The Isle of Flowers, the western most island of the Azores, arose out of the grey enshrouding mist. A welcoming haven from the on the nose 25 – 35 knot easterly. The wind strength and sea conditions were such, that the approach to the marina would have been treacherous, so we anchored in the protected bay of Faja Grande, situated upon the western side. Verdant green mountains, black volcanic rock, veils of white by the hundreds gushed seaward and small hamlets were situated amongst terraced hillsides. `

Discovered and colonised in 1450, the isolation and poor crops saw the settlement last only a few short years before abandonment. With food stocks and so forth arriving with regularity, the island came into its own as a viable habitat for human occupation during the sixteenth century, when it became the stopping point for voyagers en route to the Americas from Europe.