Hiking

routes

PR1 – Arronches – the Caminho da Esperança , duly signposted, circular and with about 15 km and 200 meters, which you can take 100 meters below the entrance of the campsite on the road that goes to the Abrilongo reservoir. It lasts approximately 5:30 hours (ask for the prospectus at Reception). Along the way, you will see a hut, a rectangular thatched cabin; a beautiful cork oak ; the cave paintings of Lapa dos Gaivões, the Alentejo peneplain, the Louções mountain range, Esperança; you will pass through Hortas de Cima, through Rabugem and arrive at Várzea Grande – Marco and its international bridge .

On the way back it will be 5600 meters to the campsite, closing the circuit, making 3000 meters between one of the largest cork oaks in the Alentejo. That is why here we find a dense population of adult cork oaks, some of remarkable size, whose trunks and branches correspond as if to columns and arches that structure a “ green cathedral ”, with the crowns forming a cover that protects us from the sun and rain. . The magnificent cork oak forests along this route serve as a refuge for several species of bats – Bechstein's bat (Myotis bechsteinii) and woolly bat (Myotis emarginatus) - as well as for the longicorn beetle (Cerambyx cerdo). Birds: Bluecreeper , Blue Titand great tit , short-toed eagle , round-winged eagle, griffins . The bee- eater , the shrike , the common scorpion , the common nightingale , woodpeckers , are also part of this avifauna. Towards the end, before crossing the Manguens stream, observe the wall that flanks the PR1, built with a lot of work, consisting of shale plates placed vertically, as if it were a bookcase, which fit one into the other, they remain immovable for hundreds of years and were intended to resist the impact of the water, in other times when there were great floods and floods.

PR1-PTG-Percurso da Senhora da Lapa – (10 km and circular) (ask for the leaflet at reception), starting and ending in the village of Besteiros (39.232704, -7.268799) (N 39°13'57.7″ W 7°16 '07.7″), 20 km from the campsite.

What you can see: In the valley of Ribeira do Soverete, the quartzite escarpments shelter a small colony of vultures , the griffon vultures . Early in the morning it is possible to see them in low circular flights over the valley trying to gain altitude; The Chapel of N. Sr.ª da Lapa , protected by the escarpment on which it was built, this ancient temple hides, behind its altar, the entrance to a cave where it is possible to observe on the walls the paintings left by primitive Man several thousand years ago. years ; Vale de Mouro , a magnificent adult montane.

PR3 – PTG – Pedestrian Route of Alegrete – (10.7 km and circular) (ask for the leaflet at reception), starting and ending at the new fountain in Alegrete (39.240814, -7.318896) (N 39°14'26.9″ W 7 °19'08.0″), 22 km from the campsite.

What you can see: the pleasant riverside leisure area in Alegrete; mixed forest with maritime pine and eucalyptus, dehesa, olive groves, vineyards and vegetable gardens; one of the coolest sections runs along the banks of the Ribeira de Arronches , which runs in the shade of alders, willows, sanguinhos and cherry trees; points of interest remind us of agricultural practices long abandoned: threshing floors, apiary walls, dams and levadas ; Alegrete and its heritage: Castle (ruins) and wall (MN – 14th century); Parish Church of São João Baptista (16th – 18th centuries); Misericórdia Church (17th century); Clock tower(17th century).

PR8 – PTG – Lourenço Valley Route – (18.8 km and circular) (ask for the leaflet at reception), starting and ending at Montarecos (39.253108, -7.307406) (N 39°15'11.2″ W 7°18' 26.7″), 23 km from the campsite.

What you can see: This route runs along two distinct valleys. Initially we go up through the Barranco da Caleira valley and, later, we descend through the Ribeira de Arronches valley ; Among the natural aspects of this route, it is worth mentioning, at the highest part, the various outcrops of quartzite that erupt in the landscape and, at the bottom of the valley, the upper section of Ribeira de Arronches, with an interesting riparian gallery ; The Ribeira de Arronches rises near the highest points of the Serra de São Mamede, very close to this village, which acquired the same name as this permanent water line. It runs south along a length of almost 25km and ends its course at Arronches, where it joins the River Caia. Next to this village, the stream reaches a width of about 3m and this mountainous section is the most winding.