Important recommandations to read
Today, all the canyons are equipped with gouge 10mm stainless or sometimes even with pins stainless. Some of them, because of lack of material of equipment include natural anchors, spits or steps without equipment that can be climbed down carefully when they are dry. The wet steps cannot be climbed down.
Some canyons were not descended since their opening. Thus, it is essential to take with oneself material of re-equipment in order to replace the damaged anchors by the swellings or strong moisture. Some of them can be hidden by the vegetation, damaged, or even missing. The rings of cord can suffer from the same fate, and even, according to the site of the anchorrage, have been stolen by the local population.
We cannot be responsibles for the changes on the anchors, ways and tracks, like any change of the state of the interior of the canyon. In certain cases, the plates were hammered with stones to be stolen, without success. Some anchors have disappeared, leaving extracted and broken gouges.
The heights of waterfalls of the most traditional canyons have all been measured again and are normally indicated on topographies with two meters more than in the canyon. In certain cases and especially at the bottom of the waterfalls, there can be differences because of lack of water, overdeepening of the bottom of the waterfall by the swellings, or on the contrary by the filling of the pools by sediments.
The technical difficulty of certain descents (because of the height of the fall) makes that few canyonists can appreciate their beauty. Some have incredible colors.
The canyons that run all the year are equipped such a manner to facilitate as possible the descent. The large cascades with belays can be roped down with ropes that don’t exceed 60m. The old belays dating from the opening of the canyons can need ropes more than 60m length. We give as a limit 65m. Check on the topography and the card of re-equipment if you have it.
Attention, there’s no control panels, names of villages, names of valleys or rivers… The language does not allow an easy comprehension, even if with kindness all the world will answer you that it is not true. Then: surprised! “It is not possible!!! a deviation…”. The other panels are erased or broken. The inhabitants give different names for the same place, and the road maps are not very useful. However, they all will tell you “yes”: and then: surprised!
According to the time of the year, some paths are difficult to find because of the luxuriant vegetation. Sometimes, the inhabitant can cultivate directly on the way. Also, there are passages which are very old, where the vegetation completely disappeared because of the swellings. The fog can be very thick and even very wet, sometimes comparable with rain. All the paths are not marked out perfectly, painting being erased from rocks because of the rain or the children. The polished and wet basalt rocks can slip. Attention with the shocks in the rappels and the steps. In certain occasions, some steps will be climbed down, even if they are equipped. In the jumps and toboggans, it is imperative to probe the pools to make sure of the absence of stones or obstacles. Attention, the wet grounds slip really much, and even more if the grounds are rocky. Polished basalt slips like soap or oil.
Attention with dehydration. Take with you much wáter. Especially in the driest parts of the island, we advise a minimum of two liters per person. The sun combined with the moisture of the fog contribute to an important loss of water which at first sight is unperceivable. It is good to take vitamins.
Your sun lotions must specify at least index 15. Else, you must be covered.
For the great courses, we advise to start very early in the morning, more especially because here the sun disappears quickly: between 7 pm and 7.30 pm in summer, 2 hours earlier in winter, and April, the sun disappears towards 6 pm.
The basaltic rock is very aggressive for the ropes : take care with frictions. Sometimes, the rocks are abrasive like knives and can cause ruptures. Prudence also with the fine basalt particles which are introduced into fibres of the rope and can deteriorate the descenders and the carabiners.
The stone falls can cause accidents. Thus, try to go down always slightly on the left or on the right of the rappel line in the high falls, and try to join the anchor only two meters front. Never go down under the bemay. The site of certain anchors imposes a descent on the center of the fall : be careful ! Also, it is important to take the material on your back or on the side and never hang it in order to avoid causing stone falls.
Before descending, check the quality of the anchor or the rings of ropes or straps. Especially, never equip abseils on the trees which push in wall. Check before suspending you on the anchor.
It may happen that certain steps are not equipped (belay or missing rings of cords). As we described previously, some inhabitants regard them as treasures and carry them on their premises. They are the children and the young people of the country…
Here exists a kind of bramble which is called “Trepadeira” It is truly slashing. The lack of torrential water caused its proliferation in the entire island. The only advantage is that it produces splendid flowers with various colors and a fruit which resembles blackberry. The papyruses are not cutting and will give colours to your descents. The most dangerous insects are spiders. There is only one kind which is poisonous but she lives in the ghettos. In mountain, the scolopandres can measure up to 25 cm. Their puncture is comparable with the scorpions one, but the cases are rares.
The shuttles of certain canyons are really very long. At all, they can approach the 4 hours between the demounting of the first vehicle to the downer parking, the way to the upper parking, and the way return take back the vehicle left at the upper parking.It is really preferable to use the minibus with drivers who will take the morning to you and will redeposit you at the same place in end-of-day. Try another means can cause some surprises. We are on an island in the middle of the ocean. All the councils we give you were taught by our experience after having corrected the errors we made. We will not change the habits of the inhabitants. Transport, we always carried out it like that in the great descents, and we can ensure that it works very well, you will see.
By considering the drive in and the walk in of the canyon, we advise you to leave early.
Because of the lack of roads and a very steep profile, the great descents of this island need very long shuttles and accesses, that are sometimes very complexes. We will indicate them in specific texts that will help you to recognize key places to reach and leave the canyon. Thus, these precise texts, combined with the shuttles by minibus that will deposit you and will take you back at the precise points, will enable you to benefit the maximum of your descent in a full serenity.
The basaltic rock is very hard, even extremely hard. Thus, it uses very strongly the spits. To take a great number of spits. Sometimes, we used 4 spits to drill only one hole. Be vigilant also with the type of rock which can be porous or fractured. Also, we can meet layers of volcanic ash, which represent a risky place to equip.
The colors made this island a paradise of mixtures of greens, reds, oranges, yellows and blacks giving rise to more than 14 colors of sand.
The long courses are a kind of challenge for the inhabitants for many years. Insular insulation, and the fact of living in parts far away from the island led these men, for their survival, to reach the sheer places most strange, to create ways “suspended” on the walls to go and seek a source, or to cultivate a ground corner to more close to water.
Also, you won’t only be amazed by the landscapes, but also you will be filled with wonder of a wild environment and total survival.
The human heat of these people, their children, their joy, their musics and songs create a special feeling of Santo Antao island.
The climate between January and May is comparable with the dry summer and heat that we have in Europe, but here with periods of strong very wet fog or fogs dry.
While on a side of the island the temperature borders the 25 with 30°C, in mountain, the temperature can go down up to 10°C with fog and wind.
Sometimes, some zones of condensation between 400m and 600m of altitude can form intermediate zones of fog which can be mobiles. It never rains at that time of the year, there’s only of the fog with 100% of moisture in the average and high zones.
If you take account of our experience that we describe here, you’ll see that you journey will be more pleasant an simpler.
Curiosities:
Often, we will be in strange places that seem out-of-the-way. In some canyons, we will go with you to the first fall, and in others, we will wait you at the bottom of the waterfall, seeing you going down. The anecdotes will be numerous each day. We will be able to send the photos to you if you give us your names and addresses.
And attention also with brandy of the island, titrated with more 60°, which is drunk at any hour like clear water…
