Things to do in the Algarve, Portugal

A walk on the wild side - The Serra de Cao from Barao de Sao Miguel 

May 9^th  at 10:30 saw 26 people, including John, Maggie, Steve, Jackie and Tony (of restaurant review fame!), gathered in the centre of the old village of Barao de Sao Miguel, for what was described as a moderately easy, circular walk through the unspoilt hills of Serra de Cao, from the programme of Algarve walks, with leaders Pete Lammin and Julie Statham.  Barao de Sao Miguel, along with its sister village of Barao de Sao Joao, lies in the middle of the triangle between the EN 125 Lagos to Sagres road and the EN 120   Lagos to Bensafrim and Aljezur road and the village can be approached from either those roads.

These walks start on time so the phone call just as we were about to start was greeted with “Well, we will give you 5 minutes!”  Our 26^th walker soon joined us while we were all getting our breath back after a short but steep climb out of the village.  From then on the countryside and flora  were staggering.  Unfortunately none of us knew their proper names but here are some of the flowers that were seen, Lavender, Cistus, Mallows, Black Eyed Daisies, Thyme, Scabious, a special type of Dandelion, Roses, Poor Mans Weather Glass, Vipers Bugloss and something that looked like a Speedwell.

The walk continued for nearly 3 hours with only two other short but steep climbs: what goes up must come down so the downward stages were always welcome on what was a very hot day. The views from the top of the hills were magnificent and for most of the walk there was very little sign of human habitation, just wild country with an occasional valley or a terrific view from the top of a hill.  The walk was well led by Julie and Pete who have lived in the Algarve for a long time and know the area very well indeed. They also a set a reasonable pace and it did not develop into a race to test who was the fittest.

After nearly three hours we returned to the centre of Barao Sao Miguel and a welcome cold beer at the cafe in the middle of the village.  The walks that Julie organises are not just a way of seeing countryside that you would not normally venture into but a good opportunity to make acquaintance with interesting people, both locals and holiday makers.  Be prepared though, a good pair of shoes is necessary, flip flops won't work and you need to take along enough water to last you three hours on a hot day.

A great morning was had by all and there were even suggestions that this would be something we would do again - watch this space!

Would you like more suggestions?  Take a look at our Things to do in the Algarve and Places to go in the Algarve sections for loads of ideas of what to do and where to go

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