Cara do Índio

This linear route crosses the Corvo from North to South and connects two significant geosites: the Caldeirão and Vila Corvo. This way you get to know one of the islands in the archipelago least marked by human activity. The route starts on the asphalt road heading South, always with the island open ahead serving as your landscape.

Near the so-called Florestals house, turn right onto a dirt track, cross the Ribeira do Trevo and follow the markers to the artificial water tanks. These structures, built between 2002 and 2013, function as retention basins for surface water that supplies the Vila’s population. You’re in the area known as Baldio, a communal use space where you won’t find the cultivated fields and pastures compartmentalised by natural barriers or stone walls so typical of the Azores landscape.

Further ahead, the trail skirts a volcanic cone with a crater opening to the South, the geosites of Coroinha and Pingas cliffs. It’s worth stopping for the view over the island of Flores before returning to farmland and pasture. Already between loose stone walls, and near the cliff, a basalt rock appears on your right that erosion has shaped into what the locals recognise as the face of a Native American.

From here the descent becomes steeper along a path surrounded by endemic flora, with heather (Erica azorica) and myrtle juniper (Juniperus brevifolia). Along the way you pass ancient shelters carved into the rock for protection and curious geological formations, as well as a viewpoint overlooking Vila Corvo. Then it’s a matter of crossing the road carefully.

The final section enters the historic area of the Vila, where you should notice the architecture of the houses and the narrow streets, which played their role during pirate invasions in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Along the coast you can spot traditional windmills, and the trail ends at Praia da Areia, ideal for a swim in the Atlantic. Before you leave, take time to visit the Ecomuseum, in the centre of the Vila, and learn more about the local heritage.