Água Retorta

A short circular trail that runs through the parish of Água Retorta, next to the Protected Area for Habitat or Species Management of Faial da Terra. The starting point is beside the Church of Nossa Senhora da Penha de França, built between 1871 and 1885 on the site of an old 17th-century hermitage, of which the bell tower has been preserved.

After a stretch of road, the trail enters a dirt path that serves the pastures and cuts through a small woodland dominated by incense trees (Pittosporum undulatum). The climb opens up views over the centre of the parish, Pico Bartolomeu and Pico da Vara, and, when the weather permits, you can even spot the island of Santa Maria. It continues until a cement road that provides access to the place of Fagundas.

From Fagundas you descend again onto a dirt path, now between incense trees and Azorean myrtles (Morella faya), skirting the slope close to the sea. There is a detour that leads to the base of a waterfall; resuming the trail, you pass by the stream that feeds it, until the trees give way to pastures and cultivated land, where traditional box hedges (Buxus sempervirens) are frequent.

Upon entering Água Retorta, a parish of around 500 inhabitants where many old customs are maintained, it is worth stopping by the ruins of an old windmill, once used to grind the corn for bread. From here, the trail returns to the road, passes by a water fountain and returns to the church, where the circuit closes.