Adrenaline and Beauty in Madeira (If You Survive the Flight!)

The wind-swept eastern peninsula of Madeira. (Vereda da Ponta de Sao Lourenço)

Don’t let the flight into Madeira and the island’s treacherous roads scare you off. Once your knees stop shaking, you’re in for a magical time on this outdoor oasis off the coast of Portugal!

For a week, we hiked and mountain biked from Madeira’s mist-shrouded peaks to cliffs overlooking the ocean. It’s one of the coolest places I’ve traveled.

To keep it interesting, Madeira’s airport is Europe’s most dangerous and pilots need special training to land there. Picture intense crosswinds, a short runway, and mountains and ocean as constraints.

Our flight landed as gusting wind slapped our plane updownsideways like a malevolent hand of God. Terrified passengers shrieked, then clapped and cheered when the plane landed.

Next step: revving our tiny rental car on the twisty roads, jousting with the “laid back” locals who drive like their cars are engulfed in flames. Grades I wouldn’t even consider walking up (30+%!) are a feature on any drive into the mountains. I’ve never driven in 1st gear so much. (Make sure you can drive a manual if you rent a car.)

Ah, but those treacherous roads are worth it!

If you can handle that…

Oh. Yes. Madeira is sweet. A nugget of fun and beauty sparkling in the Atlantic. Coming from bike touring to the island was a shift from adventure to pure vacation. We embraced it!

I alternated days hiking with Chelsea and mountain biking, whereas she hiked every day. ​If our days apart were a video cutting between me and Chelsea:
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BAMBAMBAM downhill rocky mega testosterone mtb madness
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CUT to Chelsea: twittering birds, fields, flowers, smiling farmers, and pretty views
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CUT jumps, fist bumps, roots, dust, woot wooting, high fives.
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CUT quiet sugarcane fields, mama cat with nursing kittens, lizards, more flowers to smell…

Thus passed our magical days in Madeira. Simplicity and complexity need one another, right?

Chelsea disappearing into the looking glass during a lavada hike through laurel forest.
Don’t worry Mom, I wasn’t going (too) fast! #contrast

Mountain Biking in Madeira

Two days before our flight from Porto, I couldn’t have placed Madeira on a map. The island pinged my radar thanks to mountain biking.

Since our visit to Madeira was a trip pivot from bike touring, I needed to rent a mountain bike. Enter Freeride Madeira. This small local company has created a top-notch mountain bike destination that brought the Enduro World Series to the island twice. They offer well-priced guiding and shuttling services that make exploring the trail systems easy.

The trails aren’t ragged, overgrown hiking trails. Since a solid chunk of Freeride’s revenue goes to trail building, everything is custom-built for mountain biking. No need to wear a bell on your bike: hikers steer clear and the trails only point one way: DOWNHILL.

To prevent eye-rolling, I won’t go all BroDuro on you describing jumps, berms, and rocks. YAWN. I’ll skip the word shred and gnar too. (I for SURE won’t say braaap.)

Know that trails in Madeira vary widely, from flowy to steep roots and rocks, and that you’ll encounter all kinds of terrain. If you’re a mountain biker who likes enduro riding in beautiful places, you’ll dig Madeira!


Hiking in Madeira

Everything on Madeira is steep!

Don’t let wanna-be bros like me scare you off if you aren’t a mountain biker. The hiking in Madeira draws people from all over Europe as well. For good reason: it’s varied, beautiful, challenging, and easily accessible.

From the popular wind-swept peninsula at the eastern end of the island with falcons soaring above to peak to peak hiking above the clouds to lush, moody laurel forest to traversing irrigation canals through terraced fields, you can’t go wrong.

Speaking of fields, Madeira grows so.much.food and was almost entirely self-supporting for centuries. (It was discovered uninhabited only 600 years ago by Portugal.)

“Lavadas” or irrigation channels carry water in a network across the island and their access paths are the backbones for much of the hiking. We saw ox-strong old men hauling food and farming equipment just as their grandfathers did.

All you need to navigate ALL the hikes: the excellent WalkMe app. For $5, it guided our hiking efforts for our stay.

Hiking PR1: Pico do Arieiro and Pico Ruivo

Misty mountains and me descending some stairs on the PR1 hike.

There are plenty of blogs talking about favorite hikes in Madeira, so I’ll only describe my favorite, PR1: hiking above the clouds between Pico do Arieiro and Pico Ruivo, the two tallest peaks in Madeira. It’s a destination-worthy hike and one that attracts serious hikers kitted out in their finest gear with carbon trekking poles.

