Madeira trail reopens

Madeira plans to reopen its PR1 Vereda do Areeiro mountain trail after the Madeira Island Ultra Trail begins on April 25, with access phased in over about a month. (ifcn.madeira.gov.pt) The regional forestry agency, the Institute of Forests and Nature Conservation, said the full reopening will come after the race and may initially be limited to Fridays through Sundays. From Monday to Thursday, crews are expected to keep working on paving and drying materials. (ifcn.madeira.gov.pt) When it reopens, the route will no longer work the same way. The agency said hikers will move one way from Pico do Areeiro to Pico Ruivo, while the shorter stretch between Pico do Areeiro and Pedra Rija will remain open in both directions. (ifcn.madeira.gov.pt) PR1 is one of Madeira’s signature walks because it links the island’s high peaks. The official tourism board says the trail starts at Pico do Areeiro at 1,818 meters, crosses Pico das Torres at 1,851 meters, and ends at Pico Ruivo at 1,862 meters. (visitmadeira.com) The tourism board lists the route at 7 kilometers and about 3 hours 30 minutes, with tunnels cut through volcanic rock and long stair climbs near Pico Ruivo. Before this reopening plan, only the first 1.2 kilometers to Pedra Rija belvedere were accessible. (visitmadeira.com) The closure lasted through repairs after the 2024 fire and later weather damage. The forestry agency said snow and landslides slowed recovery work, and that it added more teams and equipment on the ground. (ifcn.madeira.gov.pt) Some of that work has been highly technical. The agency said specialist rope crews have been used for cliffside operations and slope stabilization in damaged sections. (ifcn.madeira.gov.pt) The trail also sits inside Madeira’s Central Mountain Massif, which the tourism board says is part of the Natura 2000 protected-area network. That status helps explain why the reopening has been tied to recovery work and controlled access rather than a single full restart. (visitmadeira.com) Madeira has already built payment and access rules into the route. The tourism board says visitors older than 12 must pay €4.50 through the SIMplifica portal, while children 12 and under are exempt. (visitmadeira.com) For hikers, the practical shift is simple: a trail that had been reduced to a short viewpoint walk is being restored in stages, with new traffic rules and continued construction days even after the first reopening. (ifcn.madeira.gov.pt)