Island of Fogo, Cape Vert Archipelago
This second island of the Cape Vert Archipelago forms part of the southern group of islands, together with Brava, Santiago and Maio. As we approached it, the great volcano (Pico Novo), at 2,829 meters of altitude, was semi-hidden in the dense, high clouds. This island consists mainly of the huge volcano with its very high caldera-type walls, the big peak (formed in 1959), and the newer and smaller accessory cone, formed during the 1995 explosion, which forced almost everybody off the island. Great amounts of volcanic ashes, rocks and lava were spewed on both last occasions, forming an almost lunar landscape, rough and beautiful.
We went off in two different groups, one up into the crater of the tall volcano, and the other to the wet side of the island, to visit the lovely fishing town of Salinas and the famous and huge baobab tree in its vicinity.
Those of us on the first group drove a small distance along the coast, and then turned up, using roads made of pure volcanic rock, without asphalt or cement! A few communities were encountered and, as we increased our altitude, the land began becoming greener, and eventually crops were seen, mostly of corn. The sights were incredible as we reached the middle of the volcano, and the colors made a strong contrast with the blue sky. Reds, blacks and so many tones of browns! Solid basalt and fluffy scoria, as well as large slopes covered with black sand. Up we went following the road into the huge crater, crossing badlands and rock-strewn fields. A few houses built of this basalt, with children and chickens and maybe a donkey were seen, as well as a few dried-out, yellowish plants. And then we reached the community inside the crater, called Cha das Caldeiras (town of the cauldrons, referring to the volcanic cones). A small cozy hotel, as well as a winemaking plant and an information center formed the hub of the community. Two churches nurtured the souls of the locals. Here we had the opportunity of climbing on the hotel's roof, affording us an incredible view of the surroundings.
Botanically this is an incredible place, where just inside the crater, seven species of endemic plants are to be found, including white bells-of-Scotland, some members of the aster family, and some even rarer species. Many important food plants are grown inside, including corn, grapes, peaches and beans. After a stay of about two hours, we slowly began our return trip to the seaside at Porto de Vale dos Cavaleiros (Port of the Valley of the Knights), where we boarded our Zodiacs and returned to our ship. If your interest lies with birds, this is the place to look out for rare kingfishers-turned insect eaters! We saw several of these colorful animals on the telephone wires.
After lunch, Zodiacs took us to that part of the island, and some of us swam in the transparent and warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
