Terceira / Ilha Terceira

Terceira, i.e. the "third" island, was the third to be discovered and is also the third largest in the Azores. The most important of the islands after Sao Miguel, it lies 157km/98mi northwest of that island and 56km/35mi east of the neighboring island of Sao Jorge. Like Sao Miguel Terceira is relatively well developed for tourism. However, its 60,000 inhabitants, many of them descended from the first Flemish settlers in the 15th C., live by arable farming (thanks to the extraordinary fertility of its soil Terceira is the Azores' largest cereals producer) stock rearing and seaweed-gathering. Some of them work on the Lajes airforce base in the northeast of the island. The island's airport, which has been greatly extended, also plays an important international role. Topography

The island is 31km/19mi long and up to 18km/11mi wide, with an area of 397sq.km/153sq.mi. Its highest point is the Caldeira de Santa Bárbara (1,067m/3,501ft), in the western half of the island. The eastern half consists mainly of a great volcanic plateau surrounded by high mountains. The coasts are steep, with many stretches of cliff, protected here and there by forts.