We start at the Alvor campsite today. The first part of the stage we walk through the village towards the coast. Through small alleys with white houses, we arrive at a large motorhome camping site at the edge of the village. We cross it and reach the ocean. We follow a boardwalk along the wide white beach and the clear blue water. A little later, we leave the boardwalk to hike closer to the sea. It's already sunny and we've changed from a thick, downy winter coat and cardigan, to a t-shirt and shorts in just half an hour. Lovely, this early in February!
The beach ends with high, sandy rocks in grove of us. We are taking a moment to figure out how to find a way up, when we are addressed by a friendly Portuguese lady who knows the area well. She tells us we are lucky. It's low tide now, which means we can keep walking along the beach for a bit underneath the rocks. A beautiful stretch with eroded rock formations, tunnels and natural bridges follows. Wow! In the warm morning sun, the rocks turn a beautiful orange and the points cast long shadows over the sand. What a special place... A bit later and it's only possible to get here by boat.
We walk up a steep staircase along the cliff. The path continues for a while among bushes and conifers, before we descend again to the beach that takes us to Portimão. It's a bit busier here, with people enjoying the ocean and the beach just like us. This beach ends with a long pier and on the other side a river flows. So we head inland again, in search of a bridge to cross the river. This time not through a nature reserve, but across Portimão's pleasantly busy quay. Looking towards the city, we see several old chimneys of fish processing plants, that are no longer in use. Each one has been taken over by storks that have built their nests upon it.
We are well over halfway through the stage and take a break on one of the benches on the quay near the little port. In the distance we can already see the bridge.
After the break we cross the bridge and enter a somewhat larger port area, where we walk past warehouses and businesses. But it is not long before we walk back into the dune area, along the river towards the ocean. We pass the fishing village of Ferragudo, which looks pretty and authentic, with men working on the waterfront with fishing nets and baskets. In the next stretch of beach, we have less luck with the tides. It's impossible to walk underneath a large castle at the waterfront, so we have to turn around and walk back a bit. As a result, we spot a razorbill bobbing on the water, looking for fish. We haven't seen this one before!
We heas back to the road for the last bit of this walk through the village. What a beautiful and varied stage it was, again!
