03.12.2020
91 km Porto Moniz – Paul da Serra – Calheta – Porto Moniz
I was stunned! At approx 1500 m altitude on the high plateau Paul da Serra I was met by brillant blue skies and sparkling sunshine! I could hardly belief my luck! I was above the clouds! It was so warm, I rolled the windows down and almost wished for a Cabrio ….
Reaching the crossroads in the center of the plateau, I contemplated what to do. I was good in time for the Whalewatching … I could take a little detour to find some geocaches before descending to the South coast. So I turned left onto the ER 110 towards Boca da Encumeada. It was of course the opposite direction, but on the plateau was a series of 27 geocaches that were in the terrain rating all no more than 2.5 – which was suitable for me – and on the map the markers formed a smiley. Eventhough I did not have the time to do the entire round, I was determined to check out the layout of the land and see if I could maybe complete it on another day … if the weather stayed good.
Today I just drove a couple of kilometers towards the highest point of the plateau. A few of the secret boxes were close to the road and maybe I could find them. Mind you, there was not really a trail connecting the smiley caches anyway, but if a box was near the road, then I could probably be successful. I drove along and at a suitable spot turned around before I stopped to attempt the first cache. It was only 20 m off the road, but I really had to beat through the thicket. The very old spoiler photo in the listing did not help at all … it was supposed to be under a rock … the bushes had grown considerably since that cache had been hidden … almost ready to give up after like 10 min searching, I instinctively found the right rock … it turned out the bushes had all but grown over it …
The thicket were mostly Ulex Europaeus – commonly known as Common Gorse, Furze or Whin – a flowering plant native to Western Europe. Growing to 2-3 m tall, it is an evergreen shrub. The stems are green, with the shoots and leaves modified into green 1-3 cm long spines. Good thing I had my warm trousers on – not because of the temperatures, but because of the thorns! The small flowers are yellow and are produced throughout the year, but mainly over a long period in spring. Apparently they are coconut-scented. At this time only a few flowers were present. It must be beautiful when in spring all the bushes are in bloom.
An ample number of wind generators were set along the plateau. As a relatively flat plateau, Paul da Serra is favorable to the installation of wind farms. Dozens of wind generators have been errected since 1993. Wind power is a major source of electricity in Portugal – approx 30% of total electricity generation is by wind power. I had already seen the windpark near Caniçal – close to the port. How they got those huge wind generators up here on the plateau is beyond my imagination, though … I mean … all the roads leading up here are narrow and winding … and only remembering seeing those exceptionally long transporters navigating the German autobahn at night … how the hell would those transporters get up the mountain roads? … Maybe the helicoptered the material in? … Who knows …
The next cache was even closer to the road, but the area was kind of bog. It had been flooded by the recent weather. I had the same problem with the old spoiler photo here and had to look around a while, but then found the container under a pile of small rocks in a puddle …
I found 2 more boxes – one was directly by the road and another one on a parking lot for a hiking trail. Both were quick and unspectacular finds. I did not linger too much because by now I figured I should start making my way to Calheta. The ER 110 was here in the center of the plateau an absolutely straight affair … for some 6 km or so it had not even a touch of a bend … it was as if they had drawn it with a ruler … And today it was all dry and not much of the flood I had encountered a few days ago was left.
Once the road reached the rim of the plateau it turned West and followed it. I had chosen the ER 211 that forked off a few kilometers on and led down to Calheta. It seemed to be the most convenient and quickest route. Reaching the turn-off I had was disappointed … constructions were going on and the road was closed … happy I was that I had planned some extra time to get to the Whalewatching. I turned around and backtracked for maybe 2 km. Another side road led down from the plateau – the old Estrada do Rochão. The road was longer and towards the coast to get to the main road and the exit for Calheta involved an extensive detour … Reaching the residential area I therefore decided to take a short cut … It was a very narrow alley going straight down without any bends … Oh what had I gotten myself into now? … Hoping for no oncoming traffic I clung to the steering wheel and rolled down the steep hill. Lucky for only when I reached the main road again a transporter started to turn in. He was friendly and backed out a few meter to let me pass … Phew …
Soon I came to the traffic circle at the VE 1 exit for Calheta. There was a gas station and with an advertised € 1.32 per liter I stopped and filled up the car once more before I went down to park the car at the marina. I had plenty options for parking … First I chose the free parking under the cliff … but a sign warned of rockfall and the parking lot was littered with little rocks that had come off the cliff. Last thing I needed were dents in the car I had to pay for. So I moved the car again, this time to a shady place under some trees. There was a ticket machine. For € 3,20 I pulled a parking ticket which lasted until 17:30 and placed it at the dashboard of the car.
