EuroVelo 1: Portugal – West Coast

(EV 1/leg 14) The final major stage of the European Atlantic Coastal Cycle Route takes me from Cabo de Sao Vicente to Cape Finisterre. From south to north, it goes all the way up the west coast of Portugal. Officially, EuroVelo 1 currently ends in the small town of Caminha, a somewhat trivial conclusion for a journey of 11 000 kilometres. That’s why I cycle onwards – via Santiago – to the end of the world.
For the route from Sagres to Lisbon, you can find a good route description by Olaf and Annette Birgelen here:
https://www.touren-wegweiser.de/Radtour-Spanien/Radtour-EV1-1.html
For the route from Lisbon to Fisterra, I have provided a short description here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/s0aeuh6yw8hp6vy/From%20Lisbon%20to%20Fisterra%20by%20bicycle.pdf?dl=0

EuroVelo 1
01 Norway: North Cape and Lofoten
02 Norway: Coastal Road through Helgeland
03 Norway: Atlantic Road
04 Norway: Hurtig Biking (coming soon)
05 Scotland
06 Northern Ireland
07 Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way
08 Ireland – Cycling Around the Rings
09 From Ireland to Wales
10 From Bristol to Plymouth
11 France – Velodyssee
12 Spain – on the Way of the Stars
13 From Salamanca to Sagres
14 Portugal – West Coast

Chapters:
00:00 EuroVelo 1 in Portugal
03:03 Sines
05:22 Lisbon
09:00 Cascais
11:59 Peniche and the Berlengas
14:37 Alcobaca, Coz and Batalha
20:13 From Figueira da Foz to Porto
23:53 Porto
27:05 From Porto to Santiago de Compostela
34:20 From Santiago de Compostela to Fisterra

Thank you Durable one was opened in 2012 at 11 000 kilometers it is the longest cycle route in Europe and also the longest cyclone in the world the last 1000 kilometers were added in 2016. since then URL one no longer ends in success at The kaburi Savvy Center but

Runs all the way up the west coast of Portugal to come in here I cover the distance from sagres to Lisbon in four extended day tours most of the time the route runs on country roads with little traffic the coastal plain is surprisingly hilly although it’s already the end of October

I keep breaking into a suite the first stage takes me to the small town of Osage foreign 120 and cycle towards the Atlantic Ocean to the prior day outside the beach is praised highly in Google Maps obviously not without reason The next day on the 75 kilometer route to cines I again passed two Coastal strips that are worth seeing first I come to the kabusa Dao lighthouse which Towers above an impressive Cliff it stands at the westernmost point of the alintasia then I continue via Villa novade milfuentes to cines shortly before I

Reach the small town I visit the beaches of morgavel and South office thank you [Applause] The most famous son of Cena’s is the Navigator Vasco da Gama he was the first European to explore the sea route to India and sailed around the Cape of Good Hope his statue stands next to the church to Salvador from the hill on which the old town and the castle of Cena’s are

Located the statue looks down on the large favor From Cena’s it is again about 75 kilometers to setupal the route is on country roads with little traffic and this time it really is largely free of climbs the last quarter on the Costa rigale is over a narrow Headland from its northern tip a ferry takes me to the

Peninsula on which setubal is located foreign Many Voyages of Discovery started here and it was here that the Treaty of Tourism was ratified in it Spain and Portugal divided the world with the Pope’s blessing Foreign First leads me through the arabida Nature Reserve as I don’t want to arrive too late in Lisbon I skip the detour to the Cowboy special Lighthouse which the URL one includes and cycle directly to the very Port of scisha The bridges over the tagus river are close to cyclists but the ferry from saishal takes me almost into the center of Lisbon to the Kai’s to Sutra also I richly spawn in fading Corona times and only at the end of October the city is in full party mode

Not quite as bad as Santorini or Venice but it is still a good example of over tourism the crowds strolling along the Waterfront and in the alleys seem to appreciate the fact that there are only few sides most of them were destroyed during the Great Earthquake of 1799 but

There are many belvederes and restaurants Okay okay I stay in a nice hotel that has been set up around the courtyard in former residential buildings in the middle of the Old Town and here late October pays off because the price is only one-fifth of what is charged in the High season There are even a few new cycle paths in Lisbon I not only explore the city center but cycle out to bilim with the Hieronymus Monastery the Tower of Berlin and the Monument of the discoveries foreign I also cycle in the other direction to the north east using a new Riverside Bike Path this takes me to the park at as nasus a new development on the tagus river close to the airport a year later in September 2022 I resume my cycling tour in Lisbon after

Euro Wings has handed over my bike intact at Lisbon airport I cycle through the same neighborhood Park Destin towards the West first to believe and then on towards the Atlantic coast cycle path wise it gets chaotic here sometimes there are psychopaths but for the most part I relay on busy coaster roads

I don’t find any sign posts or maps showing the exact cause of the route I stay overnight in cascash and cycle onto the Cabo razor Lighthouse the following day partly I can use well-developed Psychopaths [Applause] But these end as soon as I ride up into the Sierra de sintra which reaches all the way to the coast as the weather is rather gloomy I get caught in a cool soup of fog and decide to skip carbudavaka the most westerly point in Continental Europe

