We got up in the morning and started our day with a cup of coffee on the nice porch with a garden out back. After getting ready, we started off towards our first destination, Miradouro da Serra do Cume. The road steadily climbed towards the top of the hills and was paved, with cobblestones in some places. It became quite steep as we came close to the top. There were view points on both sides of the top of the hill. Looking towards the north east we could see Praia da Vitória and on the other side, towards the south west, we could see fields separated by walls of volcanic rocks forming a massive expanses of green patchwork. The clouds rolled in quickly and it started raining while we were there so we decide to head back down and come back again for the views the next day if possible. We could see Ilhéus das Cabras at one corner and next we headed there to take a closer look.

We drove mostly along the same road for some time going back down but then turned south at a fork. The last part of the road took us down Canada das Vinhas, which was a very steep descent. I was wondering how we were going to drive back up. We reached and parked there. It was a nice spot with superb views of the Ilhéus das Cabras. These are two islets, originally part of a volcanic cone. The position of the sun was not conducive to getting good pictures from where we were at but it was still nice to take in the views. We then drove a little further to Zona Balnear da Fajã do Ficher (Serretinha) / Poças da Serretinha. This was a multi-level sun bathing area leading down to the swimming area, again with great views of Ilhéus das Cabras.


From there we drove by Pico Dona Joana, seeing fields and farms and cattle and sheep along the way. We were looking for a some place to have lunch but one place we went to was closed and the other one we were not able to locate. So we decided to head to Angra do Heroísmo and figure something out there. It was very difficult to find parking in the city center but there was a large free parking area a short distance away. So we parked there and walked back.

We decided to have a quick lunch at John’s Cafe. They had a soup of the day which was a nice lentil soup. And then we had a baguette sandwich each, chicken and seafood. The place was cozy and had indoor and outdoor seating. After lunch we walked towards the marina passing the streets of cobble stone with colourful buildings on either side.

We saw the Igreja da Misericórdia as we approached Marina de Angra do Heroísmo. The Pátio da Alfândega was large courtyard with the Statue of Vasco Da Gama and the Portas da Cidade towards the marina. There were two stone archways with staircases descending down to the marina from the Pátio da Alfândega. Portas da Cidade framed a nice view of the marina.

After spending some time there we decided to walk to the Memória a D. Pedro IV through the Jardim Duque da Terceira. The Jardim Duque da Terceira was a garden named after the Duke of Terceira with various paths and walkways, one of which was ascending towards the Obelisco do Alto da Memória. It was quite a way up but most of the path was covered by shady trees. There was a nice view of Angra do Heroísmo from up there.

We walked back down and passed Paços do Concelho de Angra do Heroísmo, the Town Hall and we stopped at the Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Carmo and the Letras de Angra for a photo opportunity. But it started raining again so we had to make it really quick. We picked up the car from the parking lot and drive towards Monte Brasil.

We passed by the fortifications as we drove there and also got instrutions and directions from a very polite army personnel standing guard at the gate. Monte Brasil is a recreation area and national forest reserve which is located on the remnants of a volcano and peninsula. We stopped first at the Miradouro do Alto da Caldeira. This viewpoint overlooks a large volcanic crater and the Atlantic ocean behind. There were various shades of green in the foliage with the blue ocean and the blue sky in the background.

We drove further up to the Miradouro do Pico das Cruzinhas. There was a beautiful mural on tiles of the view of Angra do Heroísmo from there. We also had panoramic views over the entire south coast of Terceira from there. There is also a statue of D. Afonso VI, the second king of Portugal of the House of Braganza.

From there we parked the car near the cat colony on Monte Brasil and then took a small hike to Miradouro do Pico do Facho. The view of the Atlantic ocean from here was just fantastic. We could also see Ilhéus das Cabras to the east and a very faint view São Jorge and Pico islands to the west.

As the sun was setting we left from Monte Brazil and headed back to the north east of the island. We were looking for for places to have dinner as we drove there. Again, one of the places we wanted to go to was closed. So we drove towards a couple of places near the airport. We finally zeroed in on Cockpit Bar & Kitchen for dinner and then headed back to Moradia da Graça to turn in for the night.

🍽️ John’s Café
🍽️ Cockpit Bar & Kitchen
🚘 OnTravel Azores
🛏️ Airbnb - Moradia da Graça