Corvo - A Gem Hiding in the Atlantic Ocean

At approximately 600 km northeast of São Miguel, the island of Corvo forms, together with its neighbor, Flores, the Western Group of the Archipelago of the Azores, Portugal. Corvo is the smallest of the nine islands and it measures only 6,5 km in length and 4 km in width, for a total of 17 square km of land. Corvo is home to the smallest Portuguese district.

When on Flores, searching the horizon for Corvo, the small island always appears to be shrouded in a foggy vale, a mysterious optical phenomenon caused by the light refracting on the Atlantic humidity. When the sky is clear, Corvo attracts visitors with the vivid greens of its vegetation, which covers the hills.

How to get there?

Reaching Corvo isn't easy. First of all, the elements must permit it, especially the sea, seeing as by boat is the fastest way to get there. During the winter season, the wind and the high waves can leave the island isolated for several weeks in a row.

For those that dare to go out at sea and try to reach Corvo on a foggy day, the island rises out of the water like a big rock. The boats stop in the harbor, and not far from here is the aerodrome, where the inter-islands planes land around three times per week.

The Caldeirão is only visible on days without any fog, and it constitutes the main attraction of Corvo. It is an impressive crater with a perimeter of 3400 meters and a depth of 300 meters, the remains of the great volcano that gave birth to the island. At the bottom of the crater now lies a tranquil lake. The island is formed by a sole volcano, Monte Grosso, with an altitude of 770 meters.

The village of Vila Nova do Corvo stands proud right behind its port, and is formed by a conglomerate of cubical white houses between which a web of narrow streets is formed. Walking on the small streets of Corvo is to take a journey to the past and to feel the solitude that encompasses the small village, surrounded by the blue of the sea and the greens of the landscape.

The island holds little to no danger, proof of which are the wood locks which can be seen on the doors of some of the houses. Nobody needs metal locks here, everyone knows everyone and a thief's live is a very short lives one in such a small community.