I put writing the blog to one side, last night, as we have a day off today. Also, we popped out to a little restaurant in Carrapateira, where we are staying, ending up spending a delightful evening on a large table, with other walkers on the trail.
It was a fascinating evening, chatting about the trail and other walking routes, with little groups of walkers from Italy, Germany and Belgium. We had seen and said hello to everyone around the table, at various times over the last few days, so it was really lovely to he able to chat properly.
We all agreed that yesterday’s walk had been rather wonderful. We had expected it to be a longer walk of about 24km, so decided to set off as early as we could.
We had breakfast in the dark, and at 7.30 had pulled on our backpacks, and were heading out onto the trail.
It was a spectacular start to the day, with a glorious golden sunrise that set the sky on fire, tinting the clouds out to sea, with shades of apricot .
It was wonderfully peaceful too. It felt (for the first time) that we were alone on the path, with just the song from the dawn chorus keeping us company.
We took the gravel path away from the village, following the route through open countryside, catching tantalising glimpses of the sea, ahead
Bedfore long, we were walking down to the coast at Praia do Canal, where for the first time, we were met by a beach of huge, dark pebbles and rocks, which looked so different to the golden, sandy expanses that we have become used to.
We crossed behind the beach and then started a steep climb, up a gravel road, onto the top of the cliffs. There were plenty of tyre tracks along it, but we both commented that it wouldn’t be a drive for the faint-hearted, as the hairpins were steep, gravelly and right on the edge of the cliff. Any lapse in concentration, or a foot slipping off the brake pedal wouldn’t end well!
Clearly though, the local fishermen didn’t worry about it, as a few cars were parked down by the beach, with the drivers out fishing, off precarious looking rocks.
Once we had reached the top of the cliffs, we continued along a sandy track through eucalyptus forests that looked as if we could have been walking in Australia.
We passed little farms, and stood to watch the cows that were in totally open grazing, the gentle sound of their bells adding a tuneful note to the walk.
Before long, we had the coast back in sight; in fact, not only the coast, but our destination too, and it wasn’t much past 1030, which was clearly far too early to arrive.
The route that we had seen in the book should have taken us inland, but we had followed the little blue and green paint markings, for the Rota Vicentina, which was incredibly pretty, but slightly shorter.
We decided it was time for a little stop, spotting a headland, away from the path, and found a way towards it. Once again it was down a steep, gnarly, gravel track with deep potholes, and water gullies. The sort of path you would need to drive down, in a good, reliable 4×4.
It was just as we were saying this to each other, when we were passed by a 1990s era, slightly battered, dust-covered Renault Clio, that continued, happily bouncing its way down the path, as if the driver didn’t have a care in the world. He was off to his favourite fishing spot and that was all that mattered.
At the end of the road (if you can call it that) was a steep, sandy path, leading on towards the headland. The fisherman was already scampering along it, so we followed a short distance, found a sunny spot above a wooded valley and sat on the sand, absorbed by the peace:
We couldn’t see the hiking trail, and no one other than the fisherman was nearby. We had no phone signal, so nothing to disturb us, and it was bliss.
We lay back, on a the warm sand , listening to the birdsong. Thanks to Merlin we identified them all, and it proved to be a simple, tuneful and incredibly relaxing hour.
It’s funny how quickly an hour can pass, just lying on your back, on a sunny day, listening to the birds. Surely, it’s one of the simplest luxuries of life.
Eventually, we dragged ourselves away, climbed back onto the main trail, and continued on.
Before long, we were sitting down again, pulling on our sand-gaiters, as we turned off the gravel track, onto a path of deep sand.
The path followed a rollercoaster route, which gave us stunning views across the coast, in both directions. back towards Arrifana, where we had started the day, and down the coast towards Carrapateira (and beyond)
We were high above a stunning, peaceful beach, and soon the sound of the waves matched the rhythm of our steps, as we walked on.
We followed the path, down to the beach, the deep dune-sand covering our feet, as we we part-walked, part slipped our way down
Once there, we found a deep dune, out of the wind, and collapsed into it, the sand moulding itself around us to make the most comfortable of seats.
It was the perfect picnic spot, and we settled back with a sandwich to enjoy the sound of the sea, watching the surfers in the distance.
Another hour passed by, and we realised that we now feel very comfortable walking almost 20km, before lunchtime.
It feels as if we have really settled into the walk now, like we settle into the cycling, on our longer tours. What seems like a big day to begin with, quickly becomes normality, and we enjoy them more and more.
By the time we left the beach, the wind had picked up, with little sand-devils chasing our shoes, as we made our way onto the path into Carrapateira.
We opted to avoid having to take our shoes and socks off, to wade across the ford at the top of the beach, following a track that took us over rocks, and then a final sandy path, towards the village.
It had still been a 21km walk, and a very lovely one too, and we were happy we had got up early to walk in the cool of the morning, to enjoy the peace and beauty of the sunrise.
We only have another 4 1/2 days of walking left now, which seems amazing, and we know that it will be over far too quickly.
We have covered 147.5km, since leaving Sines, and can honestly say that we have loved every moment of it.
We have a day off today, and have ambled to a nearby beach for breakfast ( because, what else would you do on a day off during a walking holiday).
On again tomorrow to Vila Do Bispo, and thanks to our supper with other hikers last night, we’ve found a way of extending the start, so that we can see part of the coast that the marked trail will miss
It is such a spectacular, unspoiled coastline that we want to enjoy every moment of it.
