The TRAVELER'S JOURNAL: September third, hiking the highlands of Madeira.

Several million years ago, volcanic action on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean created an island 300 miles off the coast of North Africa. Today, mile-high mountains jut up sharply from the sea in sheer cliffs that soar 1800 feet from the beachless coast. 

Portuguese sailors who landed on the island of Madeira in 1420 may have been the first humans to visit. Settlers burned off the native vegetation, terraced the steep slopes, and planted bananas and melons in the semi-tropical climate. Around 1700, vineyards were established. English sailors discovered the flavor of the island's distinctive red wine became richer as the sun heated the wooden casks in which it was shipped. The heavy, sweet wine was a hit in the American colonies. Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin supposedly toasted the signing of the Declaration of Independence with glasses of amber Madeira wine.

Now a province of Portugal, the island has long been a popular destination for English travelers. Winston Churchill loved to stroll the warm streets of Funchal, Madeira's capital. Classical casinos and stately hotels still impart the air of a 19th-century European resort.

But Madeira's steep mountain slopes conceal other charms, especially for walkers. Tiny fields are set on slopes so steep they can only be reached by rope and ladder. Madeiran farmers have built stone- lined irrigation channels or levadas, which lace over and through the near vertical landscape. Over 1800 miles of footpaths follow these channels. For an adventurous traveler, they offer access to nearly every corner of Madeira, a unique and magical isle.

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