Levada do Moinho – Levada Nova Hiking Route

Two irrigation channels run at different heights above the valley, and the walk links them into a loop. The lower one, Levada do Moinho, passes the ruins of three water mills and stays in shade for most of its length. It also goes through a stone tunnel with no lighting inside, about five minutes of walking in the dark. The upper channel, Levada Nova, is cut into the cliff and mostly open to the sun. Halfway along it the path runs directly behind a waterfall. A stair climb of about ten minutes joins the two levadas, and waterfalls cross the path on both of them.

• Torch: the tunnel on the lower levada has no lighting, and walking through it takes about five minutes.
• Rain jacket: the path passes under falling water in several places, and you get wet without one.
• Parking: there is no designated car park. Drivers use the spaces by the church, and they are hard to get.
• No railing: long stretches of Levada Nova run along the cliff with nothing between the path and the drop.
• River crossing: the full loop crosses a river. When the water runs high the crossing is off and the loop has to be cut short.

Drivers come to the church in Ponta do Sol and park in the streets around it; there is no designated car park. The trail starts behind the church, up a flight of stairs that is easy to miss from the road. Walk the circuit starting on Levada do Moinho and returning along Levada Nova — done in reverse, it finishes on very steep streets. On the way up Levada do Moinho, watch for the stairs on the right that climb to the upper levada.

Better: an early start, when the lower levada is empty and you can walk the tunnel section without meeting anyone.

Avoid: days when the river is running high, because the crossing that completes the loop is then impassable.

Levada do Moinho keeps to the shade for most of its length, while Levada Nova is open and sunny. Walking the loop in that order leaves the exposed cliff section for the second half.