To get there, we drove straight up from sea level to 6,000’ on roads that felt like walls. Roaring along in 1st gear, our car felt like it might flip over backward if the road got any steeper. Chelsea gouged finger marks in the door panel she was so excited to get to the hike. (There’s a less-direct, well-graded option that we took on the way back.)

In the ten miles of hiking out-and-back, the trail features a dozen tunnels, thousands of stairs, and enough exposure to send people with vertigo into lockdown. To the north, a giant bank of clouds hovered below us; to the south, steep mountains dropped away to the ocean. A hike to remember.

A Destination Worth Visiting

In short, Madeira is SO COOL. The hiking. The mountain biking. The views of sunsets while sitting on a balcony overlooking the ocean. The stories about terrifying roads and plane landings… What else do you need for a magical trip?

View from the top of Pico Arieiro before heading back to Pico Ruivo. Such a cool hike!

Resources We Used:

My wise-and-awesome guide, Pedro. He’s taking a break from electrical engineering to guide awhile. Smart man!

This post ain’t sponsored, so the below is simply a reflection of the services we used:

  • Flying: Unless you’ve got a teleporter or a yacht (or can stomach a cruise ship), you’ve got to fly to Madeira. The landing is going to suck (I surveyed other tourists and 100% agreed), so steel yourself for that. There are lots of cheap flights from the European mainland.
  • Driving: We rented from Insular Car and they were awesome! Our car (a Clio) was billed as underpowered, but I found it to be a fun little rocketship. Second reminder: make sure you are SOLID at driving a manual transmission or driving will be a nightmare vs just entertaining. Lots of buses and shuttle services are available.
  • Lodging: Great deals abound. Lots of apartments in the $50-75/night range on Airbnb and tons of options on Booking.com.
  • Mountain bike guiding services: Look no further than Freeride Madeira. The guys are all cheery, friendly, helpful and excellent riders. Can’t go wrong with their services in my experience!
  • Finding Trails: Trailforks has many (but not all) of the mountain biking trails. The WalkMe app has all the hikes.

Once you get to Madeira, you’re in for a treat. HAVE FUN!

The coastline of Madeira seen while hiking Vereda da Ponta de Sao Lourenço.

Eye-Popping Awesomeness in Glacier National Park

View Grinnell Glacier hike

Our NW Montana/Canada road trip continues! Currently, we’re up in Canada enjoying most-excellent MTB trails near Canmore. Jasper and the Icefield Parkway beckon to the north as September steams ahead.

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The end of the NW Montana plains is a splendid sight as craggy peaks of green and white spike toward the moon. It’s the front range of the Rockies cracking the earth, a reward for miles of rolling hay fields. Welcome to Glacier National Park!

We pedaled through this gem in 2014 during our U.S. bicycle tour and I also roadtripped through last fall with my dad. Crazy as it seems though, I’d never done any of the iconic hiking for which Glacier is famous.

In an effort to maximize the crowds, we left my friend Keif’s wedding and arrived on the 100th anniversary of the U.S. National Park system. Thanks to a big berry season, encounters with bears also resulted in trail closures for three of the trails we had planned to hike.

A curious sheep in Glacier.

Not a bear! Just a curious mountain sheep in Glacier.

This served to funnel hikers up a small number of trails. My guess is it is a devious plot by the Glacier Grizzlies (a rough, tattooed gang) so the bears could pick and choose the fattest, slowest tourists to gobble up. (I’m kidding – bears don’t eat people. They just scare the beejeebus out of them.)

We still found quiet and alone time in the park. Hiking 15 miles anywhere will get you that! While a favorite is hard to choose, we loved the Highline and Grinnell Glacier trails, both famous and highly trafficked for a reason: THEY’RE AMAZING.

Chelsea enjoys a view west from Highline Trail.

Chelsea enjoys a view west from Highline Trail.

Grinnell Glacier

Accessed right from our campground at Many Glacier (HQ for three of four nights we stayed in the park), Grinnell is a must-do. Get there before the glaciers are gone! If you can’t, don’t worry – Glacier will still be a stunning place even without the white stuff.

Grinnell starts out through pretty pine forest while skirting Swiftcurrent Lake, then climb climb climbs up to the glacier. Along the way, views open up big and loud like a Christmas present from a favorite uncle. The sparkling lakes line up toward the plains, sharp peaks surround the trail, and you might even spy a mountain sheep gnawing on some foliage.

