Today I finally got time to write about day 3 of our amazing Azores trip in October. In general I would say that October is the last good month to visit the islands as the weather definitely gets worse and it gets colder.
Luckily we got a very good tip of a friend how to get the best out of a short visit. Since the weather can change quickly and while the east side of the island is sunny and the west is rainy you need to adapt quickly or simply life with bad weather. After breakfast before we left the hotel we checked all the webcams from the island on http://www.spotazores.com/cams and went to the part that looked best to us weather wise. This way we hardly experienced any bad weather that did not allow us to explore. Anyway, lets go to the first spot of day 3, a beautiful waterfall. but not without stopping at a beautiful beach on the way to there.
As you can see, the webcams tell the truth and we started the day with nice and sunny weather.
Cascata do Segredo
That beautiful little waterfall in the south of the island is nothing we had planned to visit. That morning I´ve found it on google maps and we just thought "Lets give it a try". Since its not as popular as other spots there were not many other people which can sometimes be a real blessing. Of course, as on any other spot we were welcomed by many cats. Its just crazy how many cats we´ve seen in this one week vacation.
Not only the cats were pretty, also the short walk through the nature until we reached the waterfall. Also it did rain a lot there was not that much water running but therefore the water was crystal clear.
In summer I would have definitely jumped it as it really looked inviting.
Although it was an amazing spot we went back to the car after a few minutes soaking up that scenery because we had still lots of things to do and see. Next stop was a chapel, probably the chapel with the best view ever, the Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Paz
Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Paz
This exceptional chapel was only a stones throw away from the waterfall so it was a no brainer to go there next. We love to see as much as possible on such short trips and with a rental car its easy since the island isn´t that big.
The only downside of this stop was the very wet and slippery road over cobblestones leading up to the parking as well as the stairs that bring you to the chapel itself. :)
But they few steps up there were worth it. While the chapel itself wasn´t really special from the inside the view we had over the ocean and to the Ilhéu de Vila Franca do Campo were pretty cool. In better weather condition you can rent a kayak and paddle to that small island.
During the 30 minutes we´ve spent there we could literally see the rain coming and shortly after we got back into the car it started.
Caldeira do Vulcao das Furnas
After we made it back into the car without getting wet we made our way towards the only sightseeing spot we´ve planned for that day, the hot geysers in Furnas.
Being on a volcanic island means that you will most likely have these hot geysers and if you can stand the horrible smell this is something you should not miss. In general you should definitely not miss the town of Furnas as there is more to see I will tell in one of my next blogs.
Its an amazing scenery in the middle of the town. There is lots of steam coming out of many different holes and the smell of hydrogen sulfide that to me, smells like bad eggs. Once you´re used to it you don´t smell it anymore but some people can´t stand it.
We stopped here after lunch, just in case the smell spoils my hunger. It was worth to take a stop here and explore the parks around the geysirs and the many hot water springs. The water coming out of there was almost boiling hot. Perfect for a hot spring bath but more about this in another blog :)
Before I forget about it, look who we´ve find in the bushes near a hot spring...a cat. The always find the best spots to chill.
If you now think "I thought the Azores are more spectacular", I tell you to come back another time because I'm just holding you out until we get to the really breathtaking spots. Honestly you have nothing seen so far, this island has some of the most breathtaking spots I´ve ever seen on my travels so make sure to come back to my blog. :)
you will find this post on pinmapple as well
[//]:# (!pinmapple 37.77338 lat -25.30290 long Azores - Exploring the south of Sao Miguel d3scr)
thanks a lot, appreciate it
So jealous.. so beautiful... I can't wait to go on a new adventure!
Thank you. Thats what I wanted to do with it. Make people want to go out and explore again, there are so many beautiful places to visit. Hope your next trip is going to be awesome.
Beautiful landscape and pictures. Very impressive variety that you show us. An area that I would love to visit.
