Private airport transfer to Funchal, the bustling city that hosts the majority of the island's population., Take time to explore or catch up on some rest. Tonight is a group briefing with your guide.

Our massive island traverse begins today! We begin our series of day hikes across this mountainous Portuguese island with a somewhat mellow classic: the northern coastline hike to Porto de Cruz. Beginning in town and following the famous levada system- channels where water runs, unobstructed and carried by gravity throughout the island. These waterways are actually World Heritage sites and are renown throughout the world as the Levadas da Madeira. This vast network is celebrated worldwide for its engineering success and was originally developed to irrigate the sugar cane that made the island famous as the world’s second biggest producer of sugar in the 15th century. But today; we’ll use these waterways as our initial guides. Walking along them as we gradually climb in a northwestern direction around the slopes of the valley until we reach the cliffside and a jaw dropping view that makes the long journey to get here worth it. Turning left and following the north coastline, its a very gradual trail for nearly 7 miles as we undulate along the cliffside, making our way eventually, into the town of Porto de Cruz on the north side of the island. We'll enjoy a nice walk around this quaint seaside town before transfering to nearby Santo Da Serra to our hotel. Tonight we rest as tomorrow we head inland and the intensity begins to increase.

Today we pick up from the upper part of Porto da Cruz to Levada da Serra do Faial, and continue along until we reach Levada do Furado. Enjoy a delightful walk along a levada. The walk from here is pretty impressive as we navigate our way through multiple tunnels carved through the rocky mountainside. We will encounter numerous waterfalls and small ponds and our trail is almost constantly shaded by the bold canopy of this lush sub tropical forest (Laurisilva).
The Laurisiva of Madeira is an outstanding relic of laurel forest that was previously widespread through Europe. Madeira possesses the largest living area of this type of Laurel Forest, which plays host to a unique aray of plants and animals (mainly birds) including endemic species such as the Madeiran Long Toed pigeon.
Along Levada do Furado (3000 feet high) we will branch off to another trail that will lead us to Chao das Feiteiras (4,00 feet high), our final destination. From here we transfer back to our hotel in Santo da Serra.

Get ready for one of the most challenging, but also most rewarding, treks of the island traverse. This morning we start back at Poiso to pick up where we left off. From here we climb up almost 1,500ft to Pico Areiro, one of the highest peaks on the Island. From here we take in immense views over the valley of Ribeira do Cidrão, which flows into Ribeira dos Socorridos at Curral das Freiras. Scan over the Paul da Serra plateau, part of the western mountain massif of the island. After a brief stop to celebrate these views, we continue to Pico Ruivo - the highest moutain of the island. Our adventure from peak to peak will lead us through a hole in the mountain wall, several tunnels, along steep mountain escarpments and up arduous stairways. All the while, the clouds swarm through, changing the weather frequently. These are all great distractions from our final push, a challenging final ascent of about 40 minutes to 1 hour, finally bringing us to our cloud-kissed mountain hut atop Pico Ruivo- the highest point on the island! Tonight we dine with our own private cook in this cozy mountain lodge, celebrating the day's achievements.

Beginning near Pico Ruivo, the highest point of the archipelago, Vereda da Encumeada follows the central mountain range of the island west. The landscape on this hike is always evolving. Today's trail is moderately difficult crossing two types of ecosystems: Laurissilva and the Central Mountain Massif. The millenarian Laurissilva is surrounded by lush, green flora. In contrast, the stretch running through the Central Mountain Massif is predominantly volcanic escarpment.

Along the way you will also find several caves dug out of the rocks, such as Furna da Lapa da Cadela. These are former shelters for those who used the Vereda da Encumeada to cut heather for piling, firewood or charcoal production.

As we approach Encumeada, at the end of Vereda da Encumeada, we have some of the most beautiful panoramic views of the island. From here we transfer to the sea side valley of lush Sao Vicente.

Morning shuttle from Sao Vicente to the trailhead at Encumeada. Beginning at Levada do Norte, the second longest of the island, we start by crossing 2 long tunnels ( around 1 km each) . At some point, however, we will stop following the levada to take a trail that leads us up to the area known as the Pinnacle. This is a big climb with lots of stairs. The reward, however, is real with stunning panoramic views over the valley with Pico Ruivo and Pico do Areeiro as the backdrop. Here we sit in awe, eating our lunch, realizing how far we have come and the amazing extent of our accomplishment. We're not finished yet, though. We continue along the Laurisilva forest until we reach Casa do Caramujo. Immersed in the indigenous forest, Casa do Caramujo is an abandoned house in the mountains, used in the past as a vacation house by wealthy families. Nearby you can also find a winter pond. From Casa do Caramujo we climb up an engaging path that unfolds revealing panoramic views; making for a very complete day. Our hike ends at the trailhead Estanquinhos/ Ttonight we stay in the seaside village of Jardim do Mar- our base for the final two nights of our adventure in Madeira.

The start of the trail is marked by a crossing near a main road where we head through the central area of Paul da Serra- a wonderful mountain meadow with sweeping views. It is here that we will be at about 4,300ft, the vegetation practically disappears and it is possible to see Paúl da Serra and the Central Mountain Massif of Madeira.
From here we continue our descent to an area known as Terra Chã where we can find a cable system that was used during the early 20th century to transport agricultural materials between the coastal and mountainous areas of Seixal. Enjoy the view of the parishes of Seixal and Porto Moniz.
From here it is a tough descent that requires some physical perseverance- your knees will be talking to you! We do recieve a small reprieve along the way with a natural spring where we can refill our water.
From here we descend into a gorgeous Laurassilva forest with species such as laurel, mahogany, leafy and arboreal heather. From here we catch glimpses over the Chão da Ribeira valley, and the islets of Ribeira da Janela and the Ilhéu Mole do Porto Moniz- anticipation heightens as we descend closer into town. Our final stretch of trail takes us through rural agriculture, past hay stacks, orchards and plantations. Finally, we reach Seixal- we have officially made it to the complete opposite side of the island and our traverse is complete!
From Seixal we transfer back to our base at Jardim do Mar for a celebratory final dinner.

Morning transfer to Funchal for your return flight home. Book flights for after 2pm to allow for transfer time.