Mountain sheep Grinnell Glacier

At the top is a brilliant blue lake with icebergs floating in it, while Grinnell Glacier and the crest of the Continental Divide serve as the backdrop. Turn around and it’s an eye-popping view; stick your feet in the cold (SO COLD) glacial-melt water and your eyes will bug out a second time.

My advice: Hike a few hundred yards past the viewpoint to the glacier and find a flat, warm rock right next to the water to recline on. Soak in the majestic amphitheater and be stoked to witness such a fantastic place.

Take a small iceberg with you! They're great travel mementos.

Take a small iceberg with you! They’re great travel mementos.

Before you turn around to hike out, check out the view to the east from the lake rim. Lower Grinnell and Swiftcurrent lakes spill through the deep valley and it’s possible to see the plains rolling all the way to the Atlantic Ocean.

View from Grinnell Glacier

Highline Trail

This splendid trail is perfect for experiencing Glacier’s west side. You’ll snag expansive views toward Lake McDonald and likely spot mountain goats or sheep as you hike beneath the western crest of the Continental Divide. If you’re up for a steep spur hike, huff your way up a 900’ climb to overlook Grinnell Glacier for a panoramic view of the Rockies.

Highline starts right on Going-to-the-Sun Road, either at Logan Pass or down a few miles at The Loop. Free park shuttles connect the two, making logistics simple for a ~15 mile point-to-point hike. By starting at Logan, you’ll avoid a steep climb up from The Loop…though the knee-pounding descent from Granite Chalet to end the day had me questioning that logic. Pick your poison! Either way, it’s sweet.

Hiking Highline trail Glacier

Our initial plan was to hike Highline to Granite Chalet, then connect to Swiftcurrent Pass and head east down to the Many Glacier campground. Unfortunately, a woman encountered a bear the night before our hike and Swiftcurrent was shut down. (She was apparently only scratched up and recovering nicely in the hospital. Yikes! Note to self: don’t pick berries alone at 8 p.m. in bear country.)

Mountain sheep in Glacier National Park

No, I was not 2′ from this Manly Mountain Sheep – hooray for telephoto lenses!

Instead, we shuttled at both the start and end of the hike and still had a marvelous day. Traversing the ridge above Going-to-the-Sun Road yields big views that just keep expanding. Any hiker worth their trail mix will love this trek.

About a mile south of Granite Chalet is the spur trail to overlook Grinnell that is worth doing. Pro tip: No matter how badly you’re gasping and want to sit down at the top of the spur, KEEP GOING.

Another five minutes of fun scrambling to the next cliff gets you to a 360 viewpoint of Swiftcurrent and Grinnell, plus a vantage west across the rest of the park. Another hiker mentioned this to me and it was worth it. At the top, you’ll be alone and grinning like Yogi Bear in a picnic basket.

Does it get any better than this? Can you spot Lake Superior in the distance?

View from the top! Does it get any better than this?

Two Medicine Lake – Pitamaken/Dawson Loop

A few people told me that the 18-mile Pitamaken/Dawson Pass loop is the best hike they’ve ever done. We rolled in late and didn’t get a chance to do anything but a shorter loop near the lake, but this one is on my list. For you confident day hikers down for a big day with 3,300’ of elevation gain, hit it up and send me a picture!

Instead, I enjoyed a sunrise the next morning that had my jaw scraping the lake shore.

I'll get up at sunrise ANY day for a view like this.

I’ll get up at sunrise ANY day for this.

Shout Out for The Bob Marshall, Land of Solitude

Want to dodge the summer crowds? An hour south of Glacier is the Bob Marshall Wilderness, the fifth-largest wilderness area in the lower 48. The list of wild animals here starts with mountain lions and grizzlies and ends with “hike in large groups.”

The Bob just FEELS wild. Pre-blog in 2011 (when my life was a secret), I spent 10 glorious days backpacking and rafting there. I’ll admit to feeling more on edge at night there than anywhere else I’ve camped. Bivy sacks are basically tortilla shells for grizzly bears, after all.

Chelsea tries to summon lightning near the top of HQ Pass.

Chelsea tries to summon lightning near the top of HQ Pass in the Bob Marshall.

This time around, Chelsea and I hit the Bob by driving 35 miles west from Choteau to hike Headquarters Creek Pass. (Thanks for the tip, Eric!) We trekked the entire eight miles completely alone as we switchbacked our way up to the pass. Pika popped in and out of rock slides doing their best squeaky-toy impersonations; spruce grouse blocked our way on the trail and eyed us as if to ask, “what are you doing here?”

