Not recommended
Unknown trails
These walks are not on the classified list updated on 2 October 2026, read here on 12 October 2026. They are not a tourist set. The list has 128 names. Distance, difficulty, time, climb, and the two ends are the published figures. For levada routes, the page also records the water intake (Madre), terminus (Fim), full channel length, local alias names, and field photographs. A field stays blank when nothing was published.
Porto Santo walks are left out. Classified PR routes that do not yet have a brief here stay off this page. A name that was never written on a public web page is left off.
None of these figures is an official open or closed line. The hiking map stays with the classified PR routes.
Showing 8 of 128 walks in Ponta do Sol. Show every walk.
Circuito da Bica da Cana, Not listed
Circuito da Bica da Cana is 3.4 km loop, hard. Not on the IFCN list.
- Distance
- 3.4 km loop
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Time
- 1 h 25 min
- Elevation
- 78 m ascent, 232 m descent
Levada da Serra da Ponta do Sol (Fonte do Juncal), Not listed
Also known as: Levada da Serra da Fonte do Juncal
Levada da Serra da Ponta do Sol is an unclassified 8 km levada channel in Ponta do Sol running from Fontes do Juncal (1525 m) to Sítio do Tornadouro, Ponta do Sol (625 m). Not on the IFCN recommended PR list.
- Distance
- 8 km (channel length)
- Difficulty
- Not printed
- Elevation
- 900 m drop (1525 m to 625 m)
- Channel (Madre → Fim)
- Fontes do Juncal (1525 m) → Sítio do Tornadouro, Ponta do Sol (625 m) (8 km)
Levada de Marques Teixeira, Not listed
Levada de Marques Teixeira is an unclassified 6.5 km levada channel in Ponta do Sol running from Galeria das Rabaças (1100 m) to Sítio das Covas, Ponta do Sol (630 m). Not on the IFCN recommended PR list.
- Distance
- 6.5 km (channel length)
- Difficulty
- Not printed
- Elevation
- 470 m drop (1100 m to 630 m)
- Channel (Madre → Fim)
- Galeria das Rabaças (1100 m) → Sítio das Covas, Ponta do Sol (630 m) (6.5 km)
Levada do Moinho and Levada Nova, Ponta do Sol, Not listed
Also known as: Levada da Lombada · Levada do Moinho da Lombada e Lugar de Baixo · Levada do Moinho da Ponta do Sol
Levada do Moinho and Levada Nova, Ponta do Sol is 8.9 km loop, moderate. Not on the IFCN list.
- Distance
- 8.9 km loop
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time
- 2 h 50 min
- Elevation
- 238 m ascent
- Channel (Madre → Fim)
- Cabo da Ribeira, Ribeira da Ponta do Sol (400 m) → Igreja da Lombada, Ponta do Sol (300 m) (4.5 km)
Levada do Teixo (Levada do Techo), Not listed
Also known as: Levada do Techo
Levada do Teixo is an unclassified 2.2 km levada channel in Ponta do Sol running from Ribeiro Frio, Ponta do Sol (750 m) to Fajã do Limão / Achada do Limão, Ponta do Sol (600 m). Not on the IFCN recommended PR list.
- Distance
- 2.2 km (channel length)
- Difficulty
- Not printed
- Elevation
- 150 m drop (750 m to 600 m)
- Channel (Madre → Fim)
- Ribeiro Frio, Ponta do Sol (750 m) → Fajã do Limão / Achada do Limão, Ponta do Sol (600 m) (2.2 km)
Levada dos Zimbreiros, Not listed
Also known as: Levada Nova da Ponta do Sol
Levada dos Zimbreiros is an unclassified 13 km levada channel in Ponta do Sol running from Ribeira da Ponta do Sol (410 m) to Lombo Cesteiro, Ribeira Brava (395 m). Not on the IFCN recommended PR list.
- Distance
- 13 km (channel length)
- Difficulty
- Not printed
- Elevation
- 15 m drop (410 m to 395 m)
- Channel (Madre → Fim)
- Ribeira da Ponta do Sol (410 m) → Lombo Cesteiro, Ribeira Brava (395 m) (13 km)
Levada Nova do Arco da Calheta, Not listed
Also known as: Levada da Calheta - Ponta do Sol · Levada do Arco da Calheta · Levada Nova dos Canhas
Levada Nova do Arco da Calheta is 5.6 km, moderate. Not on the IFCN list.
- Distance
- 5.6 km
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time
- 2 h 20 min
- Elevation
- 80 m ascent
- Channel (Madre → Fim)
- Central Hidroelétrica da Calheta (650 m) → Lombo das Terças, Ponta do Sol (620 m) (16 km)
Rota da Banana, Not listed
Rota da Banana is 1.5 km loop, easy. Not on the IFCN list.
- Distance
- 1.5 km loop
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time
- 40 min
- Elevation
- 28 m ascent, 30 m descent
How to read the unclassified walks index
Madeira has two very different layers of walking paths. The first layer consists of the 24 classified PR routes maintained and monitored on the official IFCN table. Those routes carry official PR (Pequena Rota) signage, scheduled maintenance inspections, a published open or closed status table, and the regional non-resident trail fee system. The second layer — collected on this page — covers 128 regional levadas, historical royal paths (Caminhos Reais), coastal footpaths, and municipal forest tracks surveyed across regional municipal paths and levadas but absent from the IFCN recommended list.
Understanding the route statistics
Every figure on an unclassified trail page — distance, estimated walking duration, elevation gain and loss, start and end coordinates, tunnel counts, and irrigation channel parameters (madre intake, fim terminus, and total channel length) — reflects on-site trail walks and on-site channel records rather than the IFCN status table. Where on-site field surveys omit elevation or duration, this site leaves that field explicitly unlisted instead of guessing.
Why status reads “Not listed”
Because these routes are outside the IFCN recommended network, the forestry authority does not publish daily or weekly open/closed notices for them. A badge of Not listed means there is no official IFCN status line — it is neither an endorsement nor a guarantee that a channel wall, tunnel, or hillside ledge is passable on a given morning.
Field preparation and when to choose an official PR route instead
Many unclassified levadas were built strictly as working agricultural maintenance ledges for water tenders (levadeiros). Handrails may be discontinuous or absent, tunnels can be long and completely unlit, and winter rockfalls can block a remote gorge for months without a notice at the road head. Before setting out on any walk listed here, read our comparison of official PR routes and unclassified trails and our levada equipment checklist. If you want a signposted route with verified segment status and car-park day checks, start from the classified Madeira hiking map.