Climb the Fogo volcano

Date of your route : Jan 28, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We climbed without a guide, and we regretted it. The end of the climb is dizzying. On the way down, the ground is extremely slippery. It's a mixture of sand and pebbles. The path is very poorly marked on the descent. Small mistakes in footing or orientation can quickly become catastrophic.

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Date of your route : Feb 22, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

I did another route than this one, without a guide, with the same ascent but a different descent.
It is a very technical and demanding route with few visible tracks and almost no markings.
The final climb to the peak and the start of the descent are vertiginous, with passages equipped with essential but very dangerous lifelines.
Most guides end the climb at the edge of the crater without going up to the peak, then descend via the same slope.
However, there is an alternative route that involves making a quarter turn around the crater via the peak (dangerous but magnificent) or via the inner ridge of the crater. This allows you to descend on another slope that passes through Pequenio.

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Date of your route : Nov 20, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

I'm a little surprised to find this route on Visorando because it's forbidden to do it without a local guide. It's a beautiful route that takes you down a rocky slope in the middle of volcanic ash. This makes for a slightly more stable path underfoot, but not everywhere. Overall, the effort required is equivalent to 1,300 to 1,400 metres on a good trail. Most guides stop at the crater, beyond which there is a steep trail with cable-assisted sections. The difference in altitude between the crater and the summit is about 50 metres, not nine metres as stated in the description. The summit is at 2,829 metres. It is possible to walk around the crater, but you will need to take bivouac equipment (uncomfortable!) as it takes two days of walking. The steep sections are also wired.
It should also be noted that there are no rescue helicopters in Cape Verde, so in the event of a serious injury, recovery will be long and problematic. This is not just a theoretical possibility; groups ahead of us had quite a bit of trouble and large rocks came close to hitting us.
The descent, three-quarters of which is in powdery ash, is fast and enjoyable.
There are other hikes, just as beautiful and less risky, on Santa Antao, the westernmost of the Cape Verde islands.

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