The São Vicente Caves (Grutas de São Vicente in Portuguese) are caves located in the parish and county of
São Vicente, Madeira
São Vicente () is a municipality along the north-west coast of the island of Madeira.
History
The first human visitors to São Vicente appeared in the middle of the 15th century, colonizing the area much later than the settlers in the southern pa ...
. Entrance is charged at €8 for adults, but have been closed since March 2020.
History
These caves were formed around 890,000 years ago from a volcanic eruption in
Paul da Serra
Paul da Serra in the municipal county of Ponta do Sol, Madeira, is the largest and most extensive plateau of Madeira, at about , with an altitude averaging about . Its highest point is the peak pico do Paul at from where the length of the entir ...
that ran down to the sea. Thus, the outside, exposed to lower temperatures solidified rapidly while the inner liquid continued to run with many gases, forming a series of
lava tubes
A lava tube, or pyroduct, is a natural conduit formed by flowing lava from a volcanic vent that moves beneath the hardened surface of a lava flow. If lava in the tube empties, it will leave a cave.
Formation
A lava tube is a type of lava ca ...
, which today constitute the caves of São Vicente.
They were first discovered in 1885, by local people who informed
James Yate Johnson
James Yate Johnson (1820, in Kendal, Westmorland – 2 February 1900, in Funchal) was an English naturalist.
Johnson lived in Madeira from around 1851, studied marine fish, crustacea, sea anemones and sponges and terrestrial spiders, flowering pl ...
an English naturalist in Madeira who explored the caves further.
The caves were opened to the public on 1 of October 1996, being one of the first caves of volcanic origins to be opened to the public in Portugal.
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See also
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Furnas do Cavalum
The Furnas do Cavalum (Caves of Cavalum in English) are a group of four caves located in Machico
Machico () is a municipality, parish and city in the southeast part of the island of Madeira, in the Autonomous Region of Madeira. The easternmost ...
References
External links
Official website
Caves of Madeira
Show caves in Madeira
Volcanism of Madeira
Lava tubes
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