Levada dos Balcões - Madeira's Most Dangerous Levadas and Mountain Walks Pt1

Levada dos Balcões, or rather Levada da Serra do Faial from Miradouro dos Balcões onwards, is probably the most spectacular 'waterway path' (yep, this was the best translation I could think of for 'levada' in the 'trail' sense) you are likely to find in Madeira and surrounding islands. Problem is, it will take you for two miles of completely unprotected, literally (quite literally) vertiginous walk. And no, we're not talking of Goetz' [1] 'levada professionals' type of danger here: compared to this, Levada do Norte's feat after the waterfall tunnel is just a walk around the park.

You don't believe me? Okay, then you should compare how wide the 'esplanade' of the Levada do Norte is when compared to this one:



One good thing about it though is that you get little escapes in case you just reach that unbearable level of frustration during the walk:


There is also a happy 'walking over the pipe' section:


Oh, and let's not forget there are slippery parts so you can practice your tightrope skills:


Formerly, you could take this levada both ways starting in Miradouro dos Balcões or coming up from Central da Fajã da Nogueira. As of 2005, there was a landslide near the source of the levada:


This now makes it a bit harder if you want to take it starting from Miradouro dos Balcões. For me at least it will be much worse explaining you the itinerary. The good news is that the alternative itinerary now makes for a much shortened levada experience, so you don't have to withstand the whole of those two miles of totally exposed trail.

Here are the directions: hit the road, and go to the Central da Fajã da Nogueira, near Cruzinhas. Then start climbing up (or spend some time in those lovely houses, and prepare yourself for the levada; that is, if you have some connections inside EEM). You'll get to the house with the dog and the shrine:


Then you go up and take the road left. This will lead you to some water tanks and tunnels but not before passing by a look-out point with the typical Madeira (read 'boring') landscape prospect:


Then you'll get across several tunnels which will lead you to the source of the levada. When you reach the source you'll just have to go down through the little river bed (not recommended during winter) until you reach the lower levada. This untrailed hike will take you no more than ten minutes. When you reach the lower levada, you're in Levada dos Balcões. That's where the fun starts!

Do it slowly, so you can enjoy the views both to your left and to your right:



It's a bit of a problem with this walk, actually. Even going real slow you probably won't be able to enjoy any of the views during your first experience because you'll be directing all of your attention to your feet. But even the path itself can be very picturesque at some points:


Finally, after such maddening tour, you can enjoy the lovely vistas from Miradouro dos Balcões. Probably much better than those from your Windows Vista (sorry for the totally uncalled-for and unsucessful pun):


But not before passing by the famous 'no hay paso' sign, which should tell you better:


Yeah, just don't say you weren't warned.

REFERENCE

[1] Goetz, Rolf (2005) Madeira: Rother Walking Guide. Munich: Rother.

DISCLAIMER

You are advised not to take these walks. Don't be stupid, these walks present real life threat, and have resulted in past deaths. You may fall down or you may get lost. Experience them at your own risk. The author assumes no responsibility whatsoever for any injury or loss if you decide to go for one of these.

For policy issues, you're referred you to the interview granted by Rocha da Silva on these matters.

For safety instructions, including some commercially convenient advice like «always be in company of a qualified guide» (oh boy, would I rather take one of these in company of a nice female guide, he he!), you're referred to Blog Thoughts Madeira Safety Precautions list.