Cabo Girão () is a lofty sea

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff or rock face is an area of Rock (geology), rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. ...

located along the southern coast of the island of

Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...

, in the Portuguese archipelago of

, geographically part of Africa. Cabo Girão is a tourist lookout point, with up to 1800 visitors a day. The location is also a common starting point for hikers.

Skywalk

The Cabo Girão Skywalk is the highest

skywalk in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, located on top of the cabo Girão Cliff in Madeira Island. The skywalk opened in late October 2012 and is similar to the one in

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a mile (). The canyon and adjacent rim are contained within Grand Canyon Nati ...

- both are made of transparent glass to provide views to visitors.

Geography

It is situated less than two kilometres west from the centre of Câmara de Lobos, between the parishes of Quinta Grande and Câmara de Lobos. A diamond-shaped sea-cliff escarpment from to above sea level, Cabo Girão lies between two river-valleys that flow into the Atlantic Ocean. The escarpment/cliffs extend approximately three kilometres between the

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city". Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted ...

of Câmara de Lobos to the east and the river-valley of Quinta Grande in the west. There are cultivated wave-cut platforms (Fajãs de Cabo Girão) located below the sheer cliffs, which at one time were only accessible by boat. In August 2003, a cable car was installed on the slope of the cliff so farmers can reach these low-lying fields.

Architecture

Apart from the communications towers that are installed on Cabo Girão, the Cape is noted for the Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Fátima (),Capela de Nossa Senhora de Fátima
/ref> which was built in 1974 to replace a much smaller chapel built in 1931.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cabo Girao Cliffs of Portugal Landforms of Madeira Tourist attractions in Madeira