Running Update

Perhaps you should have reminded me that this blog originally was intended to be a blog about running. With all my excitement about the Azores holiday I nearly forgot about this. I owe you an update.

There are two good news. First is the look of my ankle. This is what it looked like when I got the cortisol injection 5 weeks ago:

Now it's like this:

Much better, isn't it? I would not yet call it 100% fit. But I could run six times in between without any problems. As the doctor predicted it sometimes still hurts slightly. But I put fairly big strains on it especially by walking over rough Lava grounds for hours. This was even more stress for the ankle than a usual run.

Plans are now to build up to a level of 3 runs a week, one very easy jog, one hilly workout and one long run ( 16K at first, increasing to 30K). Adding to this I hope to go out by bike twice, completed by 2 gym sessions. This programme should make me fit to run the Zugspitzlauf on July 23, a hill run finishing on Germany's highest mountain at 2.960 meters - weather permitting.

Want to know the second good news? My application for the New York City Marathon 2006 has been accepted! My number is 33171. I would have got an entry anyway as I again will work as a travel guide for the German travel agency interAir. The good thing is that someone placed on interAir's waiting list now will be able to get in.

Top of Portugal

The highest mountain of the Azores is situated on the island of Pico. The mountain dominates the island and therefore it is also called Pico. It is not said which name came first, probably they both were named at the same time: The island is the mountain and the mountain is the island. Its peak is at 2351 meter what makes it also the highest point of Portugal. As all the Azores islands are volcanic, Mount Pico is a volcano and it is believed that it will erupt within the next 10000 years.

A view back on the way up with the island of Fajal in the background.

The route is marked by posts but there is no proper path. Without the markers it would be impossible to find any way up. It took me 2:45 hrs to get to the very top, not counted 90 minutes I spent straying around after starting my tour from a wrong car park. Finally I turned back (luckily no one else was on the wrong route to hear my swears) and had a new and more successful start. There are no maps available and I would urgently advise not to try the climb in uncertain weather. Hillfog is quite normal and would soon cause problems to keep to the path. The ascend itself is not technically difficult, it is just tough, very tough indeed. The whole trip (up and down) is said to take between 7 and 9 hours for the average fit walker.

This is what landing on the moon might look, but in fact I am on the ground of Mount Pico's crater looking up to the top which can only be reached after descending into the crater. The scientific device is a seismographic meter I guess.

I climbed to the top along the ridge to the right which ended up as an airy scramble. Nothing too difficult but when alone on a mountain at 2300 meters you should not start thinking too much. Scared to take the same way down I chose the scree slope right in the middle to descend back to the crater. No scrambling needed now, but sort of tricky, too.

A view from the top to the North, with the island of Sao Jorge in the background. The device in the crater can be spotted to the right.

Crossing the ground of the crater is easy and worth the effort. Bizarre Lava formations can be admired and there are even some caves which are frequently used for overnight accommodation by walkers who want to see the sunrise next morning.

Pico is the sort of island I can easily get in love with. We are now already back home but I can't resist to come back to you with a few photos of this wonderful place.

Whales Watched

This is what the boats look like. 10 people can be seated and the seats are built like saddles, you are sitting like on a horse which makes you feel quite safe. We went out with two boats, so this is the other one I photographed when starting our trip. The boats are directed from a lookout post on the cliff edge, increasing the chance to meet the whales.


And here we are. You will not see more than something grey in the water, but believe me this is a whale. In detail we were told it is a Sperm Whale (Physeter macrocephalus).

It was not easy to find the whales. The trip lasted 3 hours, and we only spotted the whales for about 10 minutes over all. But it was great fun to look out and move around quickly to follow them.

The whale watching company Espaco Talassa is world famous for its successful tours and more important they strictly follow the ethic rules for watching the ocean's wildlife. They only approach the whales in certain distances and angles to make sure the animals are not disturbed. The team consists of biologists but not touristic managers.
for more see Espaco Talassa
Our sperm whale is now diving deep and saying Good Bye.

Maria, our pilot and guide, explained that once the whale is gone for deep diving it would take a long time until it comes back to the surface. So we made our way home.

On the 10-mile-journey back home we came across dolphins. This is a Risso's Dolphin (Grampus griseus) . The guide nicknamed it "Michael Jackson" because they are born coloured and get white during life.


For the first time we could see Pico mountain free of clouds today. Weatherforecast for tomorrow is not bad but it is better for Monday (mostly sunny). So I think I will leave the climb for the very last day we spend on Pico.

More from the Azores

As promised I now come with some typical views of the Azores, here still exemplified by the island of Sao Miguel (sorry, I tried to post yesterday but blogger.com didn't work, not a rare problem I am afraid).

This is the traditional way of cooking a meal in the village of Furnas - still being practised today as you see. Dig a deep hole in the ground near one of the hot water sources, put in your pot, close the hole and your meal will be ready after about 3 to 4 hours. It is well done by the hot steam produced by the sources.

The water is coming out of the ground really piping hot. Walking around the source you get nice warm feet. But the ground is too hot to dig a hole by hand.

Me - exploring the Azorean djungle. Quite common are laurel trees, rubber plants and farn trees.


The island is dotted with picknick places. The Azoreans seem to love to go out into nature for their Sunday lunch (people work six days a week). Very often these picknick places are beautifully done up like landscaped gardens and most are situated at viewing points high on the cliffs. Note that they are not made for tourists but for the islands inhabitants.


