Trails
Vereda da Lagoa do Vento (PR6.3)
From Rabaçal to the waterfall pool of Lagoa do Vento and back
The place
Vereda da Lagoa do Vento is the official PR6.3, a short walk at Rabaçal that goes out to Lagoa do Vento and comes back the same way: 1.8 km each way, 3.6 km in all. It starts about 200 m from the Rabaçal shelter, the Casa de Abrigo do Rabaçal, beside the path that climbs to the ER 105. Visit Madeira rates it easy and puts it at about 1 hour 30 minutes there and back.
The path runs through a transition zone between high-altitude heath and the laurel forest, the laurissilva, where Madeira blueberry and laurel grow. Further on it forks: the right branch goes to the Levada do Alecrim, the PR6.2, and the left one to Lagoa do Vento, a pool fed by the Ribeira do Lajeado, which drops into it as a waterfall from the top of the cliff. From the pool you walk back the same way; Visit Madeira also suggests climbing to the ER 105 along the Levada do Alecrim.
Highlights
- The path crosses the transition from high-altitude heath to laurissilva, with Madeira blueberry and laurel.
- At the fork the right branch heads for the Levada do Alecrim and the left one for Lagoa do Vento.
- Lagoa do Vento is a pool where the Ribeira do Lajeado falls as a waterfall from the top of the cliff.
When to come
Any dry day. At about an hour and a half there and back, it fits easily into a longer day at Rabaçal.
Getting there
Walk down the path from the ER 105 towards Rabaçal: the route starts beside it, about 200 m from the Casa de Abrigo do Rabaçal. Come back the same way or, as Visit Madeira suggests, return to the fork and climb to the ER 105 along the Levada do Alecrim (PR6.2).
Worth knowing
- Booking and fee: pay through SIMplifica; €4.50 in 2026 for visitors over 12, with children 12 and under exempt.
- Distance and time: 1.8 km each way, 3.6 km in all; Visit Madeira gives about 1 hour 30 minutes there and back.
- Difficulty: easy.
- Route: out and back on the same path; keep left at the fork for Lagoa do Vento.
- Status: open on the IFCN list on 4 November 2026; check IFCN or SIMplifica before you go.
