A dozen whaling boats and four motorboats were used for whaling in Graciosa. This activity reached its greatest expression in the 40s of the 20th century, ending in 1982.
We begin our tour with a visit to the Santa Cruz Whaling Boat Shed, located in the village of Santa Cruz, which once belonged to the Companhia Baleeira da Graciosa, Lda. In this exhibition space, once used to store the whalers’ boats, we are taken on a journey into the past, during which we discover a wide variety of tools associated with whaling. In this section of the Graciosa Museum, we can also see up close one of the island’s most unique whaling boats—the Restinga—equipped with its traditional rigging.
We continue to the Port of Calheta, where we can imagine the hustle and bustle from the times of whaling, when the Hauling Ramp was filled with people linked to the whaling fleet operations. This ramp has been in use since the end of the 19th century, and despite all the changes and improvements it has undergone over the years, we can still see some of the rings on the wall that were used to moor whales .
We end the itinerary in Monte da Ajuda Lookout, by the Chapel of Senhora da Ajuda, the first lookout built in Graciosa and the only one in operation until 1946. Facing northeast, it signaled the fleet stationed in the Port of Calheta. A location of strategic importance for whale sighting, used simultaneously by different fleets. Not to miss!
