Ribeirinha

Ribeirinha, on the eastern edge of Faial, is a parish where the landscape seems to explain its own history. The stream that gives the place its name, the fields between slopes and the proximity of the channel create an open rural setting, often with views towards Pico, São Jorge and, on clear days, Graciosa.

This is also one of the areas where the 1998 earthquake left the clearest visible marks. The ruins of the Church of São Mateus and the Ponta da Ribeirinha Lighthouse are more than photo stops: they are memorials to the earthquake's impact on Faial and to the way the parish has learned to live with an active geological landscape.

The Ribeirinha Lighthouse, inaugurated in the early twentieth century, guided navigation in the channel before being severely damaged by the earthquake. Today, the ruin and the nearby modern beacon tell two stories at once: the older maritime signalling network and the practical adaptation that followed the disaster.

The official Ribeirinha trail links many of these points in an accessible and varied walk. It starts in the parish centre, continues to Porto da Boca da Ribeira, crosses woodland with cryptomeria, Azorean heather and Azores juniper, passes the lighthouse, reaches the area of Espalhafatos and returns through farm tracks and viewpoints.

Porto da Boca da Ribeira, also referred to in some tourism resources as Porto da Ribeirinha, is an old fishing pier now used as a bathing and leisure spot. It has a simple local scale and wide sea views; on calm days it can be inviting, but as an unguarded bathing area it should be approached carefully.

Lomba Grande and the Pedro Miguel Graben add depth to the parish's landscape. The stepped relief, faults and slopes help explain why Ribeirinha is important for understanding the older formation of Faial. For visitors, that geology becomes open views, quiet rural paths and a clear sense of being on an island still being shaped.