São Jorge, cordillera of fire and refuge for men

🌋 São Jorge - A volcanic mountain range in the middle of the Atlantic

São Jorge is unlike any other island in the Azores.

Long and narrow, it was formed around 1.3 million years ago by fissural volcanism, i.e. eruptions lined up along fractures in the Earth's crust. This process gave rise to a veritable volcanic cordillera, dotted with almost 150 scoria cones that bear witness to intense and repeated activity.

But over time, the geological history of São Jorge has become more complex. The fragile basaltic rocks were cracked, eroded and then brutally cut by collapses. This is how the vertiginous cliffs bordering the island were formed, plunging up to 600 metres into the ocean. This spectacular relief is one of the archipelago's most striking features.

At the foot of these walls are the Fajãs, small plains created sometimes by lava flows reaching the sea, sometimes by gigantic landslides. The best known, the Fajã de Santo Cristo, is a perfect illustration of this process: a massive collapse created a flat surface, protected from the wind and enriched with fresh water. These special conditions have enabled the inhabitants to transform a geological constraint into a fertile and sustainable place to live.

São Jorge is a natural laboratory where we can observe both the violence of volcanic processes and the resilience of human societies. Its landscapes tell a story of adaptation: where the rock crumbles, man builds; where the volcano sculpts the earth, culture is invented.​