Vereda da Ilha (PR 1.1)

Leave Pico Ruivo by this path and the crowd drops away. You may meet about ten people on the whole walk, or nobody, and the quiet in the forest can turn eerie.

The descent crosses two Natura 2000 ecosystems. Up high it runs through the grasses and shrubs of the Central Mountain Massif, adapted to wind, rain and wide swings of temperature. At 1200 m the Laurisilva takes over, where fog condenses on the leaves and feeds the springs and streams. The Madeira firecrest and the chaffinch are common here.

Views are the price. Below the top there is little to look at beyond the forest itself: steps, a spring, mushrooms.

At the Casa de Abrigo do Pico Ruivo the official line begins, in open grass and shrub near the walk's high point of 1764 m. Close to the top it runs with another route, and this first stretch holds the views, if the cloud allows.

Lower down, at 1200 m, the path enters the Laurisilva and the fog belt. Numerous wooden steps carry the descent, the way is clearly marked, and the views are gone.

At Ilha, at 490 m, a board and a guidepost mark the end. Getting back is your own job, so settle it before you start.

Walked the other way from Ilha, the path climbs without a break for more than 8 km, and the return goes much faster.

• Return trip. The walk ends at Ilha and IFCN does not take anyone back to Pico do Areeiro. Plan your way back before you start.
• Last bus. Buses from Ilha stop in the afternoon, with none until next morning. Check the last departure before you set off.
• Few views. The forest hides the view until close to Pico Ruivo, and cloud can hide that too.
• Sore legs. The steps leave your muscles aching for a while, so put this walk near the end of a Madeira trip.
• At Ilha. A water point sits 130 m away in a straight line, and free toilets 595 m away.

The official start, the Casa de Abrigo do Pico Ruivo, is reached on foot. Most walkers drive to Achada do Teixeira and take the paved PR 1.2, a walk of 6 km there and back. The other way in is PR 1 from Pico do Areeiro, which runs one way past Pedra Rija Viewpoint.

Either way your car ends up at the wrong end of the day: the trail finishes at Ilha, and getting back to the vehicle is your own job. Buses serve Ilha, but they stop in the afternoon and do not resume until next morning, so time the descent to the last one.

Arriving at Ilha first lets you walk up and back the same way. The bus stops lie 247 m and 283 m away in a straight line and the public car park 1737 m away, so add the walk in to your day.

Best: a dry spell, with an entry slot early enough to reach Ilha before the last bus.

Avoid: the days after prolonged rain, winter above all.

Wet wooden steps turn the descent slippery, and since the forest sits in the fog belt, cloud can swallow the view from Pico Ruivo in any season.

The trail crosses Natura 2000 ground and falls under IFCN's booking system. Every walker must register and book a timed entry slot online on the SIMplifica Portal. Children 12 and under, Madeira residents with proof of status and people with a disability of 60% or more, plus one accompanying guardian, pay nothing but still book. Slots close automatically when full, and the tolerance on entry is around 15 minutes.

The PR 1 section from Pedra Rija Viewpoint to Pico Ruivo runs one way, towards Pico Ruivo, so walkers leave the summit by this trail or by PR 1.2. Each trail you walk needs its own reservation, the one that takes you to the start included. Booking several trails applies a cheaper combined rate automatically.

Rain, a wrong date or a change of plan loses the fee. Rescheduling or a refund applies only when the trail is officially closed or restricted on your booking date; IFCN's trails page shows the status of each route.