Norbert, Açores
LightNews LightNews
banner
nobbrt.bsky.social
Norbert, Açores
@nobbrt.bsky.social
430 followers 210 following 230 posts
Continental European living continuously on the island of São Miguel, Açores since 2017. Musician and holiday apartment host. The pics are intended to give a glimpse of the beauty and diversity of my home island. https://casa.sillanova.pt
Posts Replies Media Videos
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Lagoa das Éguas norte. Part of the hiking trail Serra Devassa.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
November 13, 2025 at 6:31 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Illuminated headland. Ponta da Ajuda with the church Nossa Senhora da Ajuda - seen from the Miradouro de Santa Íria. Btw. it's the same headland as in my last two posts.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
November 12, 2025 at 7:46 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Orange sky right after sunset in Achadinha.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The image shows a bay with a headland jutting out into the sea shortly after sunset, viewed from an elevated position. There are light veil clouds in the sky, glowing yellow-orange from the setting sun. Below them is a darker band of clouds. The sea is bathed in a darker shade of orange. The visible parts of the coast are black.
November 11, 2025 at 7:18 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Today's Sunday afternoon stroll. Watching the waves nearby.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a small red and white striped beacon on a rocky outcrop. This consists of hexagonal basalt lava and is somewhat reminiscent of a cathedral with its two tall, arched and rather deep caves. The deep blue Atlantic Ocean is somewhat choppy. A wave that is relatively small for this part of the island and the time of year, only about 3-4 metres high, is breaking. The water near the rocky outcrop is foaming white. In one spot, the hexagonal structures are clearly visible due to the white water flowing down.
November 9, 2025 at 6:12 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
The old natural hot water pool in the park Caldeira Velha. Elderly locals say that many families have been founded there, long before São Miguel became a tourist destination.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a natural stone-lined water basin nestled in a rock niche, from which a small waterfall emerges. This water is now only about 28°C warm, but is said to have been significantly hotter a few decades ago. Wide steps lead up to the basin on the left. Everything is covered with a brownish coating, which is evidence of the high iron content of the water. The rocks are covered with moss and ferns. The overall picture is reminiscent of a picturesque waterfall on a South Sea island or in Southeast Asia. The local nickname of this place is sp*rm basin, by the way.
November 9, 2025 at 12:14 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
The view 800 metres away from our house as the crow flies.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows the blue Atlantic Ocean on the left and a small valley and the end of a gorge on the right, through which a small river flows, ending in a picturesque waterfall. Between them is a rocky ridge completely covered with heather and grasses. The entire valley and gorge are green and covered with bushes, shrubs, trees and, above all, giant reed (Arundo donax), which can also be seen at the bottom of the picture in the foreground. By the way, this material is used to make the reeds for woodwind instruments such as oboes and clarinets. In the Azores, it is planted around pastures and fields to protect against erosion. Like many plants in the Azores, it is very invasive.
November 7, 2025 at 6:56 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
A watermill on the hiking trail in Lomba da Fazenda.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a house built of natural stone with traditional moss-covered roof tiles. There is a window and, at the bottom, an arched inlet for the water that once powered the watermill. The modern aluminium window with green struts indicates that the house, or at least one room of it, is apparently still in use. On the right is a wall built of fieldstone and natural stone, which is actually an aqueduct that carries water to the mill. In the foreground is the path that is part of the Lomba da Fazenda hiking trail. In the background are trees and the ubiquitous ginger lily, which is in bloom in the photo.
November 6, 2025 at 7:11 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Salto do Prego in Faial da Terra (the south-east end of São Miguel)
#WaterfallWednesday #Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
November 5, 2025 at 7:43 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Lagoa do Fogo, westcoast.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a steep slope rising to the right from the green-blue waters of the ‘Fire Lake’. The slope is completely covered with heather and other shrubs, flowers, bushes and grasses, which was also the original endemic vegetation of the highlands of all the Azores islands.
November 4, 2025 at 6:49 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
A calm and sunny day at the estuary of the Ribeira dos Caldeirões, Achada. Looking in eastern direction.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The image shows rounded rocks and stones, some of which have interesting two-tone patterns. On the left side of the image is the deep blue ocean under a blue sky with harmless white clouds. In the background is part of the rugged cliffs, which cannot hide their volcanic origin, and on top of them are trees, bushes and grasses.
November 3, 2025 at 6:44 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Inside Parque Terra Nostra (botanical garden) in Furnas.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The image shows several gnarled old deciduous trees of various species, some of which are covered with climbing plants, mosses and lichens. On closer inspection, you can also see tree ferns, tall grasses, an araucaria and a faded agapanthus lily.
November 1, 2025 at 6:59 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Castelo Branco
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
October 30, 2025 at 6:53 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Cascata do Teófilo. Named after a man who died there several decades ago in an accident .
#WaterfallWednesday #Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
October 29, 2025 at 6:47 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Sunset in Fenais da Ajuda.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
October 28, 2025 at 6:57 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
The border creek to the next parish: Ribeira da Salga. Seen from the bridge.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a small green pond in a gorge, from which a small river flows out. A mini waterfall forms the inlet to the pond, surrounded by rocks. To the left and right are trees, including a Japanese cedar. On the right are hydrangeas that have almost completely finished flowering. On the left is a cluster of Solanum mauritianum (earleaf nightshade). At the bottom left, you can see the moss-covered edge of the bridge from which the photo was taken.
