São Nicolau:
the island guide

Ribeira Brava, known as Stancha

“Stancha”, from its Creole diminutive, was founded in the 16^th century at the foot of a steep cliff, inland — to escape the pirates. The town is more like a large village: colonial-style buildings, narrow, quiet cobbled lanes and flowering gardens.

On the terreiro, the main square where most of the activity is concentrated, the cathedral of Nossa Senhora di Rosário — one of the oldest in the archipelago, 18^th-19^th century — rises majestically. A stone’s throw away, the Seminário-Liceu was the true intellectual hearth of the archipelago: from 1866 to 1918 it trained several generations of pupils, some of whom went on to join the country’s elite.

Caleijão, Chiquinho’s village

From the heights of Caleijão you can see the ocean and the pretty port of Preguiça. It is a farming village typical of the archipelago, with whitewashed stone houses roofed in thatch.

Its charm lies above all in its aura: this is where Baltazar Lopes da Silva (1907-1989) was born, author of Chiquinho, the founding work of Cape Verdean literature, published in 1936. Today the village is mostly made up of young people, all involved in artistic activities — theatre, dance.

Cabeçalinho and its miradouro

A small village of farmers and herders perched on the steep road to Tarrafal. Its hundred and fifty or so inhabitants welcome you warmly into their traditional houses built on the mountainside. It is a chance to taste grogue, the local sugar-cane rum, or goat’s cheese served with candied papaya — the doce de papaia.

Ribeira de Fajã, the island’s vegetable garden

The Fajã valley is the greenest on the island, ringed by mountains, the highest of which is Monte Gordo. Everything grows in abundance here — sweet potatoes, maize, cassava — cultivated on terraces thanks to the Fajã irrigation system.

Here you can admire the dragon trees, recognisable by their umbrella shape, a species that is sadly threatened with extinction. At the top of the road, a magnificent panorama of the west coast lets you take in Tarrafal and its beaches.

Parque Natural do Monte Gordo

Monte Gordo, an extinct volcano rising to 1,312 m, is a paradise for nature lovers and botanists. Created in 2003, the park contains both ecosystems shaped by people — the terraced fields — and barely touched areas: high-altitude forests of eucalyptus, sisal, pine, coffee and dragon trees.

About thirty endemic plant species have been recorded here, including the tortolho, a shrub of the euphorbia family that thrives in the driest areas. It is one of the few places where you can see the island’s native vegetation before the land degradation that has affected much of the archipelago.

Estância de Brás

In a semi-arid zone on the north-west coast, this charming village clinging to the cliff overlooks the sea — a postcard image. Its inhabitants live from farming and fishing.

A paved path heads up towards the mountain: follow it for a 45-minute walk to the ghost village of Ribeira Funda. Thrills are guaranteed on this path with 400 m of elevation, which runs alongside the ocean on your right and the rocky mountain on your left.

Ribeira do Tarrafal

Made a municipality in 2005, Tarrafal has steadily grown in importance, gradually overtaking its neighbour Ribeira Brava. It is now the biggest town on the island and the most popular place to stay. It lives mainly from fishing, and its tuna cannery, founded in 1935, is considered the best in Cape Verde.

You meet people as you wander the little streets around the centre — don’t be surprised to be invited to a christening party. Superb beaches await a few kilometres away.

The fishing port at 7am

In Tarrafal the day begins on the quayside, from seven o’clock, when the colourful boats come back from the sea with all kinds of catch. The ballet of the fishermen sets the rhythm of the town’s mornings.

It is fascinating to watch the little scrum that forms: women and men jostle and call out cheerfully to get the best buys. Two minutes from the centre, don’t miss Praia de Tedja, a black-sand beach of volcanic origin — and a very good sunset spot.

Praia de Baixo de Rocha

It could easily be ranked among the most beautiful beaches in the archipelago. Baixo de Rocha unrolls its ribbon of golden sand dotted with rocks in a wide cove ringed by cliffs of basalt organ pipes that carve up the space.

The way there isn’t obvious: you have to hire an aluguer, walk for an hour and a half along the coast to the south — a superb route through an almost lunar landscape — or do the round trip by boat with a fisherman.

Carbeirinho, one of the seven wonders

A secret site, so long and hard to find is the way there. The best thing is to go with a guide; if you prefer to be independent, hire a 4×4 and ask for directions.

When you arrive you quickly understand why the site is ranked among the “seven wonders of Cape Verde”. Over the centuries, erosion by the winds and sea currents has hollowed out a splendid cave and sculpted strange figures into the rock face. A breathtaking sight.

Praia Branca and Ribeira da Prata

From Tarrafal, the paved road heading north-west runs along a superb, wind-swept coast. On your right, green and semi-desert landscapes succeed one another for seventeen kilometres as far as the lovely, quiet town of Praia Branca.

Carry on to the far north to Ribeira da Prata, a town nestled in a lush valley where sugar cane is grown in abundance — this is the kingdom of grogue. The locals will be sure to take you to admire their pride and joy: the Rocha Scribida, a rock bearing inscriptions that are only sedimentary concretions, but which the villagers regard as evidence of a human presence predating the Portuguese navigators.

Preguiça, the first port

Preguiça is the only village on São Jorge bay and the very first port built on the island, before the one at Tarrafal was built in 1985. This is where the story of São Nicolau begins, in the 16^th century.

The ruins of the old customs building and those of the Prince Royal fort — built in 1818 on the site of a fortress erected two hundred years earlier — give the place an unusual charm. In the centre stands a lovely blue church; then the paved path lined with old warehouses converted into homes leads to the quay and a small pebble beach.

Juncalinho and its natural pool

The village itself is of limited interest. But the way there is epic: bordered by wind-swept rocky cliffs, the paved track from Ribeira Brava crosses desert landscapes.

And the village holds the most beautiful natural pool on São Nicolau: the rocks have formed a superb basin that holds the water at low tide, where you can swim in complete peace, sheltered from the currents.

Carriçal, at the very end

It has no shortage of charm, with its beach and its little fishing harbour. But reaching this fishing village at the far east of the island is a true odyssey: you have to brave two hours of very poor track, laid along a ridge more than a thousand metres up.

Part of the road was paved by hand by the women and girls of Carriçal to help open up their village, wedged between the mountains and the sea. No aluguer comes here: you have to hire a 4×4 or make arrangements with a driver.