The Areia Branca walk on Santa Maria: PR06SMA from Praia Formosa over Pico Alto to São Lourenço

PR06SMA Areia Branca is the one official trail that crosses Santa Maria from coast to coast. It starts at Praia Formosa on the south coast, climbs through the Almagreira woods to Pico Alto, runs through the village of Santa Bárbara and drops into the Baía de São Lourenço on the north-east coast. The trail page gives 11.7 km one way, graded medium, about four and a half hours. The name means "white sand": both ends are beaches of pale limestone sand, and the Azores have no other beaches like them.

The walk is mostly farm tracks and forest paths, with no scrambling. Most of the effort is in the first half, from sea level to more than 550 m. Because it is linear and no bus serves São Lourenço, the logistics need more thought than the walking.

On 11 October 2026 the official alerts page listed two Santa Maria trails as temporarily closed: PR05SMA Costa Sul and PR04SMA Santo Espírito - Maia. PR06SMA was not on the list. Closures come and go after storms and landslides, so check trails.visitazores.com/en/alerts on the morning you walk. If the Costa Sul trail is still shut, this is the walk to take to Praia Formosa instead.

The trail starts near the beach park at Praia Formosa and heads first towards the Forte de São João Batista, which locals also call the Castelo da Praia. It is a ruin on the western edge of the beach. Construction was ordered in 1617, after English privateers raided the island in 1599 and Barbary corsairs from Algiers did serious damage to Vila do Porto in June 1616. In 1638 the town council recorded it as started but not finished. Storms in September 2011 brought down more of what was left, so look from the path and do not climb on it.

The official leaflet also counts the beach itself and Prainha, the smaller limestone cove along the coast to the west, among the geosites on the route.

From the fort the route turns inland past the houses of Praia, then follows a footpath between pastures and fields, with Pico Alto ahead. In the Almagreira area it enters a wood that is mostly incenso (Pittosporum undulatum), an Australian tree that has spread across the Azores. Mixed in are native shrubs: pau-branco (Picconia azorica) and Azores holly (Ilex azorica). The path passes a small cave before the last climb.

This is the steepest part of the day. In summer, start early: the open fields below the wood give little shade.

The trail reaches Pico Alto where it meets the PRC02SMA Pico Alto circuit. The summit is 587 m, the island's highest point, and a short stairway from the car park climbs the last few metres. In clear weather you can see most of the island from the top, the lower, drier west and the greener, hillier east. Cloud often sits on the summit, though, and it can come in within minutes.

Pico Alto is the obvious place to stop for lunch and the obvious place to split the walk. The monument to the 144 people killed when a Boeing 707 hit the mountain on 8 February 1989 is near the car park. Our Pico Alto guide covers the loop and the memorial.

From Pico Alto a dirt road runs between woods and fields to the centre of Santa Bárbara, where the trail crosses the PRC03SMA Entre a Serra e o Mar loop. The whitewashed parish church goes back to the 16th century. The village is also the last place on the route where you can catch a bus (see below). Our Santa Bárbara walk covers the village.

After Santa Bárbara the trail starts its descent into the Baía de São Lourenço, a natural amphitheatre of vineyards on terraces held up by stone walls, with the beach and the natural pools at the bottom. The bay is a protected landscape and the last geosite on the leaflet. It is downhill all the way at the end of a long day, which is hard on the knees. Poles help.

The trail ends at the bay. In the 2026 bathing season, 15 June to 14 September, São Lourenço had lifeguards and a Blue Flag. Outside those dates you swim at your own risk, and only if the sea is calm. The bay faces east, so it is sheltered when the wind is westerly and rough when it blows from the east. Our São Lourenço guide covers the viewpoints, the chapel and the wine.

The trail shares sections with the Grande Rota round the island. Where they overlap the waymarks are white, red and yellow; on the trail's own sections they are yellow and red. Signboards mark the junctions. The route crosses the Pico Alto habitat area and the São Lourenço protected landscape, both part of the Santa Maria Natural Park. Bicycles, motor vehicles and horses are not allowed.

The leaflet's code of conduct is short: tell someone which trail you are walking and when you set off, carry water and food, stay on the marked path, and close every gate behind you, because the fields hold cattle. In an emergency call 112 and give the number of the last numbered trail post you passed.

No bus serves São Lourenço, so plan both ends before you start.

• With one car, park at São Lourenço, where there are car parks on the terraces above the bay, and take a taxi to Praia Formosa in the morning. You finish at your car with no deadline. The island's taxi rank is the Central de Táxis de Santa Maria in Vila do Porto, +351 296 882 199.
• Without a car, take a taxi to Praia Formosa and book a pick-up at São Lourenço for a set time, leaving yourself a margin.
• To walk half of it: for the climb without the descent, walk Praia Formosa to the Pico Alto car park. For the descent without the climb, take a taxi up to Pico Alto and walk down to São Lourenço, about half the distance.
• To end early by bus: TSM route 1 (Malbusca - Vila do Porto) stops at Santa Bárbara Centro. The timetable checked in September 2026 showed a few trips on weekdays, fewer on Saturdays and none on Sundays. Check the current timetable before relying on it.

The summer bus to Praia Formosa (TSM route 5) ran daily from 1 July to 15 September in 2026, and it is no help at the São Lourenço end.

Late spring and early autumn suit it best. In July and August the climb on the open south side is hot, although a swim waits at both ends. In winter the forest paths on Pico Alto turn to mud and the summit is often in cloud. In heavy rain the descent to São Lourenço is slippery, and it is better to turn back at Santa Bárbara.

The Vila do Porto tourist office (+351 296 883 124) can tell you about current conditions and taxis.

How long is the Areia Branca trail? The official trail page gives 11.7 km one way and about 4 hours 30 minutes, graded medium. The printed leaflet says 11.8 km.

Which direction should I walk it? The official direction is Praia Formosa to São Lourenço, so you do the climbing first and finish with the view over the bay. Walking it the other way puts the steep climb out of São Lourenço at the start.

Can I do it by bus? Not end to end. No bus reaches São Lourenço, and the summer bus to Praia Formosa stopped on 15 September 2026. A taxi at one end is the practical answer.

Can I swim at the end? Yes, in calm weather. São Lourenço has a beach and natural pools, with lifeguards in the bathing season (15 June to 14 September in 2026).

• Trail page and downloads: PR06SMA Areia Branca, trails.visitazores.com
• Official leaflet: PR06SMA leaflet (PDF)
• Trail closures: trails.visitazores.com alerts
• Fort history: Fort of São João Baptista of Praia Formosa, Wikipedia
• Buses: Transportes de Santa Maria timetables
• Taxi: Central de Táxis de Santa Maria, visitazores.com