Tunnel adventure and stroll at Sete Cidades 10-08-2018

This walk takes you from the banks of Lagoa Azul through the 1.2 km long water drainage tunnel in between Sete Cidades and Mosteiros. A great adventure, especially for kids.
I've rated the walk "moderate" because of the tunnel passage, the rest is "very easy".
We started the walk on the access road towards the tunnel and after coming back visited the village center with the church.
Close to the tunnel head on the Sete Cidades side you will find a picnic area, then you cross over the drainage canal that connects to the lake and find the entrance of the tunnel after 100 m.
The tunnel was built from 1930-1937 in order to make it possible to drain water from the Sete Cidades lakes towards the coast (the lakes otherwise have no drainage).
Rather than in an open canal (as is e.g. common for levada tunnels on Madeira), inside the tunnel the water runs in a big waterpipe.
Be prepared for puddles, wet and muddy stretches, which may force you to either wade through or climb up on the low concrete wall that holds a smaller water pipe.
You will need torches or mobile phone lights inside the tunnel (take care that you have enough battery, it may take you about 1 h to go through it and back if a lot of puddles slow you down). Needless to say that the GPS does not work inside the tunnel, but you will find marks indicating the distance to the exit.
You emerge from the tunnel in a valley below Pico do Mafra close to the national road EN1-1A.
Our trail time of 4 h includes a 30 min picnic break on the Mosteiros side of the tunnel (not optimum because there are no facilities there and you are close to the national road).
Go back through the tunnel and explore the village center or the green spaces on the banks of the lake.