If (when) you come to the Azores, Portugal, you must visit Lagoa das Furnas! It's one of the island's three massive volcanic lakes. It's extremely beautiful and the vegetation around the edge is like something out of Jurassic Park.
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| Lagoa das Sete and Lagoa do Fogo |
So we headed over with the best adventure company on the island - Picos de Aventura to enjoy an awesome fun-packed day of canoeing, mountain biking and eating local foods!
It was a fantastic day and the perfect way to experience Furnas. Here's what we did:
It was a fantastic day and the perfect way to experience Furnas. Here's what we did:
Mountain Biking around Lagoa das Furnas
At Picos de Aventura's headquarters in Ponta Delgada, we met our guide and the other people on the tour - there were just five of us in total (including us, not including the tour guide). This was a great number as we all got to know each other and didn't have to fight for the best photo spots (like you do with bigger tours).
Our guide drove us over to Furnas in the minibus, the drive itself was very pretty and he told us some interesting facts.
Once we were in Furnas, we got the bikes out and got going. Almost instantly, we knew that biking around these volcanoes is the way to go.
The Azores are renowned for their ever-changing weather - one minute beautiful sunshine, the next torrential rain (hence the fabulous plants).
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| Same day two hours apart ;) |
But one type of weather you are guaranteed to have in the Azores 24/7 is humid weather. This makes it hard to walk around without getting sticky and tired.
Mountain biking is the perfect cure for this. You still get to see things more intimately than you would in a car, and you're a lot more comfortable than when walking.
Mountain biking around the lake was very cool. Our guide was perfect - he gave us enough space to do things at our own pace, but was always there with funny jokes and facts when needed.
We biked up to the lake and half way around it, where we got to see where our lunch was being made:
Our lunch was actually cooked in the earth next to the volcano. There are hot springs there which are heated by the volcanic steam.
It was so fascinating to watch the men take the pots out of the ground. By this point we were all hungry and excited about the lunch we'd just seen being cooked, so it was a quick (downhill) cycle ride back to the town for lunch:
Lunch
We ate with our guide and the other members of the tour at a restaurant called Tonys. Tonys was absolutely packed and is one of the most popular restaurants in town.
We had Cozido - a traditional Portuguese/ Spanish stew. This was what we'd seen being cooked in the ground! Although I like my meat rare and Tanbay likes his burnt to a crisp, we still enjoyed the Cozido which, having been cooked in the ground for five hours, was well done and juicy.
We were very happy to try something that a) we'd seen being cooked in the ground b) was traditional and c) was served to us in a popular restaurant. The restaurant also served the best chocolate cake ever, amazing coffee, and extremely fresh pineapple (grown on the island).
Canoeing on Lagoa das Furnas
After lunch we headed back to the lake to try out canoeing/kayaking. It was a great way to see the lake.
We'd enjoyed admiring the lakes from the side, but actually being on the lake was even more exciting. Kayaking also complemented the mountain biking perfectly - a full body work out! But there was no pressure, our guide gave us an hour and a half to explore the lake at our own pace - which, after the massive lunch, was slow!
Mountain biking and canoeing around Lagoa das Furnas with Picos de Aventura was so much fun! We spent a month in the Azores and this was definitely the highlight of our trip - we highly recommend them.
Picos de Aventura truly are the best adventure company on the island.
We also went whale watching with them too and it was grand.
Everything you need to visit the Azores:
- Cheap flights to the Azores - Kiwi is the only site we use when it comes to booking flights. They find unique cheap flights that other websites can't or won't anddd they have 24/7 support.
- Best Luxury Hotels in the Azores - Our guide to finding the perfect hotel in the Azores for your honeymoon, anniversary, birthday or any other special event
- Medium to Cheap Hotels in the Azores - hotels in the Azores for all types of budgets, from budget travellers to middle.
- FREE accommodation in the Azores - with house sitting. We travelled the world for two years straight by house sitting. Find the perfect Azorean house sit for you
- Best Tours of The Azores - comprehensive list of the best tours to do in the Azores
- Car Hire in the Azores - there are two transport options in the Azores: care hire or hitchhiking.
Further reading:
10 Reasons You Have to Visit the Azores
Exploring A Haunted Abandoned Hotel in the Azores: Monte Palace Hotel
Hitch-hiking in the Azores - the perfect place for first time hitch-hikers
Travelling Weasels experienced Lagoa das Furnas as a guest of Picos de Aventura however, the above opinions are our own. As always.
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