I grabbed all my clothes and camera bag and went to check in at the Whalewatching shop of Lobosonda. I was too early, but I could already pay the € 44 for the tour with the Ribeira Brava starting at 14:30. The lady said to come back at 14:00 … I had an hour for lunch!
Right at the marina the view was good and I had a couple of options. First I looked which one of the restaurants had the best view … all of them … then I had a look at the menus on display … I ended up at Leme Marisqueira right next door to Lobosonda. They had Oysters! At least that is what the menu stated … I love Oysters! When cruising the French rivers I treat myself at least once per cruise to a dozen … Vive la France!
Some of the best Oysters I had in Cancale in 2010 when I spent 3 weeks in Saint Malo studying French. Once a week I would take the public bus for € 1 to Cancale and feast on a dozen of the largest Oysters fresh out of the famous Oyster beds in the bay for next to nothing.
And my friends are still talking about me eating fresh Oysters on a Goan beach whenever I visited! How could I dare … in India … in a beach restaurant … raw Oysters … Well, sometimes you just have to …
This year I have been deprived of my regular Oyster fix for most of the year. Do not get me wrong – in the 2 months I was lucky enough to work on the French rivers I dug in double … It started when I finally was to arrive in Lyon in July and mentioned to my friend and local agent Charles that I had withdrawel symptoms after 4 months in lockdown. Without hesitation he said – I pick you up from the airport and take you to Les Halles de Paul Bocuse for Oysters! – Damn … that was an awesome lunch! I was surprised we did not succumbed to protein shock after this load!
But as soon as the season cruising in France started it ended … and now here I was on Madeira and hoped for Oyster! I got disappointed! The waiter said, they did not have any today … Not surprising with so few people around at all … I was the only one in the restaurant … To my delight the strange year 2020 did end with a special for me after all, however, when our local supermarket had them as special just before Christmas. Knowing I had to be early and lucky to grab some, I was there early on a Monday morning … They had exactly 5 portions … I bought 2 of them! And devoured them all by myself! Do not worry, I learnt a very long time ago how to open them expertly without cutting myself owning the right tool as well!
Well, that was me and my Oyster stories! Today I would not have any, so I opted for Octopus Salad and a large Coral Beer instead. The food was great and I sat in the sun soaking up Vitamin D as much as possible. It was so warm, that I already started to worry, that I brought to much clothes for that boat ride …
At 14:00 I walked over to the Lobosonda shop and checked in. Before starting anything they measured everybody’s temperature. That was the first time since I arrived on the island! I had been wondering about it already. When working on board the river cruise ships this summer, we had to have our temperature measured at least once, sometimes twice a day. That is when I learned I am a cold person … averaging 35.4 to 36.6 … when I came home after assignments I was literally missing those daily temperature checks … The first time I had encountered it this year was last March just when the shit started to cook and I was on assignment in Northeastern India …
Well, there were in total 9 guests signed up for this first whalewatching tour after the bad weather during the last few days. Most of them were German, only a couple of them spoke English. The guide – I forgot her name, but she was from Malta I think – spoke both languages and told every story twice. First there was a briefing on rules and regulations and then finally we went off. The boat named Ribeira Brava was a traditional wooden fishing boat lovingly restored to the smallest detail. Apparently it is now the only boat of its kind on Madeira still equipped with an original sail.
The boat was spacious and comfortable enough for the 2.5 hrs tour. We had to wear facemasks only while in the marina. Once out on the open sea it was not necessary anymore … I suppose the sea breeze would blow all aerosols away … Oh, in the marina I spotted another Albatros!
As soon as the boat left the marina the Captain put his head phones on and chatted with the spotter who was sitting somewhere up the cliff along the coast. The guide in the meantime talked a mile a minute – or maybe it just felt so much because I understood both languages … I already sound like my guests complaining about too much information … The boat chugged along steadily for a while.
The view towards the island was breathtaking. White fluffy clouds only hung over the highest parts, the coast was sunny and the sky was the most amazing azure. I should not have worried about getting cold … Even the sea breeze was relatively warm. They had given us funny looking straw hats to put on, because the boat did not have any shade. But I did not need a hat. I was happy about finally soaking up the sun and enjoyed it tremendously.
