Madeira north and west coast

Having seen the northeast side of Madeira, my next tour was to the northwest. The first stop was at Camara de Lobos which I had been to the day before. We then went up to Cabo Girao which is Europe's highest cliff and said to be the second highest sea cliff in the world, at 580 m above sea level. There is a glass skywalk. And of course a lot of visitors.

We continued on, past a fish farm in the sea, and our next stop was at Ribeira Brava. It was Sunday and there was a Mass at St Benedict church. During this there were several very loud cannon blasts from the hilltop fort opposite, and some more at the end when the procession came out of the church.

The sea front and hilltop fort-

On past Ponta do Sol. We then headed inland, through Carnas, and uphill to Paul da Serra, the plateau. It was a nice winding road, through eucalyptus forests and we saw the native plant, Pride of Madeira -

We entered the national park, Malhadinha, where cattle are grazed.  Paul da Serra at 1,300 - 1,500 metres above sea level is the flattest place in Madeira. There are wind turbines and solar panels. There was lots of yellow broom everywhere

To the north of the plateau is the laurel forest, or laurisilva. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site as it is the relict of a widespread earlier forest. As we began the descent to the north coast we saw lots of bay trees. Stopped at a viewpoint of Relva do Jordao and could hear the river somewhere in the valley. There are lots of springs in this area.

Further down there were lots of white hydrangea alongside the road. We stopped at the Eira da Achada viewpoint

Next stop was Porto Moniz. This is famous for the salt water swimming pools formed by volcanic lava

The town and mountains behind

We then drove along the coast, through the small town of Seixal and stopped at Veu da Noiva viewpoint with a waterfall

 A bee in the Agapanthus -

Next was Sao Vicente. The graveyard was full of flowers -

 Young Jacaranda -

This is not a church. It is a clock tower and there are 4 clocks each showing different times - they were used to control the water allowed into the fields from the levadas

We took the old road back through the mountains to Funchal, stopping at Encumeada view point. There was a festival going on. You can see both the north and south coats, this is the view south -

Then it was back to Funchal.