seemed not much wider than the Thames about London; we discerned also the Herro, being distant about twenty Leagues, and so to the utmost Limits of the Sea much farther: As soon as the Sun appeared, the Shadow of the Pico seemed to cover not only the whole Island and the Grand Canaries, but the Sea to the very Horizon, where the Top of the Sugar-Loaf or Pico visibly appeared to turn up, and cast its Shade into the Air itself, at which we were much surprized.
But the Sun was not far ascended when the Clouds began to rise so fast, as intercepted our Prospect both of the Sea and the whole Island, except the Tops only of the subjacent Mountains, which seemed to pierce them through; whether these Clouds do ever surmount the Pico we cannot say, but to such as are far below they seem sometimes to hang above it, or rather wrap themselves about it, constantly when the Weft Winds blow; this they call the Cap, and is an infallible Prognostick of ensuing Storms: One of our Company who made this Journey again two Years after, arriving at the Top of the Pico before Day, and creeping under a great Stone to shroud himself from the cold Air, after a little Space found himself all wet, and perceived it to come from a perpetual trickling of the Water from the Rocks above him: Many excellent and exuberant Springs we found issuing from the Tops of most of the other Mountains, gushing out in great Spouts, almost as far as the huge Fine Tree we mentioned before; having stayed a while at the Top, we all descended the sandy Way till we came to the Foot of the Sugar-Loaf, which being steep even almost to a Perpendicular we soon paired, and here we met with a Cave about ten Yards deep and fifteen broad, being in Shape like an Oven or Cupola, having a Hole at the Top near eight Yards