Then the Captain started to accelerate … apparently the sign that he had received information about a sighting of something from the spotter! Sure enough only a few minutes later we spotted them as well – a school of Common or Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins – Tursiops Truncatus – the largest species of the beaked Dolphins. There were 5 or 6 of them and they even came really close to the bow of our boat. We were allowed to walk around to get the best photo opportunity.
Bottlenose Dolphins inhabit warm and temperate seas worldwide – being found everywhere except for the Arctic and Antarctic Circle regions. Their name derives from the Latin tursio for Dolphin and truncatus for their characteristic truncated teeth. It is also the most familiar dolphin species due to the wide exposure it receives in captivity in marine parks and dolphinaria, in movies and television programs such as Flipper.
Numerous investigations of Bottlenose Dolphin intelligence have been conducted, examining mimicry, use of artificial language, object categorization and self-recognition. They can use tools and transmit cultural knowledge from generation to generation. Their considerable intelligence has therefore driven interaction with humans. They have also been trained by militaries to locate sea mines or detect and mark enemy divers. In some areas, they cooperate with local fishermen by driving fish into their nets and eating the fish that escape.
I have encountered Dolphins on several occasions … for example while on assignment on a Galapagos Cruise in 2016. One of the most memorable sightings however was the first time I snorkeled with Dolphins on my Africa Tour in 2002. In Zanzibar I had to wait several days for favorable weather before the boat could go out for Dolphinwatching and from the maybe 15 people on board only me and a Norwegian girl actually went in to snorkel with them. It was awesome! The guides were so happy that at least somebody was snorkelling. It was a week before I was to climb Kilimanjaro …
While working on the sailing ship in French Polynesia in 2008 we often had Dolphins bow riding when leaving the atoll of Rangiroa in the Tuamotus. There it was also for the first time I saw Dolphins while SCUBA diving … I remember that day well … on the morning dive I had seen my first Hammerhead Shark underwater and already wanted to retire as SCUBA instructor – it had taken me almost 6000 dives to see one. But then I had to do the afternoon dive as well … and there a school of Dolphins came playing with us in the blue water at a depth of some 30 m. It was … magnificent … stunning … outstanding … I retired my SCUBA Instructor career 3 months later …
Well, we did not go snorkelling with the Dolphins today, but they did seem to have fun coming close and checking out the boat. We stayed with them maybe 20 min or so … until the Captain got all excited and motioned us to take our seats again. It seemed as if the spotter had been in contact and something bigger was lurking around some 4 nautical miles off the coast … A last photo of the Dolphins and off we went.
It was a long and rather wavy ride out. The boat was even on full throttle no speed boat. But the Captain steered steadily Southeast. Behind us over the island some dark grey clouds moved in … where did they all of a sudden come from? Obviously it rained over there already, because a couple of awesome rainbows appeared off the coast. Now we just needed a Whale in front of the rainbow … that would have made my day!
Were they really sure there was something out there? Or were we just riding waves to kill time? The guide talked without point and comma … the Captain kept giving a thumps-up every time she looked at him questioningly … and then all of a sudden we saw the first water spouts far off in the distance! Everybody got really excited … including me, of course.
The guide told us those were Sperm Whales – Physeter Macrocephalus. They are the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. The Sperm Whale is a pelagic mammal with a worldwide range and will migrate seasonally for feeding and breeding. They used to be hunted around Madeira – I had learnt all about it the other day in the Museu da Baleia da Madeira in Caniçal. Apparently a small pod of 5 or 6 female and juvenile Sperm Whale were out here feeding.
Females and young males live together in groups, while mature males live solitary lives outside of the mating season. The females cooperate to protect and nurse their young. Females give birth every 4 to 20 years and care for the calves for more than a decade. A mature Sperm Whale has few natural predators, although calves and weakened adults are sometimes killed by pods of Orca Killer Whales. Mature males average 16 m in length but, with the head representing up to one-third of the animal’s length. Female Sperm Whales are physically mature at about 11 m in length and generally do not grow much larger than 12 m. Plunging to 2250 m depth, it is the 3rd deepest diving mammal, exceeded only by the Southern Elephant Seal and Cuvier’s Beaked Whale. The Sperm Whale has the largest brain on earth, more than 5 times heavier than a human’s and can live 70 years or more.
