and views across the lakes before driving up, out, and to the coast. 

Muro das Nove Janelas

Pines through the arches of Muro das Nove Janelas

The sun was shining in a sleepy village of tight streets and homes with their favorite saint on the walls, and as we walked to the beach I was blown away by the beauty of Ponta do castelo. I knew from my geology classes that we were just off the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and that these islands were formed volcanically, but wasn’t expecting the clear turquoise water and black basalt formations just off the coast. There wasn’t much of a beach here, but I eagerly clambered down to the boulders for a closer look and was giddy to see olivine crystals shining back at me, confirming that these materials got their start deep in the earth. 

Ponta do castelo

Olivine in the rocks at Ponta do castelo

Ponta do castelo

From there we headed back to the island’s main city, Ponta Delgada. We started with a quick visit to a military history museum in their old fort, which left more questions than answers. Thankfully we encountered a few American tourists who helped explain the island’s importance in WW2 to the Allies, and that there is still a US military base on another island. Strolling around the city center, I loved seeing the black and white buildings that incorporated basalt into their architecture.

Portas da Cidade (city gates), Ponta Delgada

Our overnight flight started to catch up with us, and we drove to our hotel in Povoacao for an early night. The hotel was a good deal, and I was delighted our room overlooked the ocean! I’d later learn this was also where the Portuguese first landed in the Azores.

Coastal view from Povoacao's harbor

Charleston, Day 4

We attended church at a local ward before visiting two more historic plantations known for their gardens.
 
Magnolia Plantation and Gardens is known for its gardens in the Romantic style, which were designed in the 1840s and tries to look natural. They preserved four of their former slave quarters, each in different eras, to tell the story of those who lived there over the generations and gave a great tour telling their stories. Another highlight was their wetlands area with short trails that allowed us to (safely) see cranes, turtles, and alligators sunning in the middle of a pond!

The preserved slave quarters.

A gorgeous oak tree on the grounds.

The iconic pedestrian bridge

The alligator sunning on the wooden ramp in the pond was joined by a few turtles.

Our last stop was up the road at Middleton Gardens. In contrast to Magnolia Plantation, Middleton’s Gardens were in the English style with trimmed hedges, straight lines, and symmetrical gardens. Their azalea hedges were stunning in the afternoon sun, and the gardens were massive with plenty of areas to explore. The family played an important role in US History, including a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Unfortunately, a descendant also signed a famous document–the South Carolina Ordinance of Secession. It’s for this reason that Union troops explicitly targeted the house just before the end of the Civil War as part of their destruction along the Ashley River, aided by newly-freed slaves. Fire gutted the house and the remaining walls collapsed in an earthquake in 1886, so the front steps are intact with piles of bricks to either side creating a powerful image and quite a contrast with the surrounding manicured gardens. As with the other estates, some slave quarters were preserved or restored, and here it was a bit more living history of making baskets and barrels, etc., as well as a demonstration rice area along the river.

Near the entrance to the gardens.

Azalea hedges for days

The remains of the main house. It was burned and ransacked in 1865, but the 1886 earthquake knocked down the walls.

View from the front porch toward the Ashley River

Entrance to one of the side gardens

A wall of azaleas framing one of the formal ponds.

In all, a great note to end our trip on as we began the drive back to Arlington–with another stop at Buc-ee’s, of course.

Postscript: Without any planning or discussion, the last morning of our trip we ended up wearing matching shirts!

surprise twinning