October 27, 2025 at 7:59 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Shadowplay on the highest peaks of São Miguel, seen from the Miradouro da Tronqueira.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The image reveals a view of the eastern flanks of São Miguel's highest mountains. These are covered with Japanese cedar forests. Only the peaks are free of trees. The shadows of white clouds in the otherwise blue sky draw patterns in the mountain landscape. In the foreground is the endemic tree heath Erica azorica, locally called “Urze”.
October 26, 2025 at 9:56 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
A hot water stream inside the Terra Nostra Park in Furnas. One of Portugal's largest botanical gardens.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a small stream whose water has a dirty yellow colour, indicating a high iron and sulphur content. To the right of it is a narrow footpath on reddish ground. The stream is bordered by piles of stones. Next to it, you can see some ferns (including tree ferns), mosses, an alocasia, the base of a tree and discoloured leaves lying on the ground.
October 25, 2025 at 6:22 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Stormy weather in Maia.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
October 24, 2025 at 6:14 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Maia beach at low tide.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The viewer is positioned just above sea level, looking out over a bay with an almost mirror-smooth surface, which ends on the right at steep cliffs overgrown with vegetation. In the foreground, heavily rounded stones covered in algae protrude from the sea. The sky is blue, with harmless white clouds.
October 23, 2025 at 5:19 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Salto do Homem. Part of the hike I do every couple of days for excercise.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a valley completely covered with reeds, bushes, grasses, mosses and trees, with an enchanting waterfall in the middle.
October 22, 2025 at 6:26 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
On my home hiking trail; Trilho Moinho do Félix
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows a narrow stream in a rocky bed, which is very smooth at the edges. The stream is located in a jungle-like clearing, with sweet pittosporum, the ubiquitous ginger lilies, mosses, ferns and Japanese cedars in the background. On the right-hand edge of the picture, you can see the lovingly and laboriously constructed hiking trail, which is permanently maintained. No machinery other than a chainsaw was used in its construction. The handrail is made of branches and trunks of the extremely invasive pittosporum, which is called ‘incenso’ (incense) by the locals because of its fragrant flowers (February/March).
October 21, 2025 at 6:07 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Long shadows at São Miguel's westernmost point Ponta da Ferraria. Early November, shortly before sunset.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The image shows a flat, barren area covered with gravel and small stones, leading to a dry, grassy embankment and ending at a steep rock face. The landscape is bathed in yellow-orange light, as the sun was just above the horizon when the photo was taken. The shadows of two people – one of them me – are grotesquely elongated and stand out against the plain. The plain is just above sea level, which is probably the main reason why there is no vegetation here – unusual for the Azores – as the salt spray prevents it from growing.
October 20, 2025 at 6:54 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
View from the picnic area and leisure park Vigia das Baleias (whale outlook) in Algarvia towards the west, with some flowering yuccas. Picture was taken in October.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows the northern cliffs from an elevated viewpoint. To the right is the blue Atlantic Ocean. In the foreground are white inflorescences of two Yucca filamentosa plants, approximately half a metre high. Further down is a car park paved with reddish asphalt, covered picnic areas with brick barbecues and a wood-fired oven. Of course, these are free for public use. Further back are the neighbouring villages of Feteira Grande and Pequena (in the parish of Santana), Achada and, last but not least, the crocodile-shaped western tip of the island. The sky is blue, with clouds forming only over the mountains due to rising humidity.
October 19, 2025 at 5:24 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Footpath through the Planalto dos Graminhais high moor with a view towards São Miguel's highest mountain, Pico da Vara.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The picture shows the typical brownish-green high moor landscape of the Azores, consisting of grasses and moss cushions, through which a narrow footpath winds its way. Everything beyond the path is so wet that you would sink quite a distance into it. In the background, the summit of a vegetated mountain rises up, only about a hundred metres higher than the viewer. The top is shrouded in clouds. Incidentally, this is not yet Pico da Vara, which is further away. The sky is heavily overcast, which is typical in the interior of the island, as the clouds form from the rising moisture from the ocean, which cools a few degrees in the mountains. The photo was taken in 2018. Access to the Planalto dos Graminhais has since been closed for nature conservation reasons.
October 18, 2025 at 5:55 PM
nobbrt.bsky.social
Picture from my home:
Looking eastward from the estuary of the Ribeira dos Caldeirões, Achada. Part of a rather varied hiking trail called Lomba d'El Rei.
#Açores #Azores #Azoren #SãoMiguel #photography #landscape #landscapephotography
The viewer looks out over the Atlantic Ocean, which transitions from turquoise to dark blue, with a few low waves. In the foreground is a beach made up of large, rounded stones. To the right is a small section of the cliffs, consisting of rugged, dark volcanic rocks. The sky is mostly blue, with scattered clouds.
October 17, 2025 at 6:43 PM