We all hoped to see the fluke of at least one of them, but it never happed, unfortunately. They were hanging at the surface before diving down, but never flapped their tails … We got lots of water spouts, though. Whales breathe only when they are on the surface. That means they have to take in and let out a lot of air quickly. Their lung muscles are strong enough to force almost all the air out at once. One breath just about empties their lungs. When a whale comes to the surface after a dive, it breathes out the old air quickly, all in one breath. Because the whale empties its lungs with such force, the air travels a great distances and because its nose is on the top of its head, the air goes straight up. This air is usually warmer than the air just above the surface of the ocean, so the water vapor – small particles of water carried in the air – condenses. This condensed water vapor looks like steam. Some whalewatching guides can tell the kind of whale that has just come to the surface, even before they see the animal, based on the height and shape of their spout.
The Captain maneuvered the boat as close to the whales as possible and we got some really good views. At some point the pod of Whales was all around us. And then we hit the jack pot! A couple of the Sperm Whales move towards the island to the other side of the boat and we got treated to a beautiful view of a rainbow with a whale spout in front of it! Now that was absolutely beautiful!
Too soon it was time to start the ride back to the marina. The Captain was worried we would not be able to avoid the dark rain clouds, so I precautionarily put the cameras away and the raincover on my backpack. In the meantime it was still sunny where we were and I thoroughly enjoyed it contemplating how happy and lucky I was being on a boat again!
On the long ride back – while watching the dark clouds disappear and the sun letting the coast shine again – I remembered the first time I went Whalewatching on Vancouver Island when touring British Columbia and Alberta with my Mom in a motorhome in 1999, when we saw Humpback and Orca Whales. We had a blast of a time in those survival suits! We still laught about it when I helped her in a suit just like that on our roadtrip to the North Cape in 2018!
I do not think I ever saw Sperm Whales anywhere. But the most memorable whale sightings were without a doubt on my breathtaking last minute cruise to Antarctica in 2014. It was light almost all night and I think I did not sleep much at all. There were things to see all the time and appart from Penguins, Seals, birds and icebergs, we saw several times Orca Whale, Mink Whales and Humpback Whales. After returning from that 10-day cruise I needed to spent 3 days in Ushuaia just processing in my mind and through my thousends of photos …I might have to go back one day …
In Sri Lanka in 2012 I went on a Whalewatching tour to spot the mighty Blue Whales. I had not even known they migrated around there, but friends told me to go and I did and I was treated to some awesome sightings of those huge mammals and their mighty flukes.
Reaching the Calheta marina around 17:15 I was totally content and happy. I waved everybody farewell and headed for the car. Then a shock … Already from afar I could see there was a ticket behind the wipers … WHAT!?!? … I had paid until 17:22 and it was still some minutes until then! … Indeed it was a ticket for not paying the parking! … WHAT?!?! … I had paid! … Then I looked for my parking ticket behind the windshield … DAMN! … In a hurry I had put it in upside down … WTF! … I studied the ticket …. All in Portuguese … There was something I could decipher about € 4,40 for the time I parked and they had checked around 15:30 … Then there was something about € 68 … WHAT???? … Did I have to pay that much? … What was I going to do? … I could just ignore it … Then Europcar would probably charge me … Sure I did not want to pay that much … I had a valid parking ticket … Well … for now I put the paper aside and drove back to Porto Moniz. I would figure something out when I was in the hotel …
It was approx 30 km to Porto Moniz around the West coast of the island. For the first half along the South it was the VE 3 expressway and I moved fast. From Ponta do Pargo it was only the old and winding road again. It was scenic, but I was totally distracted – half of my brain was still thinking about whales and dolphins … the other half was trying to get around the stupidity of putting the parking ticket upside down behind the windshield … How stupid could I be?
Just after sunset I parked the car right in front of the hotel entrance. I was beat today and ready for bed. It had been an exciting day again. On the way to my room I asked for cutlery and a napkin in the restaurant. For dinner I would have the fruits I had bought yesterday at the markethall in Funchal and listen to the ocean … and maybe try to figure out this parking disaster …
First I had to sort and post a few photos for the family at home, then I checked the website of this parking company. Somehow that ticket said – pay the € 4.40 or pay all € 68 … I kind of figured out and I think I am right … that rental car had built up a parking tally of € 68 and nobody had paid it yet … For today it was only € 4,40 … Now … should I be a bad person and let it be and hope it would slip through and I did not have to pay Europcar later the full amount? Or should I be the good person that I am and pay the € 4,40? … In the end I did that … I paid online the € 4,40 and kept the tickets just in case Europcar would come up with something … They did not … Never heard anything about that ticket ever again …But I was a good person …
04.12.2020
Relaxing in Porto Moniz
Waking up relatively late this morning I was treated to blue skies and sunshine! At 07:30 I quickly dressed and went for breakfast. The same few people from yesterday were there. I savored the good Prosecco breakfast and decided I would hang out in Porto Moniz today leaving the car where it was.
