On the Southwest of Portugal, there is a huge network of hiking trails (probably the best known of the country!) called Rota Vicentina. Last time I've checked, there were over 700km of trails!
Some of the best are near coastal areas, and Dunas do Almograve was the last one I've done; although I can't say this one is one of my favourites, it's a great trail to do if you're in this area and you feel like taking a break from beach time, or if it's a little chilly for a nice beach afternoon - as it was the case here!
There are several good reasons to do this trail:
The trail starts in Almograve, a small coastal village in Alentejo. At one of the first roundabouts, you find the sign with the trail explanations (as well as for other trails that also pass here), that marks the starting point.
I followed the recommended direction, starting in the rural area and moving to the coastal part after. You do have to walk a little bit near the road, moving away from the roundabout until you find this sign:
From here, just dirtroads and small trails, no more asphalt!
If you like birdwatching, chances are you'll see quite a few different species here. My trail took a little longer than usual, because although I'm a fast walker, there are far too many stops to search for wildlife.
Afer the first few hundred meters, the trail starts to become narrower and narrower, and you'll swap the agricultural fields for bbeing in the middle of the small forests and bushes.
Which is niver, especially if you're doing this in the Summer - weather in this part of the country can get really hot!
You'll eventually end up here, again on a larger road and with more fields, the one that will take you closer to the beach.
The path is very well signed until this point, and this narrow path takes you to the "second part" of the trail, so to speak.
A few more meters, and at last, the coastal line in all its awesomeness!
From here, you start going back from where you started. I found it strange when I read about the trail to see it classified as "moderate difficulty", since this is a rather plain area. Arriving at this point, I found out why: the next 4 km were done mostly in sand! Should have guessed, after all it is called dunes of Almograve!
You can take a short (or long) break and visit the local beach, praia do Brejo. Do you like wild, secluded beaches? Well, here you go!
Mind you, I've done this trail in early September! Can you see how crowded the beach is? ;) Truth be told, it was a bit windy that day. But even in a perfect day, these beaches are still uncrowded.
Even if you don't want to go down for a swim, the trail will continue alongside it, so plenty of time to admire the coast.
As well as plenty of opportunities to check the local flora, such as the sour fig (which is actually an invasive species, albeit widespread nowadays).
You'll pass by smaller beaches, that likely don't have an easy acess.
The views on this part are stunning, and by this time I was nearing the golden hour, so I was fortunate to combine the sea view with a sunset, and the colours that come along with it!
This next beach is where the trail leaves the coastal part and starts going back to the village. I messed up here, since I took a different road, probably parallel to the one I should have taken; this part is not exactly well signaled, or I've missed the sign completely.
Of course, I could also blame it on the sunset, that got me distracted!
I speeded up a little on this part, since I didn't wanted to be in the middle of nowhere without light; nevertheless, you are pretty near to the starting point at this location.
A last look at the colours in the sky, and some of the creatures along the way...
... and at the starting point, after a few more minutes! A great way to spend an afternoon, and also to try out my new toy:
And yep, the distance and the course matched!
You can find more information about this trail on this page. And as I've said, this is just a tiny part of all the hiking trails you can do in this area!
As an added bonus, the little village (and the ones nearby) have great restaurants, with local food: perfect to replenish some of those lost calories! ;)
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