PR 12 Encumeada Footpath
Start: Boca da Corrida Belvedere
Finish: E.R. 228 (Encumeada)
Time: 6h30m
Distance: 12.5 km
This trail begins at the Boca da Corrida belvedere and meanders along at elevations ranging between 940 and 1340 metres, whilst crossing part of the Central Mountainous Massif along the foot of the highest peaks of the island of Madeira.
It is an old “Royal Path” that was paved and served as one of the main routes for the movement of persons on the island. It was used by landed gentry on horseback whose wives reclined in hammocks carried by men. There are references to a grocery store that existed somewhere along this path which was most likely a trading post positioned in an area where travellers passed by as they traversed the island.
In the landscape that unfolds before you, you will be able to see Curral das Freiras in the valley below. In 1566, this small village which is surrounded by enormous mountains in the very heart of the island became a refuge for nuns from the Santa Clara Convent, who brought with them the treasures of the convent when pirates attacked Funchal.
The waterways that cut through the mountains along this trail sustain the vegetation predominantly made up of Laurisilva species that abound here: the laurel (Laurus azorica), the Madeira mahogany (Persea indica), centuries-old Madeira laurels (Ocotea foetens), and Lily-of-the-Valley trees (Argyranthemum pinnatifidum). Along this trail you may catch sight of some of the indigenous bird species such as the firecrest (Rugulus ignicapillus maderensis), the chaffinch (Frigilla coelebs maderensis), the buzzard (Buteo buteo harterti), kestrel (Falco tinnunculus canariensis), the Madeira long-toed pigeon (Columba trocaz), or the grey wagtail (Motacilla cinerea).
As you come around Pico Grande, the settlement of Serra d’Água and Encumeada come into sight, together with the large pipelines that carry water from the reservoir to the Serra d’Água Hydroelectric Plant, indicating that you are reaching the end of the trail at Boca da Encumeada.