So I sat on the balcony listening to the roaring waves and tried to catch up on my journal. A friend had sent me a message last night, that the weather forecast for the North coast was predicting strong wind and huge waves … Not yet, though … I was hoping for waves reaching my balcony … So far I did not see a difference from the wind force of yesterday …
I enjoyed my espresso and considered treating myself to a massage. They had advertise the in-house spa and I had checked out the offers … There was a Madeira Wine Massage! Believe it! I am all for massages … Living in Thailand I had one at least twice a weeks – the real Thai Massage where they twist and bend you and walk all over your back … In India I preferred the Ayurveda Massage where they rub herbal oil all over your body … And here on Madeira it seemed only suiting to try out the Madeira Wine Massage …
I went to reception to make an appointment. First the boy there misunderstood me … You want Spa! Yes Yes! What time! – Yes, I want a massage! – Yes yes Spa! You want sauna? – No! Madeira Wine Massage! – Que? – You know, massage! I want a massage! – Oooooh! No sauna? No whirlpool? – No! Massage! – Aaaahhh! OK OK! … Finally he got it and phoned for an appointment. I would have preferred to get one right away, but the next opening was at 12:30 … I was probably lucky to get a slot at all … If the hotel would be fully booked it might have been a problem. But now I could deal with 12:30, no problem.
By 09:30 I grabbed my cameras and bag and went for a walk to explore the town and find a few geocaches. There was an Earth Cache actually directly in front of my balcony. I walked around the building, though to have a closer look at the Piscinas Naturais – the natural pools which Porto Moniz is sort of famous for.
Walking over to the other side of town I stopped once more at the photo point and took a selfie with the frame. It turned out slightly better then the other day. It was windy, though … but sort of sunny.
I searched and found the Post Office as well. Of couse, I had written some post cards … yes, I still do that! Not many, but some to the family. Back in the day before mobile phones and internet when I hitch hiked through Canada and Alaska … gosh, that was in 1993/94 … I had to send postcards from every place I stopped for the shortest time – one to my parents and on the next stop one to my grandparents – so they knew where I was … A phonecall … only every 2 weeks – give or take a couple of days – depending on me finding a payphone somewhere or not …
Nowadays I have to post some photos every night … and please think about the time change if possible! … If I did not have the time to post before the prime time movie on German TV was over, then messages fly in – No photos today? – Did you forget us? – Why you have not posted anything today? … HEY! Maybe I was just busy living live! Or I was tired or whatever! If that phone call back then did not happen within 3 days after 2 weeks or if those postcards got lost in the mail … you could not call either …
Several more natural pools were located down the promenade and an actual box was hidden over there. The views were fantastic all along. I figured in regular times this box would have been extremely hard to search with many people around. But today I was early and it was way off season and it was windy … Nobody was there at all. So I could just walk in, grab and sign undetected.
The Porto Moniz Piscinas Naturais are incredible lava-rock salt water tidal pools – formed by volcanic activities hundreds of thousends of years ago – where the sea enters naturally with crystal clear water. The space has an area of approx 3800 m² – there is a children’s pool, playground and handicapped access, changing rooms and lockers to store personal belongings, a snack bar open in the summer season, sun loungers and even umbrellas for hire.
I strolled around the town for a while. There was an easy to solve Multi Cache at the other end and … as it turned out … up the mountain. The charming village of Porto Moniz has approx 1600 inhabitants. It is perched on the dramatic Northwest tip of Madeira. When the area of Porto Moniz was first colonized is not clearly known, although it is likely that it occurred at the beginning of the last quarter of the 15th century. Francisco Moniz O Velho, who is referred to as one of the first settlers here, had uncultivated lands in this area and was responsible for establishing a farm and a chapel. Francisco Moniz was a nobleman from the Algarve and one of the sons of João Gonçalves Zarco, the discoverer of Madeira. Geographically Porto Moniz was always isolated from the rest of the island. The village also specialized in whaling until the 1980s – Porto Moniz has the safest port on the North coast of the island.
Most of the restaurants and shops were lining the seafront, but the actual village center was on the hill. They had a pretty little church – which was closed – and there was a minimarket – the only one here. The Câmara Municipal – the town hall – was rather large, but I suppose it is the administrative center for the region.
