This is probably the most popular Levada walk in Madeira. It starts at the regional road 110, in Paúl da Serra which is located at approximately 1000 meters above sea level. We start walking down a paved road towards the Forest House of Rabaçal. While walking down through Rabaçal’s valley we are surrounded by multiple shades of green. This is considered to be one of the most beautiful valleys of Madeira.
After Rabaçal’s house, we follow Levada do Risco that takes us to an impressive waterfall which is also called Risco. Here there is a balcony where we can rest and enjoy the extraordinary cascade which falls vertically from 100 meters high creating a ridge in the rock.
Afterward, we continue going down and follow the 25 Fontes Levada to reach the second waterfall. The 25 Fontes waterfall descends from 30 meters high. Its name derives from the fact that there are at least 25 springs created by the water that comes down from Paúl da Serra. At the base of the waterfall, there is a small lagoon surrounded by giant ferns.
The water from the Levada do Risco and Levada of 25 Fontes flow parallel to each other, both heading to the Hydroelectric Power Station in Calheta. The water is carried on to irrigate agricultural land.
Along this beautiful walk, the landscape is dominated by altitude heaths, which include the tree heather, the besom heath, and the Madeira bilberry. We can also observe the rare mountain mocano. These species are part of the Laurissilva Forest of Madeira, which was classified in 1999 as a Natural Heritage Site by UNESCO. Among many species of birds, hopefully, we can find the long-toed pigeon, a unique species of Madeira.
After returning to the shelter house of Rabaçal, we either take the long tunnel which leads us towards the regional road 211 in Calheta, or we return through the same track to Paúl da Serra.
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