I started early in the morning at 6:45 am right next to the lighthouse. There was a closed gate at the start of the track but I could walk around.
The track went almost all the time uphill on the first stretch of 15 k. It was foggy the day I ran and at a certain height it rained sometimes. Once cows blocked the road and forced me to stop. I stopped the watch until I realized being on an FKT-attempt.
On the "terra alto" I couldn't see any of the lakes due to the heavy fog. Sometimes I could see the island of Sao Jorge to my right. After 30 km I entered a road that seemed to be endless. It was the last heavy incline of the track.
Right after passing Montanha do Pico (Portugal's highest mountain) I had some issues finding my way. Suddenly the course left the street into a narrow path between two walls of lava stones. What once was maybe was a path was overgrown by blackberries and blocked off by a wired fence . I managed to find a way next to it across a meadow.
During the last kilometers it started to rain again. After passing the typical red earth roads I finally arrived in Madalena in front of the church.
I did the entire run on my own and carried all I needed in a running vest. There was no public fountain or any other option to refill water. On the first half I only met two hikers and some farm workers, later on the road to Madalena there is more car traffic.