Judging Water Depth from a Distance

Land is something we search for when out at sea, but also something that can destroy our yachts if we bump into it. How close can you get to land? 

An easy way to think of land is to ignore the water you see. Now, you will be looking at topography without the water obscuring your view. The land you see is actually just taller points of the ocean floor that managed to perforate the surface of the water. 

Since the water is out of the picture, simply visualize the land extending off into the distance. You know how deep the water you are floating in is, so you know how far down the island needs to reach to make it all the way to the oceans floor. If the edge of the land comes in steep, then it is safe to interpret that the topography will continue on its steep path all the way down into the water. If the land comes in nice and gradually, then you can assume that it will also continue to proceed at a slight slope under the water.  

Steep land means that it will probably be very deep right up to the waters edge, while slow and gradual land will be shallow far from shore.  

With these ideas in mind, you can figure out how safest to navigate around land masses. Steep cliffs will be deep but the landmass can destroy your hull, while gradual shores will be shallow (and provide a bottom that your anchor could possibly reach). 

Beach Bull

It seems that cows have free reign in the Azores. We came across a cow that was standing in the middle of the highway because it wanted to eat the grass that was growing on the side of the road. This bull was not tied to anything, and could easily have charged us, but it was just eating grass while it looked at the waves breaking on the cobblestone beach. 

The bull seemed pretty calm and relaxed, but I would still not recommend grabbing this bull by the horns!

Poço Ribeiras do Ferreiro, Again!

These waterfalls are considered to be the most gorgeous waterfalls in all of the Azores, and there are a lot of waterfalls on these islands! 

A few days ago, we saw them for the first time and were in awe at their beauty. Today, the weather was clearer and bits of blue sky were poking through the clouds. We decided to see them again, in the morning sunlight. 

Sometimes, when you see something amazing and then go away, your mind can manipulate your memory and exaggerate what you thought you saw. Upon returning to see it again, you might become disappointed because it is a far cry from what you thought was there. Reality can hurt like that sometimes. 

These falls did not disappoint! It had been a few days since we last saw them and they were, honestly, more spectacular the second time around! Instead of filming and recording everything we do when we first got there for our YouTube channel, we just sat there and took it in.  

Sitting on a small boulder that is jutting up out of the ground as you gaze upon the power of the waterfall will clear your mind and make you realize that no matter how hard you struggle, time will flow on, and it will work itself out in the end.  

The water that was calmly flowing through the river suddenly comes to a cliff and freefalls several hundred feet. Wind will push it one way or another trying to pull it in untold directions as the water falls. In the end, the water will reach the bottom and continue flowing on as it once was, with the chaos of the fall a distant memory in its long journey of life. 

Flowers in Flores

Flores means Flowers in Portuguese, and this island does not disappoint! In the spring, the island is supposedly covered in flowers, but in the winter, flowers still shine through. 

We see many remains of hydrangeas that had bloomed, now covered in the brown remains of their white or blue flowers, and other plants that have since gone to fruit after the blooming has ceased. That said, the island is covered in plants and there are some that choose to bloom at different times. These select plants have much less competition from the other plants for the attention of bees! Bees seem to be condensed around the few flowering plants, giving them all the attention they could desire, making it rather beneficial for the plants to bloom at a time away from all the other plants.

Poço Ribeiras do Ferreiro

These waterfalls are considered to be the most gorgeous waterfalls in all of the Azores!

The are located on the island of Flores, and lay peacefully waiting your presence just a mere 600 meters from the street. 

Maddie and I did the hike up the magical stone walkway, through trees, ferns, and along the small stream that drains the lake into the ocean. When we got up there, it was so beautiful and majestic that we sat in awe in the presence of these falls. Watching the water pour over the cliff through all the small cracks and valleys so high up is breathtaking.

Being how we visited Flores in the winter, which is their rainy season, we got to witness many more tiny waterfalls on the cliff side. Most people visit here in the summer when the days are dry, but this also means that the waterfalls are dry. Only the largest of the falls will remain during this season, but in the winter, all the little falls will be pouring out wispy sprays that are carried off by the wind into a fine mist that spreads out over the cliff face. 

Having seen many waterfalls on our first day in Flores, I must say that these really were the most spectacular and memorable of them all!