Le Maido

Le Maïdo stands at 2205 metres on the western rim of the Cirque de Mafate, and the drop from the viewpoint into the cirque is close to a thousand metres, straight down onto the ilets and the ravines. It is the classic Mafate view and the main trailhead for descending into the cirque. The road climbs from the coast through sugar cane, then geranium fields, then tamarin forest, gaining the whole height in about thirty kilometres. An atmospheric observatory of the University of La Réunion has worked on the summit since 2012.

The landscape

• The Mafate view - a drop of close to a thousand metres into the cirque.
• The tamarin forest - the endemic highland forest on the upper slopes.
• The summit position - the rim at 2205 metres above the west coast.
• The Mafate trailhead - the start of the main descent into the cirque.

When to go

May to November is the dry season. Sunrise is the classic time and the only reliable window for a clear view; cloud usually fills the cirque by mid-morning. Nights and early mornings are cold.

What to expect

Cloud closes the view for most of most days after about nine in the morning. It is genuinely cold at the top before dawn and visitors arrive underdressed. Wildfires have burned the surrounding forest and closed access in past years.

Nearby

Cirque de Mafate is below, and Saint-Paul is on the coast.

Key facts