Five Feet, Nine Inches Above Ground

On Thursday, January 3, we hit the road for a tour of the west coast of the Algarve. It was a bit cloudy when we set out but the sun prevailed later in the day although the west coast lived up to it’s reputation for being cooler than the central Algarve. With Randy at the wheel, it was an amazing tour including some out of the way places such as Murração Beach and the tiny village of Pedralva. The beach attracts surfers even in the off season and they were there in wet suits braving the cold Atlantic to catch a wave.

Murração Beach

Murração Beach

The beach goes inland.

Close up of the rocky shore.

A little sand and a lot of rock make up Murração Beach.

Surfers waiting to catch a wave.

Flowering succulent on the hillside.

Giant cactus flower on the restaurant patio near the beach.

Pedralva village is nestled on the side of an inland hill offering a lovely view of the surrounding countryside.

Roses hanging over a wall greeted us as we started our tour of Pedralva.

Flowers blooming outside in January never cease to amaze me.

Perhaps an artist’s studio…

…very creative!

Outdoor community oven for baking bread. It appears to be in use although not today.

I wonder what it’s like inside?

Sheep may safely graze..

…in the shade of a tree under the gaze of a donkey.

Aljezur

After a bica, we went on to Aljezur to see the ruins of a 10th century Moorish castle. It’s a hilltop fortress that looks down on the more modern version of the town across the river , to the east. The walk up the narrow, steep streets to the castle was excellent exercise and the prelude to a good appetite for lunch.

Yellow roses- yes, roses have become a bit of a theme for the day – greeted us in Aljezur.

The new town across the river.

A view in many directions.

Looking back to whence we came.

Aljezur castle tower.

A brief description of the site.

A source of water for the fortress…

…what remains today.

A view from the castle.

A view of the Aljezur River from the castle.

A view of the old town.

A lovely sticky mess!

Not sure what this is but a lovely mix of red and green.

Olives ripening on the tree.

Chrysthanemums.

Cattle grazing tin the valley.

Eucalyptus in bloom.

A road not taken – perhaps next time.

Minou basking in the sun.

A favourite bloom of Randy.

The bells of Misericordia Church.

Full front of Misericordia Church that was severely damaged by the earthquake of 1755 and later rebuilt.

The street sloping toward the valley from the church.

Sculpture erected in 2010 commemorating the 550 anniversary of the death of Infante Dom Henrique – Prince Henry the Navigator.

Would the Prince approve? Henry the Navigator (1394-1460) was the motivator leading the development of the navigation school known as Vila do Infante Putting Portugal at the forefront of navigation and discovery.

and then there was lunch and it was really tasty! Pan fried squid with three kinds of potatoes and a small salad.

Cabo de São Vicente

After a delicious lunch, we backtracked a wee bit and headed for what was once referred to as the end of the earth by the Greek historian Strabo from about the first century Common Era. The views are magnificent with the Atlantic Ocean perilously far below. If you squint into the sunshine in a westerly direction the most easterly point of Newfoundland might be visible on a clear day.

Working lighthouse at Cabo de São Vicente.

There was alight, cool breeze and the sea was calm.

Some fisherfolk took the opportunity to cast their lines.

This individual perched himself at the very edge…

…appearing to the naked eye as this small speck…

An artist’s misconception of the ensuing catastrophe…

…same artist, different fish…

… it was a lovely garden of sculpted sea images.

Looking toward the east…

…and one more shot to the west.

Lagos

Having braved the breezes of Cabo de São Vicente, we set off for Lagos in a sort of homeward bound to Estoi kind of direction.

Lagos is a popular sea resort/port town with lots of in season nightlife. It’s a tourist trap but this was the off season.

We spent a few minutes admiring the view of the port.

The empty beach…

…almost empty.

And I risked getting my feet wet to take this photo. Let me tell you, the Atlantic is cold at this time of year.

The cliffs along the port.