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Principal-Trail

Principal-Trail (Tarrafal, Kapverden)

The Principal Trail is one of the three great trail classics on Santiago. It leads from Serra Malagueta on a direct line down into the green Principal Valley. A must-do if you are on the Cape Verde Islands by mountain bike.

Description

As with most of the top trails around Tarrafal, the tour starts at Serra Malagueta, right at the top of the pass between Tarrafal and Assomado. You can get up here with one of the numerous pick-up shuttles. A downhill cold start is then the order of the day. Just below the top of the pass, turn right onto the trail down into the Principal Valley. Fluid, winding, fun. The trail is first-class, but there are always hikers here. It descends in this winding style as far as Malon, then becomes a little more challenging down to the valley floor with occasional steps and hairpin bends. The path is solidly built but not always easy to find as many trails branch off to individual houses. Ideally, you should follow the GPS track here. Once you reach the bottom of the valley, the path becomes smoother again and you head through a sea of mango trees, banana trees and sugar cane stalks to the village of Principal. A paved road now leads to the - also paved - coastal road, which you follow back to Tarrafal.

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Map & GPX-Track

The map is only available to Ride subscribers.
The Ride-Subscription is available at ride-mtb.com/abo

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27 km

365 m

1110 m

9 above sea level

779 above sea level

1 day

Tarrafal

Tarrafal

2285

well suited

Thomas Giger
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Written by reto.manetsch on 25. March 2025

The King's Trail on Santiago. Rode it today with a group of 7. 2 out of 6 riding technique? We give it 4 out of 6... Some very exposed sections. Falling not allowed. The stream bed before Principal is not rideable. Adventurous tour with cool trails in a beautiful landscape.

Portrait Thomas Giger

About the author: Thomas Giger

Thomas Giger has been the editor of Ride MTB since 2002 and is a regular online and print author. Over the years, he has specialized in tourism topics and is particularly well known for his blog-style columns. He is also one of Ride MTB's active tour authors.

Thomas Giger has been the editor of Ride MTB since 2002 and has had a significant influence on the tour database. His focus is on single trail tours. There are few who know the trails in Switzerland as well as he does. However, his areas of expertise also include Aosta, the French Western Alps, and the whole of South Tyrol.

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Note: This content has been automatically translated from German. Please report any incorrect translations.