Walking along I passed a garden with many Castor Oil Plants – Ricinus Communis – a species of perennial flowering plant I had seen many times in Asia. Its seed is the Castor Bean, which – despite its name – is not a bean. Castor is indigenous to the Southeastern Mediterranean Basin, Eastern Africa and India, but is widespread throughout tropical regions and widely grown elsewhere as an ornamental plant. Castor seed is the source of castor oil, which has a wide variety of uses. The seeds contain between 40% and 60% oil that is rich in triglycerides, mainly ricinolein. It also contains ricin, a water-soluble toxin, which is also present in lower concentrations throughout the plant. I grabbed a handful of the seeds and brought them home for my sister to put in the garden … See if that works out … might be too cold in Germany … But you never know …
I reached the first station of that Multi Cache and found a container with the coordinates for the final. It pointed up towards the side of the mountain. There was a Levada leading past some vineyards and and then turned along the cliff.
It turned out to be an excellent small Levada walk. The cache was dedicated to the old Butter Factory of Porto Moniz – in old times butter and cheese making facilities were taking advantage of natural existing caves for their manufacturing and packaging. The Levada led along this cave – it was however not accessible – or visible – anymore.
At the end of the small valley, the path led through the depression and then followed the cliffside further on towards an old irrigation well that presumably still feeds the Levada. It was a relaxed walk and the view over the village and the coast was getting better with every step. And the Levada rose higher above the path as well …
It was not too far of a hike … maybe a kilometer or slightly more since I left the street in the village. The Levada and the path terminated at the ruins of the ancient water mill that had been supporting the old factory and had been doubled as warehouse and distribution point for their products … maybe the path continued on the other side, but I could not make that out. Everything was over grown. Somewhere there the secret box was hidden … And it was! I was surprised with a – for Madeiran conditions – rather innovative hiding place! They hung the box in a basket down the ancient well! Yeah … after all those containers just stuck under a rock or two, this was a great change! I did not believe it at first … Could it possibly be there? … Yes, it was! …
Happily I signed the logbook and when I logged online I gave it a favourite point as well. The view over Porto Moniz was superb from up here and I lingered a while just to enjoy it.
The walk back to the village was as beautiful as the way up. Reaching the residential area again I strolled back to the center and got some more cash from the ATM. In the minimarket I bought some Brisa Maracuja and some Coral Beer, then – instead of taking the main and longer road back down to the hotel – I took a narrow path and some ancient stairs down to reach my hotel from the backside. I was taking photos of every flower I passed on the way …
The views were breathtaking along the way as well, but once more I was amazed by the cobbled pathway – somehow it did look Roman … I had seen such funny stairs with rounded steps instead of edged stairs already in other places of the island. However, they were not Roman at all … they apparently date to the 15th and 16th century. I liked them, nevertheless.
While walking down I had a good view of the Piscinas Naturais and decided I should go for a dip! I cannot visit an island in the Atlantic and look at the ocean without having a swim … especially when the natural pools were right in front of my hotel … I had actually been thinking about going diving, but with the erratic weather recently the ocean was too rough and the visibility way too low to be worth it. But I could go for a swim … I just had to get myself to do it … So … back in my room I changed into my swim suit – but I put all warm clothes on top! At reception I picked up an extra towel and a ticket for the Piscinas Naturais. Entrance fee was not expensive, no more than € 2, I think, but it was offered by the hotel, so why not take it.
I walked around the building to the terrace overlooking the pools. Nobody was there except a lifeguard guy and a couple other staff were hanging around chatting. That was probably my chance … nobody there … nobody watching me being a chicken … But before I went in I ran back to the hotel to pick up my little underwater camera I had forgotten and the bathrobe I had seen hanging in my bathroom … Might as well go in properly equipped.
In no time I was back by the pools – before I could change my mind I walked through the entrance. The staff just waved me through. They did not want to see a ticket … oh well … maybe it was free in off season. Later I gave the ticket back at reception, but they did not know anything about no entrance fees … At the entrance booth the water temperature was advertised as 19°C when I went in … on the way out some 30 min later they had changed it to 17°C … not sure if it would have made a difference …
The changing rooms were closed due to the circumstances, but that did not matter since I was all by myself by the pools and I did not need to change. I put my stuff on one of the lava rocks and in my bathrobe I first tested the water with my feet. Surprisingly it was not as cold as I had expected. It was very clear and turquois.
