If you like nature and are fans of trees (just like me) you have to visit this place! The Laurel Forest (Laurissilva) Fanal in Madeira is a paradise for "tree-loving" people. This amazing place is situated on the Paul da Serra mountain plateau in the northwest of Madeira. The giant trees look like they're just waiting for a sign to get up and move like the Ents in Lord of the Rings. This forest, depending on the weather, has a huge fairy-tale-horror potential. In summer it is foggy and cloudy almost all the time (95% of the days), and in winter about 50-60% of the time. It is worth coming here several times at different times of the day and year to see this amazing place in different conditions. We have been here twice and with each visit this place made a completely different impression.
The easiest way to reach the magical Fanal forest in Madeira is by car. There is about 50 kilometers from Funchal to the car park next to the forest. I marked the parking lot by road no. ER209 on the Google map.
A place known for eternal mists here welcomed us with blue skies and amazing greenery. We have found that in winter there are many more sunny days here than in summer. In such weather, we could see these ancient trees, enchanting with their form.
Laurel forests existed in southern Europe from 15 to 40 million years ago. Currently, it can only be seen in Madeira, the Canary Islands and the Azores. Madeira's laurel forests are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
A walk through the Fanal Forest is a nature journey through time. There are several hiking and biking trails in this area, so you can spend a few hours admiring the trees and landscapes.
I like trees very much. I love being among them, looking at them, admiring forms and shapes, and of course photographing them. That's why this place was like a magnet for me and it was hard for me to get out of it.
Each tree is different, each one is interesting ... growing here for several hundred years, it took on amazing forms ...
Macaronesian laurel forests come from the Tertiary ... who knows ... maybe they even remember the times of the dinosaurs ...
The Fanal Forest is perhaps an example of a primeval forest (primary forest, virgin forest) that has not been modified by man.
When we visited this place on a summer evening it was completely different.
Evening in the woods in Madeira
The evening in the woods was quiet and peaceful. Shapes of trees covered with mosses and ferns appeared from the mists ...
Pictures like from a horror movie
Dusk was falling. This forest was so dark and mysterious. You can shoot horror movies there.
More attractions of interesting places on this beautiful island can be seen in the gallery: Visiting Madeira.
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