Salema and the Algarve

Culture shock.

After days of immersing ourselves in the grand history and culture of Portugal, we headed south to the Algarve, Portugal’s equivalent of the Grand Strand, to explore the southern and western Atlantic coasts at the “end” of Europe. The transition between historic Portugal and the Algarve could not have been more abrupt—from the cork orchards and small villages of southern Portugal to the stacked rows of condominiums, water parks, and boogie board rental shops of Portimão, Lagos, and every small town in between, it felt like we were entering a different country.

For this portion of the trip we chose to base ourselves in Salema, a once-small village with a beautiful beach, located as far west as possible so that we could use it as a base for further coastal explorations. Salema has a small “old town” city center with an old hotels, restaurants and shops and narrow cobblestone streets barely wide enough for one vehicle, but in recent years the steep cliffs and hills surrounding the town have become home to resorts and opulent villas. But it’s not condominiums and water parks and it’s close to where we want to be, so it works. And it’s comfortable.

On our first morning we took off for points west and north along the Atlantics coasts. First stop was the town of Sagres for a look at the end of the world—more properly, Ponte de Sagres, the southernmost point in Portugal and the westernmost part of the Algarve. The Portuguese knew it wasn’t the end of the world, but the Romans weren’t so sure. King Henry the Navigator allegedly trained Portuguese explorers from that point, and the school he founded trained Vasco da Gama, Magellan, Cabral, and others. Fortaleza is the imposing fort near the end of Ponte de Sagres, but most of what you see of it has been restored. (Click to enlarge.)

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Ponte de Sagres offers amazing views of the Atlantic coast along the Gulf of Cadiz, as well as some beautiful flora some of which is specific to the area. (Click to enlarge.)

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After a long (3 mile) walk around the perimeter of Ponte de Sagres, we took off for Cabo de São Vicente, the  southwesternmost  point of mainland Europe. The lighthouse there is one of the most powerful in Europe, and the views are spectacular. On the way there we ran across Fortaleza do Beliche, a fort built in 1632 that did not show up in any of our guides. It makes for a nice stop. (Click to enlarge.)

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After a brief lunch at a food stand we headed north to explore the Atlantic coast. There are many places to see, but the gem of the day was Praia do Amado near the small village of Carrapateira, a stunning sand beach surround by cliffs of multicolored rocks. I don’t think it gets much better than this. (Click to enlarge.)

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