Now I was here – now I was going in! To prove my bravery I set the camera on selftimer video … Initially it was really cold, but then it was actually not bad at all. I paddled about for a while and wished for my snorkel mask to be able to look below the surface. Not that there were any fish, but I would not mind to see the lava rock bottom. The ocean waves were crashing outside the pools. They were not big enough yet to wash over the pools, however …
I really liked it! So I grabbed all my stuff and moved around to another pool … or rather another entrance to the pool … I wanted to be closer to the ocean. I actually would have like the waves crashing over the pool side … But I was not so lucky … I swam to the edge and looked over it. It might have been low tide … From there I had a great view towards my hotel. My room was on the far outside, though, I could not see my balcony. The reception and restaurant were overlooking the pools to this side.
After a really nice swim I bundled myself up in my towel and bathrobe, put my cameras away, tucked all my clothes under my arms and walked back to the hotel. When I exited I waved the lifeguard good-bye – he had been checking from up there every now and then. Another tourist looked at me – I must have been a funny sight clad all in white terrycloth, tangled hair and chunky hiking boots with open laces – questionably – Did you go in? How was it? Was it cold? – No it was not as cold as I had expected! It was really nice actually! – … I did not stop walking because now I was getting chilly, but chatted with him on the go. I told him, he should try it, too! Since he is here already …
I had to hurry now. That swim had taken longer than I had planned … my Madeira Wine Massage was coming up soon! First I needed a hot shower to wash off the sea salt. Lucky there were 2 bathrobes … Since the spa was on the same floor as my room I could just waddle over in slippers and bathrobe … and facemask …
A few minutes early I had to wait in the corridor. That gave me time to study the rules & regulations of the new normality. I avoid elevators whenever possible anyway – nowadays it is the better option anyway …
Really looking forward to my first massage in … almost 10 months … I had to go a very long stretch without a massage! The last one was indeed in Goa in the end of February this year, when I had one almost every day for a week … Those were the times … For the last few years I visited my friends in Goa at least for a week every January or February … Today I was having a Madeira Wine Massage and I was really excited!
It turned out to be very good! The room had a fantastic view over the Piscinas Naturais … pity my eyes would be closed all the time … A friendly young man was the spa attendant. To begin with he rubbed some Madeira wine extract scrub all over my body. It did smell very much like wine … Then he wrapped me completely up in cling film and packed blankets around me. This was already relaxing, but it was followed by 10 min relaxation time … only the soothing sound of the ocean and a little bit rainforest music in the background … in the meantime I got a foot and face massage … I sure meditated away … and probably fell asleep …
Once I got unwrapped I had to wash the scrub of in the shower. Then followed a full body massage with some other Madeira wine extract. That guy was really good! That massage could have gone on for much longer! I thoroughly enjoyed it … and I smelled totally of wine … Unfortunately I had only 60 min booked … Should have taken a longer massage …but then I would not have gotten the Madeira Wine Massage … That was a novelty for me and I loved it! In the end I even got a glass of Madeira Wine with it! I paid the guy in cash his € 60, happily carried my glass to my balcony and enjoyed it there watching the ocean waves …
The weather was good – cloudy with sunny spots and not too windy. I took a shower for the umpteenth time today and then went for another walk. There was one more Multi Cache which I had not attempted before as it looked too complicated. Sitting on my balcony I had pondered over it again and though that I might be able to find the final location without having to understand the Portuguese logic – it was for me literally impossible to figure out the sequence of the different stages … So I did some educated guessing and looked at all the log photos ever posted and I could circle a final location … So I got ready again and off I went. I stopped for a 3rd time at the photo point of Porto Moniz … Why not? It is a nice spot!
Walking along the promenade for a bit I had a great view over the Piscinas Naturais … a couple of other tourists had braved the elements … Maybe I should go later for a swim again? …
I did walk to a couple of the stages of the Multi Cache, but it was leading me totally zigzag through the village … I have been all those places already this morning … The only logic final location was up the hill close to the town hall … I should have checked that cache this morning … But well … I went for another walk … The cache was dealing with transportation methods and the final was indeed hidden under a toy locomotive! Me being a train buff … I was delighted! What a cool final!
I could not really figure out why the final with a locomotive was exactly there, but behind the gate up the drive way was a train coach on display … hmm … maybe a train buff was living there … I strongly believe that there had never been a train track on Madeira …
Taking the small path and stairs back down to the hotel I came by the Seaview Rooftop Restaurant. It was deserted, but the view looked awesome. More clouds rolled in, but there were bits of blue sky in between and the roaring sea – it made for a rather mystical atmosphere once more. Passing by I checked if they were open … Yes! They were! I was delighted.
