Viewpoint tunnel
To the crater's edge.
Vitor Oliveira from Torres Vedras, PORTUGAL — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Jules Verne Times Two — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Guillaume Baviere from Helsingborg, Sweden — CC BY 2.0 · Diego Delso — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Mariakolago — CC BY-SA 4.0
The Caldeira is the great crater at the summit of Faial Island in the Portuguese Azores, about 9 km in a straight line west of the town of Horta. It is about 2 km across at the rim and about 400 m deep, and Cabeço Gordo, the island's highest point at 1,043 m, rises on its edge. The crater formed when the top of the volcano collapsed after violent eruptions, the most recent about 1,200 years ago. A lake once lay on its floor, but it drained in 1958 during the seismic activity linked to the Capelinhos eruption, leaving the damp green floor seen today. In 1972 the Caldeira became the first protected area in the Azores, and it is now a nature reserve within Faial Natural Park and a site of the Azores Geopark. A forest road climbs to the rim, where a short tunnel cut through the rock leads to a viewpoint looking down into the crater. A walking trail circles the whole rim, with the crater on one side and the coast and the neighbouring island of Pico on the other. Hydrangeas line the roads and paths in summer. Clouds often fill the crater or hide the rim, so watch the weather and choose a clear day if you can; the view can open and close within minutes. The rim path is narrow and exposed in places and can be muddy after rain. Visiting is free.
To the crater's edge.
Around the whole crater.
Flowering in summer.
Faial Island, Azores, Portugal
A clear day, as clouds often fill the crater.
Yes.