That was a sensible decision north of Sierra de sintra and Playa Grande the quality of the dirt roads is extremely poor and I have to push my bike for several kilometers I’m relieved when I reach the National Road 247 and stay on surfaced roads until I reach my destination for the day so Pedro de Carrera foreign foreign Peninsula I stick to the Country Roads again Please take me to Lorena Portugal’s dinosaur Capital the paleontological finds here date from the upper Jurassic foreign Early enough for a tour of the town and cycle out to the lighthouse and the miradoro of Cabo caboiro the Phoenicians Greeks and Romans had been to finish Peninsula already since ancient times fishing played a major role a strong Fortress the Fortaleza de finish was built to keep

Out Pirates and the English today pinich has about 28 000 inhabitants and the economic basis is no longer fishing but tourism the beaches in the vicinity provide good surfing spots and the balangas are a special attraction birthday [Applause] I visit these three less Rocky Islands which lie about 10 kilometers off finish the following day only the largest island is inhabited on its it’s an impressive fortification from the 17th century today the belangas are a nature reserve for seabirds Thank you Foreign [Applause] It consists of only a few signposts anyway as the weather forecast predicts two rainy days I take the opportunity to visit icupasa Kohl’s in Pattaya and set aside four days to do so [Applause] Are two impressive Monastery complexes located about 15 kilometers Inland from the coast they are among the most important sites in Portugal and have world heritage status since the 80s the way up to aikobasa goes by the orbitals Lagoon here attempts are being made to reconcile nature conservation

With surf tourism and there are even some Psychopaths Unfortunately they don’t go all the way up to alkabasa [Applause] In the town I put up at a nice hostel directly opposite the main entrance to the monastery The history of the Santa Maria Rico Pasa Monastery is closely linked to the emergence of an independent Portugal Portugal’s first king Alfonso Enrique KV area to the sisters in order in 1153 The core of the complex the church and the adjoining first Cloister were completed in the high Middle Ages However the additions and extensions continued until 1755 including a library and a huge kitchen complex in 1834 alcubasa like all the monasteries in Portugal was secularized after a long period of Decay the monastery is now excellently destroyed and one of Portugal’s great sites You have to wait out another rainy day in akubasa I visit the local wine museum it is the largest in Portugal and shows the different stages of wine making it is only about 20 kilometers from aikobasa to bataya but I make the tour via course there I visit the Church of

The sistersian convent of Santa Maria de Cos it belonged to alkubasa and was dissolved in 1834. [Applause] the high altar was gilded carvings and he painted wooden panels on the sailing world date from the 18th century the Kayer stalls could seat over 150 nuns Foreign course I cycle to bataya I have reserved two days for this magnificent Monastery complex first I visited the interpretation center of the battle of algebarrotta the museum is located on the plateau where the decisive battle between the Portuguese troops and the Spanish Invasion Army took place in 1385.

Without the victory in which English archers played a role they would probably be no independent Portugal the museum has an outdoor area where the location of the different groups before the battle are marked with signs and Coats of Arms the monastery of Pattaya the most Santa Maria de vitoria three kilometers to the

North was built as a memorial for this victory in the Battle of aljubarotta equestrian statue of Nuno Alvarez Pereira who led the Portuguese Army to victory stands near the entrance construction lasted from 1387 to 1515. the monastery originally belonged to the Dominican order and for about 100 years the

Portuguese Kings were buried here in the late Middle Ages foreign [Applause] Chapels are particularly impressive with a roof missing and the entrance Gates built in manueline style Back to the coast there the small village of Sal Pedro di Moyer I unexpectedly come across a very good bicycle path it leads me close to the coast past foreign Ty I had booked a hotel about 15 kilometers before this turns out to be a good move the

Place is wonderfully quiet and has a very beautiful beach The following day I cycle into VK rather for spy crossing the mouth of the modaco river their sword Flats with flamingos and ugly industrial areas compete for space From figuera I take the coastal road that leads around Cabo mondubo and continue to a dead straight little road that is used to transport Timber The Estrada florestal runs through spares forests about three kilometers from the coast fortunately this time I cycle on a flat coastal plain and the road has been surfaced recently well that is not the case its condition is catastrophic and it can only be used at walking speed after prior di Mira the

Estrada Flora style turns into a straight country road that leads almost directly to aveiro Aveiro is sometimes called the Venice of Portugal it lies in the lagoon landscape of the riyadi aveiro and is crisscrossed by several canals it used to be an important fishing port with large salines but in early modern times the Haber and transcerted up and the fertile land became swampy today tourism is the

Main income Source colorful boats fairy crowds of visitors up and down the canals and the marshlands north east of the city have been transformed into a nature reserve and Hiking area foreign the next morning I leave the city on these narrow paths and cycle towards portal it’s slow going but the

Scenery is very beautiful I meet only a few hikers and no other cyclists before I come upon the coastal road again I have already covered almost half the distance to Porto oh To each portal I have to overcome several Hills but my hotel is in Villa Nova de Gaia near the port wine houses on the southern banks of the Duro and I located without any problems I only have problems when the hotel owner forbids me to park my bicycle inside the building

