Location: Horta, Faial, Azores
What an absolutely exquisite series of events today. It all started with a wakeup from Mr. West and some breakfast to go as we motored off the dock and over to Pico. We took the dingy over to the island and were shuttled off to the top of the mountain for a nice midday hike. The hike started so high up that we were surrounded by a cloud that was spraying us with rain constantly. Our tour guide Silvia pointed out local vegetation, lava rocks and told us stories about her dog named Alfredo. Eventually, the weather cleared, and the views could be seen. We then stopped to eat our packed lunches and headed to a black sand beach for a quick dip. The beach was surrounded by smooth rocks and a cliff with a deep enough bottom to jump into. Then the group left to go to “Little Puppy,” a spot where we could view the tide smashing against the volcanic rock along the coast, followed by a tour of a vineyard. After returning to the boat, we were greeted with some hot food and learned about our new watch teams. As I am typing this now, Tim is giving me the list of things to prep for our next passage to Madeira, which begins tomorrow. It may seem like we just got here, but at least our next trip will seem like a blink next to the previous passage. Hopefully, our sea legs will come back faster than it took us to get used to solid ground again.
Pictured:
1 – Sophia and Mella at the start of the hike
2 – Nolan during the hike
3 – View halfway through the hike
4 – Avery plus others during the hike
5 – Adina
6 – Liam
7 – Ethan
8 – Jake
9 – Brian
10 – Mella
11 – Marion
12 – Sophia
13 – Seve
14 – Emma
15 – Wyatt
16 – Michael
17 – Bella