Vereda do Galhano e Levada da Ribeira da Janela

This is the longest walk in the catalog and most of what makes it hard is underground. It starts high, at a signed turning off the ER 105 near the Paúl da Serra junction, where tall heather stands over the path and the Atlantic sits far below. A broad track drops through laurisilva until, at around 560 metres, wooden steps wind down the valley to the Levada da Ribeira da Janela. From there the walk belongs to the water. The channel was cut by hand to feed the Ribeira da Janela power station, and following it means going through the mountain rather than around it: twelve tunnels, the longest close to a kilometre and a quarter, some of them low enough that you walk with your head tilted. Waterfalls cross the path and a few have to be walked under. Between the tunnels the forest opens onto long views down the valleys, and at one portal you pass the levadeiros' house, where the men who maintain the channel still work. It is a one-way route, so arrange the way back before you set off, and treat the torch as equipment rather than a precaution.

Vereda do Galhano e Levada da Ribeira da Janela (V-GALHANO) is a one way route of about 23.2 km in Madeira.

Along the way you'll find a levada water-channel path, walk-through tunnels, laurel forest (laurisilva), waterfalls and panoramic viewpoints.

Landmarks on the route include Lamaçeiros and Fonte do Bispo.

The path runs between roughly 273 m and 1,240 m above sea level, so conditions can change with altitude.

Vereda do Galhano e Levada da Ribeira da Janela is officially graded hard by IFCN, based on 23.2 km, 722 m of ascent and some exposed sections.

Allow about 8h 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 Galhano sign on the ER 105 (Pico da Fonte do Bispo). Ends at Lamaceiros, Porto Moniz. 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. A car park is mapped for this route, though its size is not recorded. The car park is about 620 m from the start. One way. The council lists it Ponta do Pargo to Porto Moniz and it ends inland at Lamaceiros, so there is no loop back to the start and no cable car or lift to shorten it. Arrange a car at the far end or a taxi before you begin.

A torch with real output and a fresh battery, waterproofs, boots that handle standing water, and a walking pole. The council names all four, and the long tunnel alone is about 1200 m with no light in it.

Twelve hand-cut water tunnels by the council's count: three on the spur toward the levada's source, then two of which the larger runs about 1200 m, then seven short ones to the end. The bore is low in places and carries water, so a torch with real output, waterproofs and a steady footing are what the council asks for by name.