Portugal Bike Tour

I never really used my jersey pockets. They're the ones on the back of a cycling shirt that allow you to carry a water bottle, spare tube, credit card or whatever you needed without any extra bags on your bike. Since I'm usually riding a touring bike with ample carrying capacity I never felt comfortable having things back there absorbing my sweat. But on a longer tour when my resources were limited I found even the most useless pocket could serve an important purpose.
This particular day felt different. It was the fourth day of our ride in the south of Portugal. I had a nice air conditioned room to myself in a small hotel in Mertola. I stepped out for my morning coffee and pastel de nata (a ubiquitous flaky crust custard pastry I've grown to love). The center of town was up a short staircase from my hotel and as soon as I took my first step I felt the sun and hot sticky air replace the cool conditioned air from my room. It was hot, humid and walking felt onerous. Even sat still at the cafe, in the shade, waiting what felt like forever for my coffee and pastry to arrive it felt like a day best spent at a beach. I could tell my companions, Bobby and Natalie, were feeling it too. It was so tempting to spend the day by the river but we had places to go and those places were over some not insignificant hills heading north. It was barely 10am and we knew the day would only get warmer. We ate, packed up, checked out of our hotels and started to head towards the days first climb. A few streets up before the end of town I saw some restaurants with shady outdoor seating and decided to stop and have some more food, essentially delaying the onset of the pain. Almost an hour later we were finally ready to ride but our last stop was the gas station for some water. I bought some ice to put into our water bottles. About half of the bag was left over once the bottles were filled and in the scorching heat we started rubbing the remaining cubes on our skin. It felt amazing so we all spontaneously started stuffing ice cubes all over our clothes, pockets, helmets, wherever they would fit. This is where the rear jersey pockets really earned their keep. I stuffed a stack of cubes in there and as we rode through the hottest part of the day was constantly reaching in to grab one and rubbing them on my neck and chest to freshen up. The ice lasted probably over an hour and made the day's riding feel a lot more comfortable.

The capital was the perfect place to start our journey. We spent the first couple days in Lisbon and took a trip to Sintra before the riding would begin. The city was beautiful and energetic. Bobby and Natalie had both been here several times but it was my first trip so they took me around to the castle, the Belem Tower, and a few other historical sites. We were there towards the end of the busy season and tourists were everywhere. The accommodation prices were very high as the popularity of Lisbon has put same pressure on the real estate market as in many other popular cities. That said the city was big enough to not always feel like we were in a tourist trap. There were numerous overlooks where locals and visitors gathered at sunset to listen to street performers and frequent the small nearby cafes. Lisbon was a rewarding city to just walk around small streets and alleys and look at the iconic tiles (azulejos) on buildings. Food was also terrific. We grabbed everything from simple sandwiches to more fancy sit-down meals in a variety of establishments and they all seemed to exceed expectations. I was particularly excited to try a canned fish place. We went to one where thousands of cans lined the walls and once ordered were procured by the servers, plated and brought to us along with drinks. I bought some cans before my flight home to try to replicate the experience at home. There was a small craft beer scene in Lisbon as well with a handful of establishments serving microbrews from around Portugal and the rest of the world. Outside Lisbon finding anything other than the two national beers was not particularly easy, however. Overall I'd say Lisbon is one of the most attractive and engaging capitals in Europe. I would gladly return.
Nearby Sintra is a UNESCO world heritage site with several days' worth of sites to visit. We took a quick day trip and chose just a few. The Moor castle was in exceptional shape for its age and offered amazing views of the surrounding area all the way to the ocean. We also waited on an enormously long (but fast moving) line to see the inverted well that seemed to be one of the worlds busiest attractions. It seemed like a great place to spend the night and explore when the daytrippers have left or before they arrive. Maybe next time.

The riding portion of the trip started in Faro. We took a relatively quick and comfortable train ride to the southern coast. We were debating the best route to ride because the north of Portugal has about as many interesting places to visit as the south and we didn't have time to see everything. The decision was made based on weather; there was expected to be a week of rain in the north so we took our chances with the heat of the south. We arrived in Faro in the early afternoon and immediately stopped for lunch. It is a small picturesque town on the ocean with lots of vacationers soaking up the sun. We took our time at lunch since the day's riding was to be short and relatively simple. Anyway we were on vacation and didn't want to rush. We rode along the coast, following Eurovelo's Atlantic Coast route in certain sections. We found long stretches of bike path along salt farms and marshes. The road sections were often unpaved and with negligible traffic. Our only other stop was in Olhao, another seaside resort town. We only stopped briefly for refreshments. After finishing up the ride we arrived in Tavira around dusk but had to motor up a small hill to where our hotel reservation was. In the evening we ate at a well reviewed restaurant along the river and the meal was spectacular. One day in and we were already having a blast.

