Pico do Concelho Hike On Porto Santo Island

The Pico do Concelho hike on Porto Santo Island is a steep climb up an undefined trail, which rewards hikers with epic views along the east coast of the island. It’s a perfect hike for sunrise and I can all but guarantee you will be up there alone as the sun creeps over the horizon to announce a new day.

HOW TO GET TO THE PICO DO CONCELHO HIKE

I wish I could give you a perfect starting point but I can’t. Although there were a few random trails near the lower area of the hill, none of them went all the way to the summit. I parked in the Porto dos Frades parking lot and then basically went straight up the hill toward the summit. I’ll add the pin location for the parking lot below and then you can view the map I linked to above if you are interested in what route we took up.

MY EXPERIENCE ON THE PICO DO CONCELHO HIKE

This morning was all about steep climbs. I first had to ride my bike from Vila Baleira, up and over the windmills at Portela Viewpoint, and then down to Porto dos Frades. We locked up in the parking lot and decided to just head straight up the hill. There seemed to be no clear trail and in the darkness of dawn, we didn’t have much choice.

If you are trying to do this hike for sunrise, I would leave about an hour before the sun will rise. It took me 40 minutes to reach the pillar at the summit and we went pretty quick so we had a few spare minutes before the sun came up.

So, the climb up is a bit interesting. There was no clear route so we took a direct line to the top more or less. However, there are a few channels that have been eroded in the rocky surface so you can’t cross those. The big one is near the house by the coast but there are a couple of others. You will see them when you arrive. Basically, you just pick a route to the top and try and come around the left side of the mountain when you are looking towards the hill from the parking lot. The access from the left side is much easier in the final moments. This photo was obviously taken on the way back down when it was light enough to see.

Once you reach the first little summit, it is just a short walk along the ridge to the coastal viewpoint of Pico do Concelho. We arrived at the final viewpoint just before the sun was about to rise. The clouds were playing havoc, as they so often are on Porto Santo, which made it difficult for the sun to breakthrough. However, the cloud cover did produce some pretty amazing light rays as they shot through the thick layer of clouds over the ocean.

The views from the top are actually pretty epic. On the left, you look down the coast to the north and can see directly to Pico Branco and Terra Chã. To the right, you can see all the way to Pico de Baixo and the small island in the distance called Ilhéu de Cima. Below, you have a great view of the incredible Porto dos Frades tidal pools, which are a great spot for snorkeling. I think the best part about the view was just how wild and free it felt. There was zero chance of another hiker coming up to join us and we felt on top of the island, all by ourselves.

The walk back down was pretty tricky due to the slippery gravel. We basically took the same route down as you can see on the map I linked above. The idea is to take it slowly and not rush down and you should be fine apart from the occasional small slip. The total moving time for the hike was just over an hour but we hung out at the summit for over an hour so we ended up spending almost three hours on our adventure.

I hope you enjoyed this guide about the Pico do Concelho hike on Porto Santo Island.