On the way through the hotel I picked up another of my vouchers from my room and found a seat outside on the terrace with the best view over the ocean … basically right over the waves. They had only one other customer and he was leaving … It was a strange time for most people to have lunch or dinner … I said before I sometimes eat at weird times … whenever it fits in … by now it was around 16:30 and it was neither lunch nor dinner … So I started with a cocktail! Pink Mojito!
I could not help myself and ordered the Octopus Carpaccio again. It had been so good the other day, I had to have it once more. And I was not disappointed! It was as yummy as the first time! Maybe even a little bit better because of the view …
The clouds got somewhat thicker and the waitress got worried it would rain. She opened the umbrella over my table … but had to take it down after a few minutes because the wind was getting too strong. I did not mind the wind or the few raindrops … as long as it did not get any worse. I got Lemon Sorbet again … to clean the palate … I liked that …
Watching the waves was great from up here. I think my room is right below, but here was the better vantage point. Even with the clouds the sea was beautifully turquoise.
Main course was coming soon. I had ordered Beef Tornedo with grilled foie gras, sweet potato and port wine reduction. It looked very interesting again. They sure have a thing for edible flowers and exuberant decoration. It was very delicious as well. I had to really search for the foie gras, though, but the beef was excellent.
Slowly the clouds got darker and the wind fresher. It was getting slightly uncomfortable up there on the roof top. So I did not linger much longer after I finished my main course. I put the bill on the room again. This time I got a Tangerine Liqueur with it. That was yummy, too. With a last look over the pools below I went back to my room.
The rest of the afternoon I just hung out in my room with the balcony doors wide open. I opened my freebie bottle of Blue Prosecco and played with the cameras. I could take photos of cocktails and waves forever.
Sure enough this beautiful blue one reminded me immediately of Paris. When I was lucky enough to work the cruises on the River Seine and spent several days per week in Paris. The best cocktail with a view I had at 56 Ciel de Paris Tour Montparnasse on the 56th floor of Tour Montparnasse. The Bellini Ciel de Paris looked as blue as mine here. The view had been slightly more breathtaking – eventhough the sky of Paris was not as blue as the drink that day.
It was fun setting up the camera on hyper time lapse to take a video of the changing waves and clouds. I can assure you – I had a second glass of the blue to drink – while one was a prop for the photos – and by the end of the evening the bottle was finished …
I got all carried away with taking photos … I took so many … But the waves changed all the time and the clouds, too … I just had to take another shot and another one and another one … The waves seemed to get bigger as well …
The sun set behind the cliffs where I could not see it, but still there were some gaps in the clouds where I could see some colour. In any case it was a dramatic scenery in front of my balcony and I loved it.
After dark it started to rain again so I had to close the balcony doors, because the wind was on shore as well. I could still hear the huge waves roaring, though. They had started crashing over the pools below.
05.12.2020
93 km Porto Moniz – Paul da Serra – Fajã dos Padres – Funchal
I woke up early to rain and grey clouds once more. Breakfast was as usual and of course I had fresh juices and blue sparkly. The view was not so spectacular with the rain today. Since I was checking out this morning, I started packing up. However, I dwadled … I was not keen on going out in the rain … and it was early. It was OK to sit on the balcony and watch the waves again. With the rising sun the rain was letting up quickly and blue sky was starting to appear on the horizon … maybe it would be better later … In the meantime I enjoyed my espresso and the waves which were slightly bigger than yesterday.
Around 09:30 the weather had cleared up considerably. I started to carry my various bags out and pack the car. It was time to get going. On check-out I paid my bill and I even received a farewell gift. It was a little homemade jam.
My next – and sadly already last – hotel in the island was Orca Praia half way between Câmara de Lobos and Funchal. Once more I had no real plan what to do today … but the weather looked OK and I wanted to find some more secret boxes … I left Porto Moniz on the old main road ER 101 towards the West. It wound steeply up the cliff in tight serpentines. About half way up was a viewpoint with an Earth Cache marker. I stopped there to take the required photo to log the cache.
For a while I reveled in a last view of the North coast and Porto Moniz. I was leaving the North coast now and my last few days on the island I would probably spent on the South and East coast – not that I had a plan … But I still hoped for Pico do Areeiro …