!LUV
Posted using Hive Images
Thank you so much. I bet you would love it and that wasn´t even the great spots...but they will follow soon. ;)
Awesome shots! And you even made it to Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Paz, wow. When we were visiting Vila Franca, we wanted to walk up there from the town as it looked pretty close on the map but as soon as we left the town, we got chased by a pack of stray dogs :D :( They basically forced us back to the town so we never made it to the that lovely chapel :( We would make it if had a car like you, I know... But yeah, amazing shots here. Glad you had this beautiful sunny weather in Furnas, we also had this luck ;) Such a unique place...
Thank you man, appreciate it. :)
Yes but I would have not walked up there as well, pretty steep and slippery. Wow thats crazy. We haven´t seen much street dogs here in Portugal in general but hundreds of cats.
I agree Furnas is absolutely beautiful, we´ve been there twice. Hope you made it to the hot springs...I will write a blog as well about it.
So man black cats in one place... Nice place over there.
haha yes, it was getting a bit scary at one point as they were all coming to me for some reason. Too many black cats :)
Undoubtedly a great place, you can go to the beautiful beach and the river with spectacular scenery.
thanks. yes we had a great time over there. Summer must be even better as it was to cold for a swim in october.
"Braw islain chain mucker! Ahh did a midnight raid oan a fesh shop in th' village o' Maia ance. Th' locals waur nae match fur me landin' force an' uir galley did benefit greatly froms th' haul." 😉 -Keptin Joshua Slane
I have no idea what that means but thanks for stopping and reading my blog :)
"Yoo've got th' look of a fine sailur! Ye shoolds join me crew oan th' mighty Frigate Silverton!" 😉 -Keptin
I really do think these places you have shared this time are beautiful. Interesting facts to consider on the way to the more touristy points of interest.
The stop to see the small waterfall is very worthwhile and the flowers look beautiful. The weather thing is a bit tricky but at least it didn't ruin your day.
What a curious entrance to the chapel and all its stairs xD I didn't know it.
thank you. waterfalls are always worth a stop. I expected a bit more water due to the rain but it was still very beautiful scenery.
the chapel indeed was something special and definitely worth the drive up there.
Those places are stunning, wow. The scenery and so green… think I said that before hehehe 🤭
The waterfall and the geysers… beautiful. Didn’t know they were there. How cool.
The views everywhere are amazing. Thanks for sharing with us @betterthanhome 👋🏻😊
If this island is one thing then it is green. its almost like hawaii in europe. there is many of these hot geysers and I guess the other islands are not different. scary if you think about it, being in the middle of the atlantik on an volcanic island...
It’s wonderful to see. The Canary Islands are so different.
Somehow, yes… scary to think of it in that way. But places like this will remain in your memories as they are just so special in every way.
Thanks for sharing them with us. 👋🏻😊
I love the crystal blue seas. Is it hot if you come close to the steam? I've been to hot springs, others are fine for drenching, while others can cook an egg. Lol
oh yes, the steam and the water that was coming out was really hot. I would say that you could definitely cook an egg in there.
Hiya, @ybanezkim26 here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Top 3 in Daily Travel Digest #1722.
Your post has been manually curated by the @pinmapple team. If you like what we're doing, please drop by to check out all the rest of today's great posts and consider supporting other authors like yourself and us so we can keep the project going!
Become part of our travel community:
thank you so much @ybanezkim26. I really appreciate your ongoing support. 🙏
You're welcome! I love curating and supporting awesome posts. The pleasure is always mine. 😁
Stunning landscapes! I love how you explore the less popular sites. That's always my travelling philosophy! Great shots also. :)
Thank you! Yes we were always like that but mainly because we don´t like big masses of tourists and then it turned out that it was a good idea because other places are beautiful as well. :)
Amazing post! I really enjoyed it!! Specially the picture with the map in the floor. And I’ve never been in a volcanic island, so it’s a completely new landscape for me!! I love it!
Thank you so much. I guess its time to visit one then. Volcanic Islands are always beautiful.
Congratulations, your post has been added to Pinmapple! 🎉🥳🍍
Did you know you have your own profile map?
And every post has their own map too!
Want to have your post on the map too?