We woke early today, then went straight back to sleep again, dozing gently for a while before getting ready for the day’s walk.
It was a big change from the last 2 weeks, where we have been out of bed, dressed and keen to get walking, before it gets too warm. Today, we only had about 12km to hike, from Salema to Luz, and if we set off too early, we’d be there in time for coffee.
So we took it a little more slowly.
After yesterday’s big walk, with lots of steep climbs and descents, we imagined that today would be a gentle amble, across rolling cliffs, to tonight’s stop.
It didn’t take us long to realise that wasn’t going to be the case at all.
It was a stunning start to the day, as we wandered out of Salema, along the beach. It was already warm, and the low sun was turning the sea into liquid silver.
The village looked pretty, as we climbed through the narrow streets, making our way onto the cliffs.
As we walked up, we met a dog that joined us for a while, before dashing off, back to its owner.
Once on top of the cliffs, we had a glorious view back across the village to Sagres, in the distance, which gave us a sense of how far we had walked yesterday.
We also realised that we could now see the end of our walk, with the buildings of Lagos, visible on a distant headland. Seeing the end, brought home to us just how close we were to this adventure being over.
We were enjoying the stroll, and then realised that we were dropping down into a little bay. The first sign that we weren’t going to have the easy amble that we’d imagined
To one side of the beach was a little lagoon, and the only way to cross, was on a few stepping stones. No problem. But then we had a rocky scramble along the side, as we climbed above it.
It got incredibly narrow, and with hands-on sections, where we had to pull ourselves up. We were now back on a trail, very much like yeaterday, and it took us a while to settle back into our stride.
The path climbed steeply, taking us up to the Fort of Saint Luis de Almadena , a ruined 16th century fortress that was originally built to protect the area’s tuna fishing interests from attacks by pirates.
It was clearly a significant fort, at its height, built 78 metres, above the coast, with clear views along the cliffs.
It was partially damaged in an earthquake in 1755, and subsequently lost its military attachment, and was abandoned.
We followed the path into the heart of the old ruins, getting a sesnse of how it must have been at the height of its power.
From the top, it was easy to see why it had been used to keep an eye in the fishing fleets. The views were amazing.
We dragged ourselves away and carried on, the path giving us great views inland…
Before we started to drop down into another little bay. Like yesterday, this was quite steep in places, but finished on a beautiful little beach, where we sat in the shade of a tree, enjoying a drink and a piece of cake, whilst we watched the surfers
It seems strange that it is the middle of October, and we are seeking out shade. Today was unexpectedly warm, without any of the cooling sea breeze that we have enjoyed for the last week. It was only 1030, and we were already overheating.
After cooling down and enjoying the beach, we set off again, climbing steeply again, to a clifftop that was covered with cacti, some just showing the signs of starting to flower
Then dropped into the pretty village of Burgau, with its narrow, colourful streets that wound down towards the beach.
This was where we realised that we had moved into a different area, and after the peace of the coast, small villages and towns that we’ve stayed in, this felt as if we were walking through everyone else’s holidays.
It’s easy to see why it’s busy, with a beautiful beach and picturesque streets, but it still felt like a bit of a shock to our system, as we walked past people tucking into ‘full English breakfasts’ on the terrace of one café.
We found a quieter bar and sat with fresh orange juice, watching the surfers, cooling down again, before we carried on.
The last part of the walk was along rocky cliffs, which looked incredibly unstable in some places, especially here.
A steep climb, between Burgau and Luz, where it looks as of the whole central part, has recently collapsed.
I must admit, I didn’t want to get too close to the edge.
The final walk into Luz was along a rugged, rocky coastline, where even the gentle waves were crashing loudly, onto the slabs. It must be absolutely spectacular in a storm!
By now, the heat had taken it out of us a bit, and we kept a look out for a shady spot, where we could stop for lunch. The walk was done, but we had to wait to be able to check into the hotel.
We finally found a shady bench, in a stunning spot, overlooking the sea, and happily sat down, munched our sandwiches and watched the waves.
It may have only been 12km today, but we had underestimated how challenging it would be. With the heat as well, it left us a bit drained.
When we had been planning the walk, we had considered walking straight from Salema, to the end at Lagos, as it was just over 23km, but thought it would be nice to just slow down at the end, and enjoy a couple of slower days.
Tonight, we’re so pleased that we did. We spoke to a couple of walkers who were ordering Ubers to take them from Luz to the edge of Lagos, as the heat had drained them too.
We’ll be up early tomorrow to set off on the last 11km stage to Lagos, so we can avoid the heat and ensure we arrive in plenty of time to get our train that will take us to Lisbon, tomorrow evening.
According to the Rota Vicentina pages, tomorrow will be an easy walk… after today, we’ll just wait and see!
