Pico do Facho is the highest peak on

Porto Santo Island Porto Santo Island () is a Portuguese island northeast of Madeira Island in the North Atlantic Ocean; it is the northernmost and easternmost island of the archipelago of Madeira, located in the Atlantic Ocean west of Europe and Africa. The muni ...

, with in altitude. Its name comes from , a

light beam A light beam or beam of light is a directional projection of light energy radiating from a light source. Sunlight forms a light beam (a sunbeam) when filtered through media such as clouds, foliage, or windows. To artificially produce a light ...

created by a

bonfire A bonfire is a large and controlled outdoor fire, used either for informal disposal of burnable waste material or as part of a celebration. Etymology The earliest recorded uses of the word date back to the late 15th century, with the Catho ...

, which was used to signal both the local population and

Funchal Funchal () is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Madeira, Autonomous Region of Madeira, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean. The city has a population of 105,795, making it the sixth largest city in Portugal. Because of ...

of pirate ships. The bonfire could be seen from

Ponta de São Lourenço Ponta de São Lourenço (Portuguese for the "Point of Saint Lawrence") is the easternmost point of the island of Madeira. It is inside the town of Caniçal and forms a part of the municipality of Machico. Its terrain are made up of rocks and he ...

on the main island of Madeira. There are no roads leading to the top of the peak, however there is a path from Pico do Castelo to Pico do Facho and to some nearby peaks about 1.5 - 2 hours walk.

References

Geography of Madeira Mountains of Portugal {{Madeira-geo-stub