I was there a few weeks ago, some bad and rainy days but mostly good weather. I loved it in the north but been only in Santana for 2 days. Funchal is also cool and I loved to be able to pay with bitcoin in so many places. Definitely going back at some point to keep exploring the island.
Discussion
there's some good surfing breaks over this side of the island, especially over between Ponta Delgada and Sao Vicente, definitely gotta have wetsuit for this weather and i don't really see people out there that much... there is no natural sandy beaches on this island, the profile of the mountain goes straight down pretty fast, what you see above, goes down the same way, i think if you count the height of the volcano that is the root of this island from where it erupts in the sea bed it might be the tallest mountain on teh planet, in fact
To be honest I prefer it doesn't have the sandy beaches if that was the case the island would be full of resorts
yeah, the main thing people come here for is the hikes through the mountains and the views along the coast roads and tracks, and probably the many ruins all over the place