It is the only time that something like this happens to me in Portugal or Spain Foreign The bears dancing and tourism is roaring the city I last visited about 15 years ago is hardly recognizable over tourism per Excellence there’s not so much to see but plenty of restaurants part houses and mirror doors Foreign Luis the steel Arch Bridge with two levels was planned in the 19th century by an architect who together with Gustav Ivor had previously designed the Ponte Maria Pier a little further Upstream on the Left Bank of the river the branches of the large port wine houses and their

Advertising boats the so-called rabilos are lined up on the right pink are the old town of portrait as well as the three most important Church buildings the portal Cathedral the greater to camo whose Tower is the landmark of Porto and the Iglesia de Santa Clara whose entire interior is decorated with gilded

Carvings gold and precious Woods came from the Portuguese colony of Brazil close to these three churches is also the 19th century Sao Pinto railway station whose entrance hall is entirely decorated with azole ceramic tires and there were the upper Lane of the Ponte Dom Lewis touches the North Bank of the

Uru I attend the second faru concert at the casa dagotera yeah Um What’s up after two days in Porto I cycle through the old town in the morning and then towards the mouth of the door I am surprised when I meet crowds of pilgrims on foot who are also streaming out of the city they are walking along the Portuguese Coastal Way of SEC chains

Which is excellently developed from Proto the Camino Portuguese has become increasingly popular in recent years about 25 percent of the pilgrims to Santiago now take this route there are probably three reasons for this firstly the route from Porto is well developed and cynically beautiful due to its clothes to the coast

Secondly at 250 kilometers it is much shorter than the Spanish way of Saint James and many pilgrims have already walked the Spanish way of Saint James and are looking for new experiences I try to follow the well-signed posted footpath with my bike this is not always successful for example when sandrifts

Have made the wooden foot ridges through the dunes difficult to pass but nevertheless I reach a presenter almost seven kilometers north of tomato without problems from here it is the same distance again to come India a small town under the human room with Spanish border river on this boat too I try to

Follow the Portuguese way of Saint James as far as possible sometimes this is a bit problematic for example near the small town of via priode Agora but overall I am successful on the other hand a Spanish cyclist I time the next day we are choosing the route further

Inland reports that this path is hardly signposted and has a lot of steep climbs Hello yeah also Camina is a respectable small town in signification it is definitely not a worthy conclusion to the 11 000 kilometer long Euro value one therefore I decide to continue on the way of Saint James to Santiago and choose fistera in Galicia as the new Final Destination K finistera declared

The end of the world by the Romans shares an interesting fact with the North Cape just as the letter is not the northernmost point of Europe Phoenix Terry is not the westernmost point of the continent the westernmost point of Spain is Cape torinan about 20 kilometers north of fistera and the

Westernmost point of the Iberian Peninsula is which I passed not far from kaskai but skip because of the Fog foreign very nice for the local entrepreneurs who now transport the pilgrims across the Rio menu in small boats I quickly reach a passage and here the next surprise awaits me a wonderful

Psychopath that runs along the road 542 and takes me straight to Vigo it runs very close to the coast close to agada and then onwards to Oya and the unfortunately closed Santa Maria de Oya near the psychopath turns East along the riyadivigo and soon I reached the extensive industrial zones and suburbs

Of vehicle according to an old Galician wisdom people work here while in Santiago they pray and in La Corona they celebrate as a city the ego is neither particularly beautiful nor particularly ugly but definitely not a good place for cyclists at least my hotel is very close

To the center yet very quiet and comfortable Foreign ER most of the time I can use small country roads or the footpaths of the second chance patrons but a few times I have to take roads with heavy traffic but unlike the Portuguese or the Germans Spanish drivers are very considerate towards cyclists and keep the distance wherever possible

From Ponte vitra I leave the agglomeration of ego but don’t cycle all the way to Santiago instead I spent the night in the small town of kaidasires on this Lake there’s not much traffic but there are quite a few Hills This also applies to the last part of the route to Santiago but there are only 50 kilometers left and they are quickly covered Yes on entering Santiago I’m greeted by Kesha an old vinada acquaintance and immediately afterwards I see the towers of the cathedral The restaurants are full and from the street musicians to the souvenir sellers life is partly in all Corners he even at the pilgrimage service on Monday evening no seating places are left [Applause] I rest for a day in Santiago and then cycle to fistera almost 85 kilometers in a one day stage in theory you ride downhill towards the coast but in practice you struggle with lots of hills unfortunately I can only rarely use the paths of the football friends and have

To cover most of the distance on Overland roads this cycling route is not very beautiful but fistera definitely is The town lies on a peninsula and I stay in a bed and breakfast above the harbor In the evening I cycle to the utmost tip where the farro de fistera stands its propose is to worn ships of the dangerous winter storms in this part of the Atlantic but although it is the beginning of October there are only a few clouds in the sky the views

Stretches far out across the Atlantic and the sunset is truly befitting of URL one Thank you thank you