After some coffee and a few pasteis de nata the touring caravan turned north away from the Atlantic coast. This was going to be a day of uncertainty. We knew we wanted to head into the direction of Evora but the southern region of Algarve is known to be fairly empty with few towns and a low population. Specifically we weren't sure we could risk a longer route without any accommodation options along the way. Equally importantly we didn't know if any place would be open for lunch along the way. Having few better options we took our chances and rode northeast towards the Spanish border. Algarve was an area of fairly small hills so the route was up and down but not too challenging. The late summer heat was notable but manageable. We passed areas of recent wildfires with whole sections of trees turned black with ash. A few trees survived and had a few shoots coming out despite having their branches singed off. Luck was on our side and we found a nice restaurant open for business near the top of one of the hills in a town of barely a handful of houses. Being away from touristy places, the plates were enormous, hearty and cheap with an obligatory side of fries. Luckily we were burning enough calories to get most of the way through our plates and still leave space for ice cream. A short while later we stopped to take pictures of an abandoned windmill at the top of a hill and help ourselves to some almonds from a tree next to it. After a quick descent we found ourselves riding along the Guadiana river which separates Portugal from Spain. The Portuguese side had a few small villages with restaurants and some other essentials. There's also a small museum dedicated to the river. The Spanish side of this stretch looked completely empty except for a few windmills. Right around golden hour we could see Alcoutim in front of us along with it's Spanish sister city across the river. The Spanish town was Sanlucar with every house painted white and a large white castle perched on top. It looked like a fairytale village, and we were stoked to go explore.

In the morning we had a packed agenda. After the obligatory coffees and pastries we took the ferry across to Spain. This being my first trip to Iberia I've never set foot in Spain before. The town looked like it had a fresh coat of white paint on every building. The streets were cobblestoned; it felt like a prototypical old world European city. We climbed the hill in the late morning heat hoping to check out the castle but found it was closed with no details as to why. The view was worth the hike, though and we watched some people zipline between the two counties as we strolled back down. I tried to buy a bottle of water while waiting for the ferry but the siesta culture was not to be messed with and all I got was dirty looks from service staff wrapping napkins for when the places eventually reopen. I wouldn't say Spain made the best first impression. The castle on the Portuguese side was very much open and had a nice museum alongside. We spent a short while exploring before heading back to the hotel to check out. Once packed and back in the saddle we headed into the hills in the direction of Mertola and the region of Alentejo. After a few climbs in the early afternoon heat we spotted a river near a small dam with actual running water in it. We decided to take a quick dip to cool off. There was not a soul around, jackpot. I stepped in knee deep. After about 15 minutes of pleasant cold water I looked at my feet and saw dozens of tiny things moving around. We freaked out thinking they were leeches and ran out of the water. In hindsight I doubt they were leaches and were probably harmless but we were definitely not going to explore uncharted waters again. The landscape started to change as we crossed Algarve's border with Alentejo. This area was much more agrarian and we started seeing more cattle ranches and farms. Some of the scenery reminded me of savanna with golden grass and the odd tree in the distance. After a few more climbs and a stop or two for ice cream and seltzers we rode up to Mertola with its majestic hilltop castle.

Mertola was a small town with little to do besides a quick visit to the castle and a walk along the impressive castle walls. We were not moving quickly due to the weather described in the intro but once we got going we made good progress quickly. The ride was similar to the day before and not particularly eventful. We didn't stop much along the way and got to Beja in the early evening. We instantly liked Beja. We pedaled right into the heart of the town and sat down at a bench to work out food and accommodations. There was a band playing some kind of punk rock sounding tunes at a busy outdoor cafe in the central square. Many different groups of people were relaxing in the public areas. It felt more like a city than the previous few towns we stayed in. There was a significant immigrant presence, most likely workers from the nearby farms. The town had was charming and a little rough around the edges with many historic buildings falling into disrepair. Oh and of course it had a gorgeous medieval castle with a tall tower right in the middle of town. That made 4 castle visits in three days for those keeping score. There were definitely a few tourists milling around here and there but walking along the streets we almost felt like we had the town to ourselves. I would highly recommend Beja to anyone looking for beautiful but quiet and unfussy Portuguese town to explore.

After repeating our ice trick that worked wonders the day before we left Beja heading north towards Evora. We rode alongside some massive farms and one of the few towns we passed was the town of Cuba. We were there in the middle of the day and everything seemed closed except a few small grocery stores and a large museum dedicated to Christopher Columbus. There was apparently an effort to claim he was Portuguese and this was the town he is supposed to have come from. A little further up the road was a small Roman bridge. It was easy to miss as it just looked like a small rocky river crossing. The river was also easy to miss. We walked down to take a look at the arches and the stream it was supposed to be crossing was completely dry. Goats were walking around where water is supposed to have been flowing but the country was experiencing a prolonged drought. We had a longer day of riding to get to Evora so we didn't make many more stops. It looked certain we would run out of daylight. Just about dusk we arrived in the last town before Evora with still about 10 miles to ride. We decided to keep going and rode, head down, as fast as we could. Just outside Evora as we were turning off the road to enter the city we watched an incredible full moon rise from behind a field of grain. We went to a nice outdoor restaurant in one of the town's plazas and filled the table with amazing food and beer.

