By Kate Friend, CN TRAVELLER
As I was sipping my café dublo in a modernist bar looking out to sea, I was met by Jorge Valério. He is a São Miguel local who knows the island area inside out. Along with his business partner, Lisa Moreira, he runs Holistika, a bespoke Azores islands tour specialist. Valério decides what I need to see here.
We then hit the road, chatting about liberation and landscapes views and all the while his positivity was encouraging me. Inching down a terrifyingly steep track, we reached a hidden waterfall. The force of the water had carved sleek sports-car curves here into the rock face. On dry days, you could actually swim here, letting the weight of the water pummet onto your shoulders. Above this cascade, hikers followed knee-tremblingly narrow walkways and crossed the rocks to see volcanic peaks and sea coastlines, everywhere.
Time and again on this island there's the feeling of passing through a veil, like one world to another. Through gaps in the clouds, we can actually glimpse the stunning Lagoa do Fogo - a crater lake. Here , it was one minute emerald green and the next second, it turned azure blue color. Empty white sandy beaches winked at me from the shore. As quickly as the view appeared, it also disappeared again.
We then pressed along long winding roads - time for a sundowner. On the south coast Bar Caloura, just 15 minutes drive from this crater lake, we stopped for a chat with locals and other visitors. Next to this bar, there were steps that led down into the ocean.
A lot of people come here for salty dips before a glass of red wine and a plate of fried horse mackerel, or fresh cheese with chilli sauce.
A memorable trip, indeed!