The Legend tells you what the arrows í mean and how the terms "right" and "left" are used.

Outline of Tracks
and  Classification

Cabeço dos Tarafes - Odjo d' Mar - Fundo das Figueiras

 

An emerald hides in the rocky heart of the island by the name of Odjo d' Mar. The creole word means sweat water lake - unique on the arquipelago. Divers have tried to discover all its secrets and tell us that it is 3.70 m deep, while the diamond cave deep under with its magic dragons and pink sharks still resisted dicovery - just gravel.

Like in any good tale, it is difficult to get hold of the precious stones. In this case, you don't need a Abrakadabra but 2 Liters of drinking water, mountain boots, sun protection, map and a compass to succeed. A swim suit and a torch (better two) identify the experiened adventure girls and boys.

Starting Point is the little village of Cabeço dos Tarafes, better to say the very first houses of the village when arriving from the North. Some isolated houses are found on the shoulder of the western slope and we take their access paths ç . [OIDA01] Only a few meters later a car track starts [OIDA02] to accompany a former water line man ç upphill. Some 20 minutes later, on the Lomba de Palha, a little dustroad turns in. [OIDA03]

Continuing upphill í the dustroad ends in a quarry. [OIDA04] Now, there are two ways to access the fabulous Odjo d'Mar.

Version 1 for the silent majority:
From the quarry, there is a goat track uphills, you shout NOT take. Just smoothly descent to the ground î of Rª  do Odjo d' Mar* and follow it upstream çí.

Version 2 for Harry Potter and friends:
You follow  í the goat track climbing to a lonely tree in the middle of the rocks. Here you find an iron door. [OIDA06] Behind is not the very treasure nor a secret letter, but a "Galeria", sort of tunnel to bring water trom deep in the mountains to the surface.
Further on, the trail continues uphill, reaching a softer slope. Slightly descending ê it points to a farmhouse Fonte da Rochina under a group of palmtrees on top of the waterfall and the Odjo d' Mar. Only when having come as close as 300 m, when the path start to turn in to Fonte de Rochinha, there is a rather difficult - sometime none - path going down the steep slope to the lake. As we told you - version 1 offers you less hardship!

The way back is done the easies way by walking down the waterline of Rª  do Odjo d' Mar* ì until it turns Southeast î. [OIDA12] Use the left side-valley to ëget back to the quarry. ì At the described bifurcation [OIDA03] you may not want to walk back all the same way. Follow the tracks down to the chruch of Fundo das Figueiras ì.