Portugal North to South, from Chaves to Sagres, a 14 day bicycle guided tour, riding from hotel to hotel,
Portugal de Norte a Sul, de Chaves até Sagres, pedalando durante 14 dias de hotel para hotel. "Pedal for on average 6 to 7 hours per day for two weeks and over 1100 km"
From Bragança to Sagres, passing through small villages where stories and history have stopped in time: Sendim, Freixo, Ca
stelo Rodrigo, Almeida, Alfaites, Monsanto, Idanha a Velha, Castelo de Vide, Marvão, Jerumenha, Monsaraz, Santa Clara, Monchique. Pedaling from the Trás os Montes region to the Alentejo, never losing sight of the border, then turning towards the Costa Vicentina coast line, all the way to Cabo de S. The “Travessia” starts in the Montesinho Mountains on trails that snake through the mountains, in a festival of colour and smells, landscapes with endless horizons and vertiginous descents that take the cyclists all the way to the deep valley of the Douro River. It is a long climb up to Castelo Rodrigo, but then you can rest on the wide plateau of Almeida and prepare yourself for the roller coaster rides to come in the Malcata Mountains and on the wild terrain north of Monfortinho. You will cross the Tejo River calmly in Vila Velha de Rodão, then the trails that will lead you to Castelo de Vide will keep changing in both colour and consistency, from red sandy to grey granite soil. Next come the Roman cobble stone climbs and the sharp ascent to the S. Now you are heading towards the Guadiana River where the Alqueva Reservoir has covered the land, and which you will follow for the next days, until you reach Monsaraz and Mourão. After Pias the landscape changes dramatically, and you will be able to rest on the rolling plains of the Alentejo, enjoying the bright greens of the fields of cereals and wide horizons of arable land (but if it rains the mud will make this region a “cyclist's hell”). To reach the Algarve there is another challenge, the Espinhaço de Cão ridge and the Monchique Mountains that you have to cross. You will reach the coast at Vale da Telha and this is the final stretch of the “Travessia”, riding by the sea, on good quality trails with stunning views from the cliff tops. When you get to the end of the “Travessia” you will leave behind a country of strong contrasts, but the images you will have collected will remain permanently recorded in your memories, and in the memories of all those who took up the challenge and pedaled through the depths of Portugal with you. Images of the locals with skin weathered by the sun, who greet us as we pass by, invite us to join them at the table, to enjoy food that tastes of the land it was grown on and where time still moves slowly, leaving us time to savour life.
