Terceira Island, Ilheus de Cabras and Lighthouse of Ponta das Contendas
by Kelly Hazel
Title
Terceira Island, Ilheus de Cabras and Lighthouse of Ponta das Contendas
Artist
Kelly Hazel
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
The Coastline of Terceira Island is rarely smooth and straight, but instead juts out into the Atlantic Ocean in a jagged, energetic line creating tiny little bays and incredibly beautiful lines of sight along the coast.
This photograph was taken from a little spike of land jutting out the southeastern tip of Terceira Island in Ponta das Contendas. From here, you can look across Baia as Salga and see both the lighthouse of Ponta das Contendas and the Ilheus de Cabras.
The lighthouse was quite a long time in the making: Plans for the lighthouse were first announced in 1882, but construction would not begin until 1930. It was first planned for Ponte das Contendas, but almost immediately after plans were released, it was moved to Ponta de Sao Jorge, the Eastern most point on Terceira. I don't know why it was never built there, but in 1902, the plans were revised again and it was moved back down to Ponta das Contendas, and finally, in 1934, it was finished and inaugurated. There is a lot of information available about the light in this lighthouse, and though I enjoy lighthouses and their history, the lighting information has always been a little confusing to me, so I'm not sure I should go into that, but if you are interested you should!
Beyond the lighthouse you can see Ilheus de Cabras. This is a dual islet created from some volcanic activity along the Terceira Rift under the Atlantic Ocean. Some people (mostly European visitors) call it "Split Rock" because the two halves look as though they were split apart right through the middle.
Aside from a legend about a young man from Faial island who was exiled to live for seven years on Ilheus de Cabras by the father of the girl he fell in love with, the islets have never really been inhabited by people, but it is a very important place for migratory birds. Today, the islets are privately owned and are recognized as a Special Protection Zone due to the bird population. The steep cliffs and rocky terrain make it unlikely the islets will ever be inhabited by humans, but in the summertime people often take boats out to the calm waters surrounding the ilheus to go swimming and diving. The volcanic history of the ilheus resulted in a very diverse landscape including various grottos and caves both above and below sea level.
From this little jut of coastline, if you look in the other direction, you can see Ilheu da Mina, Terceira's third and smallest Islet. I particularly love this spot because you can see so many characteristics of Terceira here. Below the lighthouse, the rocky shore composed of black lava rocks from Terceira's volcanic history reach up from the ocean and support gently rolling hills and vibrant green grass and pastures. Beyond the lighthouse, the terrain continues to push upwards in steeply graded hills exposing the colorful, mineral rich rock and soil that gives Terceira life.
Uploaded
March 3rd, 2017
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