Pico Island in Azores, Portugal
While searching for a place for holidays I discovered Pico Island in Panoramio and I was completely amazed by the place. Pico Island or Ilha do Pico is an island of the Azores (Portugal) archipelago (pico means peak in Portuguese). Take a look here if you wonder about the name. Ponta de Pico (Pico Alto) is the highest mountain of Portugal. The Azores are actually the tops of some of the tallest mountains on the planet, as measured from their base at the bottom of the ocean.
The island is 42 km long and has a maximum width of 15 km and an area of 447 km², making it the second largest of the Azores islands. The main settlements are the capital Madalena, São Roque do Pico and Lajes do Pico, the total population is around 15,000 innhabitants. Tourism is the main industry in Pico Island, but it doesn’t seem very crowded.
The volcano is a basaltic stratovolcano with steep sides. The last eruption on the island was in 1963 and the paths of the lava flows are still visible. You can climb up to the top of Ponta do Pico in few hours if you are in good shape.
The island has a notable wine, the Pico Wine (Vinho do Pico) and the landscape of the Pico Island Vineyard Culture has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004. The vineyards surrounded by small walls made of volcanic black stones make this wine very special. The island is plenty of old Adegas (Wine cellars) that are nowadays available for renting. Adegas are built with the same kind of black stones in very nice style. Everything is black and green at this island. The beaches are rocky, but still there are some nice places for swimming. Since Pico island in the route of whales migrations, whale watching tours are also very popular.
My favourite shots from Panoramio: top of the volcano, the exuberant vegetation and the vineyard landscape. More information in Wikipedia.
3 Responses to “Pico Island in Azores, Portugal”
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hi!
I have just downloaded and installed google earth and while trying it I realized that I cannot see the images which people have uploated..
I tryied to go to the web panoramio.com (in the computer where I have the google earth) and it doesn’t work.. (now I’m in another computer where here I can see al the photos in the google earth..)
so please, if you know what could I do to see them, please tell me by sending me an email to anigroeg91@gmail.com.
thank you!
(sorry for mistakes and maybe bad expresions, my english isn’t good at all)
Bonjour
je suis allé l’année dernière pendant 1 semaine sur Pico et Horta (fly from Barcelona, via Lisboa, from France). Ce sont des iles magnifiques, nous y étions en Mai 2006 et avons pu suivre les baleines. Calme et tranquillité, gens accueillants, Horta possède une marina où tous les marins du monde passent un jour (on y parle toutes les langues !!)
Je possède beaucoup de photos de Horta et Pico.
Je les mettrai en ligne prochainement.
Avec ma compagne, nous aimons les iles (Iles grecques, les Açores, les iles de Croatie - Mljet, Korcula…)
Au plaisir de votre réponse.
Krisaez
I would like to know more about acores islands my parent are from there and i’m writing a paper for one of my classes and i would like to know if you can send me some picture or some more history from there here is my address if you want to send me some pictures or book. 6900 25th street apt.A32 in colorado zip code is 80214…. Thank you for your time and hope to here from you soon…