Thanks to our wimpy bear bells, loud talking, and Chelsea singing to iPhone backup from Kanye, the Grizzly Gang didn’t make an appearance. Instead, we enjoyed a expansive views east over the Montana plains, followed by perfect wild camping by a stream in solitude broken only by curious deer meandering past. It was tremendous.

A spruce grouse (or so my amateur birding skills claim) in the Bob.

A spruce grouse (or so my amateur birding skills claim) in the Bob.

The Bob: Check it out.

Glacier: Check it out, but aim for the shoulder seasons.

I’ll leave you with another decent view from Glacier.

Whether you come for the glaciers or the views, you can't go wrong in Glacier! (Shot from Grinnell Glacier trail.)

Whether you come for the glaciers or the views, you can’t go wrong in Glacier! (Shot from Grinnell Glacier trail.)

Acadia National Park Will Rock Your Socks Off

Precipice Trail topout

Acadia National Park has a magnetic pull to it. “OH, you HAVE to go to Acadia!” was the first thing many people told us upon discovering we were finishing our bike tour in Maine.

And so we did. And they were right, it’s stunning. So are all the parts of Maine that we visited, but Acadia is the crown jewel.

Maine has more coastline than any other state except Alaska. Why? There are 12.7 million (give or take) inlets, bays, harbors and other nifty names for places to paddle or sail a boat into. For those who prefer the comfort of earth beneath their feet, pink granite is the rock of choice locally, and big outcroppings and mountains of it are tremendous fun to hike on. Mainers keep things interesting with dangerous (to some) iron rungs on steep ascents. My kind of hiking.

Fall colors were fading a bit toward late October, but were still quite nice!

Fall colors were fading a bit toward late October, but were still quite nice!

We spent a full week in Bar Harbor, gateway to Acadia, and were out in nature every single day. Beyond learning some local phrases such as wicked pissah (rain storm), tag sale (yard sale) and door yard (driveway), we spent hours exploring the beautiful expanse of national park on foot and bikes.

And so should you. Yep, that’s right, I’m a convert. You HAVE to visit Acadia the next time you’re anywhere near Maine.

I’ll leave it there and let the pictures do the talking. I threw in a few more from south of Acadia in Camden, which is also well worth a visit.

Onward,

Dakota

Twice a day at low tide, it's possible to hike along a thin sand bar out to Bar Island for a view of the town.

Twice a day at low tide, it’s possible to hike along a thin sand bar out to Bar Island for a view of the town.

A great vista of Jordan Pond and the Atlantic Ocean from Acadia National Park on the (very rad) Jordan Cliffs hike.

A great vista of Jordan Pond and the Atlantic Ocean from Acadia National Park on the (very rad) Jordan Cliffs hike.

Pink granite on a foggy day in Acadia.

Pink granite on a foggy day in Acadia.

A narrow, old-school walkway on a hike in Acadia.

A narrow, old-school walkway on a hike in Acadia.

Acadia granite is used to make signature cairns all over the park.

Acadia granite is used to make signature cairns all over the park.

Hanging out on Precipice Trail. My kinda hike. :)

Hanging out on Precipice Trail. My kinda hike. 🙂

Chelsea "hiking" up Precipice Trail. Yep, her badass parents scaled the cliff with us.

Chelsea “hiking” up Precipice Trail. Yep, her badass parents scaled the cliff with us.

Acadia is so old that a few of the trails use "unsafe" (pffft) iron rungs and ladders from over a century ago rather than rerouting hikers along a boring route. So. Fun.

Acadia is so old that a few of the trails use “unsafe” (pffft) iron rungs and ladders from over a century ago rather than rerouting hikers along a boring route. So. Fun.

A great vista in Acadia.

A great vista in Acadia.

J.D. Rockefeller Jr. put in the carriage trail system in Acadia almost a century ago. Which is why this photo is tinted...

J.D. Rockefeller Jr. put in the carriage trail system in Acadia almost a century ago. Which is why this photo is tinted…

Hiking along the cliffs at the SE corner of Acadia along the ocean.

Hiking along the cliffs at the SE corner of Acadia along the ocean.

A sunset walk along the waterfront in Bar Harbor, Maine.

A sunset walk along the waterfront in Bar Harbor, Maine.

Cairns at sunset.

Cairns at sunset.

A cold, sunny day overlooking the Maine coast.

A cold, sunny day overlooking the Maine coast.

A view from the turrets of a World War 1 memorial overlooking the quaint town of Camden, Maine.

A view from the turrets of a World War 1 memorial overlooking the quaint town of Camden, Maine.

Hikes are all about views like this.

Hikes are all about views like this. Somewhere near Camden, Maine on an amazing fall day.