Azores - Azzorre car tours and walks

Guide to discovering the Azores Islands, an archipelago of volcanic origin located in the North Atlantic Ocean which constitutes an autonomous region of Portugal. Through 30 walking excursions and 5 tourist itineraries, the particularities of this archipelago emerge: geology, flora and wonderful natural panoramas. With cartographic tables and overview map of the 9 islands, text in English. São Miguel, Terceira, Flores, Pico, Corvo, Santa Maria, São Jorge, Faial, Graciosa, Sabrina Island. The guide, with accompanying fold-out touring maps, describes three car tours on Sao Miguel and one each on Terceira and Faial; all drives highlight places where you can stop for a walk or just a stroll to a lovely picnic setting. But the major part of the book is devoted to 30 main walks and their many variations, spread over all nine islands, and all illustrated with large-scale topographical maps (1:50,000). The Azores, nine islands in the Atlantic halfway between the Old World and the New, rise above sea level from a depth of several thousand metres. They are all volcanic in origin and all are covered in this guide. They are not the remains of the legendary continent of Atlantis, which is said to have sunk in the ocean once upon a time. Nonetheless, there is an aura of mystery about this lush green archipelago. The archipelago is a paradise for lovers of natural landscapes. There are awe-inspiring mountains (like Pico, the highest in Portugal), peaceful valleys with exotic plants, enchanting lakes of stunning beauty amidst extinct volcanic craters, charming hill country with fields and meadows, spectacular hydrangea hedges criss-crossing the landscape, and magnificent coasts lined by picturesque villages and historical towns.