PR3 Vereda do Burro

PR3 is a high mountain path, not a levada, dropping 7.2 kilometres and about 675 metres in altitude from just below the summit of Pico do Areeiro down to the Ecological Park reception at Ribeira das Cales, a walk of roughly two hours forty minutes. The route stays inside the endemic vegetation zone near the peaks for its upper half, with open views across the Ribeira do Cidrão valley and out toward the Paúl da Serra plateau on clear days. Partway down stands the Poço da Neve, an igloo-shaped stone pit built in 1813 to store snow and hail gathered on the high peaks before refrigeration existed, one of the few built structures on an otherwise wild stretch of trail. Stick to April through October: above 1,800 metres, winter brings real cold, fog, wind, and the chance of ice or snow underfoot.

Vereda do Burro (PR3) is a one way route of about 7.2 km in Madeira.

A real, mapped connector links it to PR3.1. See the Trail Chain option on the map for the walked distance.

Along the way you'll find high mountain terrain, endemic Madeiran flora, historic features, panoramic viewpoints, a mountain summit, laurel forest (laurisilva) and exposed, drop-side sections.

Landmarks on the route include Astronomia, Arieiro, Lagoa, Pico do Arieiro, Poço da Neve and Meires.

The path runs between roughly 1,130 m and 1,805 m above sea level, so conditions can change with altitude.

Vereda do Burro rates as hard on our objective scale, based on 7.2 km, 64 m of ascent and high exposure.

This grade is an estimate from distance, ascent and exposure, not an official IFCN rating.

Allow about 2h 40m one way, a point-to-point route.

The app's live 0-100 score also flags the latest safe start time for the day. See it in the app.

Starts at Pico do Areeiro. Ends at Ribeira das Cales (Receção Parque Ecológico do Funchal). This is a one-way route, so you finish where your car is not: plan a second car, a taxi from the far end, or the walk back before you set off. The car park at the start has room for about 30.

Apr to Oct; avoid winter (cold, fog, wind and possible ice/snow at 1800m)

High trails are best early: clear summits and the chance of a sunrise above the clouds before the cloud builds.

This route is mostly open to the sun, so it bites on a hot, clear day. Start early and carry more water than you think you need.

The sun and shade reading comes from the slope's aspect and steepness, so it describes terrain shading and not tree cover.

A live 0-100 score picks the best 30-minute window for the day. See today's window in the app.

Vereda do Burro is an official classified route, but IFCN lists Câmara Municipal do Funchal as its managing entity rather than IFCN itself. IFCN only sells reservations for the routes it manages, which is why Vereda do Burro has no slot on the SIMplifica portal and no reservation fee.

According to IFCN, as of 9 Sept 2026, this trail is currently officially open.

IFCN lists Câmara Municipal do Funchal as the managing entity for this route, not IFCN itself, and IFCN publishes status for the routes it manages, so a restriction decided by Câmara Municipal do Funchal may never appear in the line above.

IFCN's own status page is dated 24 Jul 2026. The date above (9 Sept 2026) is ours: it records when we last read that page, not when IFCN wrote it.

Official status can change, so always check the latest before you go.

Fire and other live hazards near this trail are tracked on the Madeira trail alerts page