Costa Sul

The South Coast is a linear trail that connects Vila do Porto to Praia Formosa, in the Almagreira parish, the same beach that hosts Maré de Agosto every year, the country’s oldest music festival. The walk starts at Forte de São Brás, a seventeenth-century military fortification overlooking Calhau da Roupa bay and the island’s commercial port.

From the fort, an earth path leads to the São Francisco stream, a good spot for observing migratory birds, especially in autumn and winter: grey herons (Ardea cinerea), little egrets (Egretta garzetta), coots (Fulica atra) and curlews (Numenius arquata) pass through here. Further ahead you’ll find Pedreira do Campo, a geossite classified as a Natural Monument, where marine fossils hold a chapter of the island’s geological history. The trail then passes through the artificial Figueiral cave, an old clay quarry for roof tiles and limestone for lime production, materials that were used to build traditional Marian houses.

On the climb towards Touril there is more wildlife to discover, from the buzzard (Buteo buteo rothschildii) to the rock dove (Columba livia) and the Santa Maria wren (Regulus regulus sanctae-mariae); with luck, you may also encounter wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus algirus). Following the signage along the earth path, you’ll turn right into a forest that descends to Prainha. If the sea is rough, use the alternative marked path instead.

From this bathing area, the trail follows the coastline and requires extra caution due to the risk of vertigo; in one section there is a steel cable to support the crossing. You’ll pass the ruins of Forte de São João Baptista and, shortly after, a junction that connects to Cardal via GR 01 SMA, the Santa Maria Great Route.

The trail ends at Praia Formosa’s car park, the only beach in the Açores with yellow-toned calcareous sand, a good place to rest and swim in the Atlantic waters. From here it’s also possible to continue to other areas of the island via PR 06 SMA, Areia Branca.