We were planning to make Evora a rest day destination being a bigger city with lots to explore. I generally don't enjoy pools and swimming but found myself enjoying the one in our fancy convent hotel in the midday heat. Natalie wanted to see the famous bone church while I walked around town taking pictures. We missed the usual lunch hour and had an annoying experience of waiting an hour to try to order at one of the open places in the plaza. We paid for our drinks and left to watch a Portuguese cup game between some lower league teams. There was no admission fee and the crowd was small but vocal. The home team (Juventude de Evora) won 3-0. Back in town we had an excellent dinner and checked out a popular local bar. It was packed with what felt like thousands of students as Evora is home to some of the larger universities in Portugal. Next to our hotel was one of the few remaining Roman ruins in Portugal. It's right in the heart of town, a UNESCO world heritage site, next to the convent and towering gothic cathedral. It was definitely worth spending the extra time in Evora for all the sights and the food was consistently exceptional.
On the way out of Evora we visited an large neolithic site on a small hilltop. The site has dozens of large stones arranged in a circular fashion like many other prehistoric sites. This one is thought to be thousands of years older than Stonehenge in England. Our routing software mentioned a small Roman bridge nearby so we thought we'd take a slight detour. The weather was turning so we were taking a risk of getting caught in a downpour. We followed the map to the bridge and found a farm fence between us and the target. Those fences aren't locked, per se, so we opened the gate and stepped inside, constantly looking over our shoulder, ready to apologize. There was indeed a tiny bridge with a small sign that was entirely worn off. The stream under the bridge was dry as the last one. We spent a few minutes checking it out and took off towards Montemor-o-Novo. Right as we got going the skies opened up and the much needed rain came down. I had puddles in my shoes almost immediately despite wearing booties. It was starting to get cold and we went towards the closest hotel despite it being a bit outside of town. We dried off and asked the hotel to order us a taxi to explore the town. We strolled through the narrow streets and walked up to yet another set of castle ruins on a hilltop. Our taxi driver recommended a restaurant with a view and as luck would have it, it was on the opposite hilltop. We still went for it and were glad that we did. The restaurant had perfect views of the whole city and the food was excellent. We had octopus which we ate almost every day if it was on the menu and ordered a steak which arrived on a sizzling block covered with thinly sliced garlic. We ate, drank and after the same taxi driver dropped us back at the hotel slept very well that night.

We went back to the castle in the morning after checking out of our hotel. The weather was going from sunny to cloudy all day which made for some dramatic photos. Once we've had our fill we took off towards Setubal. The ride was not supposed to be especially challenging in terms of distance and elevation but as soon as we reached a certain small hilltop the winds really picked up. Our pace reduced dramatically. The scenery was still beautiful, though, with quiet farms and tiny villages along smaller roads with light traffic. At one point a few cyclists passed us with seemingly not a lot of gear. A short while later another couple dozen cyclists passed us. Finally I asked one of them "where are you all going?" "I don't know," a young woman yelled back. Eventually I figured out they were part of a large organized and supported ride by a company who specializes in these kind of adventure activities. They were riding to a nearby vineyard to spend the night. Meanwhile we had about 20 more miles of torturous headwinds left to endure. We were hungry but were worried about losing a lot of time at a restaurant. Service has been hit or miss and we didn't want to ride in darkness for too long getting into Setubal. At a stop we begrudgingly decided to power through a while longer. About a mile later I saw the magic word I've been needing to see. "Bifanas," was on the sign of a small country restaurant and we were not going to miss it. Bifanas are a kind of fast food so we wouldn't be set back too long and get much needed calories. We devoured a few sandwiches and sweets before heading back towards the windy coast. We got into town a little after sunset and quickly arranged a hotel so we can get a proper meal.

Setubal was a fairly unglamorous port city. We didn't have much of an agenda there but did plan to visit a famous fort on our way back to Lisbon. It was incredibly scenic and had an amazing view of the entire city. I didn't even think we climbed high enough to have this majestic of a view. After exploring the fort and drinking a few coffees we carried on. A few sprinkles came our way but didn't dampen our spirits too much. We had one rather brutal climb that I mostly walked until we got to what were essentially the suburbs of the capital. One of the final legs of the trip routed us through a park which made me a bit nervous. It was entirely covered in sand and I wasn't sure how much traction we'd have after the rain. To my surprise it was plenty firm and getting through was no trouble at all. The park was actually quite beautiful and I would definitely recommend it to anyone riding in the area. As the sun set we made it up to the Jesus statue in Almada. This was the end of the ride. We grabbed some celebratory drinks at a bar near the ferry and watched a Benfica champions league fixture on the screen. Back in Lisbon we still had a couple days to take in some more sights. We walked the old aqueduct ruins which were turned into a museum with some impressive views and rode the famous tram that circles around the downtown hills. All in all a fun and rewarding trip.