These are just the remnants of a former village nesting on the cliff edge. Some of the houses are still used as holiday homes which can only be reached by a half-hour-walk. Our path was said to lead us to one of the few little beaches of the island. But this beach turned out to be washed away by winter storms. Even parts of the changing facilities were changed into kindlings, and the sandy beach was displaced by big cobbles.

The most famous landmark of Sao Miguel and all the Azores are the crater lakes of Sete Cidades (twin lakes). They are called the green and the blue lake, and this is exactly what they look like. The path along the crater rim is around 25K long and can be walked on a very long day. Along the southern half the track is suitable for normal cars, but the Northern stretch can only be driven by a jeep (we tried it with our rented normal car and had to turn back when nearly at the other end - it was a nightmare, especially for Angelika ...).

The skyline of Ponta Delgada, capital of Sao Miguel and - some say - of the Azores.
Usually not shown on postcards.

A typical village street, this one found in Ribeira Grande, the biggest town on the North coast of Sao Miguel. Note that the street can't be stated really clean but it is decorated with coloured flags in preparation for the whitsun festivities. Pentecost is celebrated with processions - often in the middle of the night - and with 24-hour-fireworks.

The village of Ribeira Grande under a skye which was not rare during our holiday. Beginning of June seems to be too early for a sunny and warm holiday on the Azores.

More photos from our second island - Pico - later. For tomorrow morning we are booked in for whale watching. I look forward to this. Although we will go out on the Atlantic in a speedy rubber dinghy. I had to sign that I am a good swimmer - which was an out-and-out lie. Don't worry we will get life vests.

Holiday Greetings

a view of the village of Furnas on the island Sao Miguel (Azores)

Finally I have managed to get Internet access to my own laptop and can offer you a first update including photos. We are already staying on the second island as scheduled, which is Pico the one with Portugal's highest mountain. We could only see its peak for some seconds this evening for the first time. The weather is very changable with the clouds usually gathering around the hills at 500 meters. Sunshine at the coastline every day but daily showers, temperature at around 20°c.

The island of Sao Miguel turned out to be quite different to my own expectations. The landscape is not as spectactular as you find it on Madeira or La Palma. Angelika called it "Bavaria in the Atlantic". It's a cultivated, green and rolling countryside, dotted with thousands of cows. There are 130.000 inhabitants on Sao Miguel, and on average every tenth inhabitant owns a cow.

Arriving at the airport and renting your car you wonder about all the paragraphs of assurance one has to sign. After driving the first couple of kilometers you don't wonder any more. People are driving like hell. Once they have left their car they seem to have a really relaxed life but inside their car they are always in a rush.

You can actually state that Europe has arrived on the Azores. They have got every technical equipment, alongside the motorway there are big adverts built up, even for what they call a "Gentlemen's Club". At least thankfully there is not yet McDonalds present but I am sure it will not take long.

"Fumaroles" at Furnas, hot sources of sulfurous water

I will come back to you tomorrow evening with more photos.

Off to the Atlantic Ocean

This is the place what we are heading for next Sunday. The volcanic archipelago of the 9 Azores Islands is located in the Atlantic Ocean, at nearly a third of the way from Europe to North America. Within a fortnight of holidays it is not possible to visit each of the islands. We will have a week on Sao Miguel, the biggest one, and the second week on Pico which is especially attractive for me as it is home of Portugal's highest mountain. This is called Pico, too, and 2351 meters high.

Favourite tourist activities on the Azores are walking and whale watching. For Angelika there is horse riding and hopefully for me bike riding. Certainly birdwatching will be another attraction. The weather at this time of the year is quite similar to wet Germany, not too warm and with the daily chance of a bit of rain.

I look forward to tasting the local wine but I am a little worried about the food available on the islands. Years ago we have been to Madeira and there - once you have left the capital town Funchal - it was sometimes difficult or impossible to find anything suitable for vegetarians. Hopefully things have improved meanwhile.

I will take my laptop with me but I doubt that there will be any wireless internet access available. There are very few internet cafes which all have short opening times. I will try but maybe will not be able to post before back on June 15. Well, all this looks like it will be a proper and relaxing holiday. Angelika seems to need some days off urgently.

So long, take care and happy running. Uli

Wiki Azores

Aching optimism

Got my corrected orthotics yesterday. In fact they were made completely new. The shoemaker said it was clear that the first ones couldn't fit cos my running shoes have a bended last. Well, I brought my shoes with me when ordering the first ones but it didn't help. Anyway, I am glad the new ones seem to be fine. They have a stronger support to prevent pronation and a pad called "pelotte" which helps my very broad forefoot to stabilise.

I also visited the doctor yesterday and was slightly disappointed that I didn't get any new therapy procedure. He just told me to be happy with the current outcome and advised me to start running again. Well, happy to hear that, of course. But he added I shouldn't worry that the foot will still be hurting for a while. "We will master that" he assured. Well, the best way is to be optimistic. That is what our World Cup Team is teaching the nation, isn't it?

I was optimistic enough to buy a pair of new running shoes which were a bargain. It is a pair of Asics Trabuco which should carry me up Zugspitze - Germany's highest mountain. The race will take place on July 23rd and I still hope to get fit by then. I ran it the two previous years and I am keen to do it again.

I was grateful for today's bad weather as I counted 4 parts of my body aching. Without going into detail and boring you - the result was I sadly had to cancel the extensive bike tour I had planned today. So I sat in front of the computer all day to do more translation work. I finished to do the New York Marathon report. If you haven't seen the German version you are invited to read the new English one. This, too, is part of the fundraising project which I have already started as you might have seen here.

Well, there are always better times to come. I now look forward to another journey which will start on Sunday. More about this tomorrow.