Levada do Caldeirão Verde — The Green Cauldron

The Levada do Caldeirão Verde (PR9) is Madeira's most famous and one of the most spectacular Levada hikes — a path through the deepest laurel forest, through dark tunnels and past waterfalls to a natural amphitheater where a 100-meter high waterfall plunges into an emerald green pool.

The Route

Start: Queimadas Forestry Park (880 m altitude, parking available)
Length: 13 km round trip (6.5 km each way)
Duration: 4–5 hours (round trip)
Difficulty: Medium — relatively flat, but tunnels and narrow sections
Elevation Difference: Minimal (the path follows the Levada at a constant level)

The path initially leads through dense laurel forest — moss-covered trunks, tree ferns, banks of mist, and a silence only broken by the trickling of the Levada. After about 3 km, you reach the tunnels — four in total, the longest about 200 meters. In rubber boots and with a headlamp, you wade through ankle-deep water while the rock drips above you. Adventurous and unforgettable.

At the end, the valley opens into a natural amphitheater: The Caldeirão Verde (Green Cauldron) is a circular rock basin into which a 100-meter high waterfall plunges — surrounded by lush greenery and ferns. A magical place. Those who still have energy can continue to the Caldeirão do Inferno (Hell's Cauldron) — an additional 2.5 km, with even more tunnels and a second, equally impressive waterfall.