Portugal Trip 5; To Almeida

Thursday 10th April 2025

The Journey:

After doing a little shopping in Torre do Moncorvo, we headed east along the N221 and then south taking a very scenic route towards our destination for the evening, Almeida.

Along the way, we passed through Freixo De Espada à Cinta, which we viewed from a distance before driving through the town.

The road which followed the Portugal/Spain border for most of the way, afforded spectacular views, so we stopped frequently to appreciate our surroundings.

We stopped for lunch at Barca Dalva, near to the bridge below, where we saw many house martins (I think!) building their nests and tending young, under the parapet.

Nearby are the remains of a railway line which crossed the river and into Spain. The dereliction has a beauty of its own. Interestingly, the railway was broad-gauge (about 6ft), wider than the normal gauge we have in the UK (and in much of Europe).

We walked up the line to the bridge, which is fenced-off, presumably for safety reasons:

At this point you can look down on one of the river cruise vessels that call here.

Hitting the road again, we passed more dramatic scenery:

Almeida

The old town of Almeida sits within a star-shaped fortress, which dominates the town.

A shepherd was allowing their flock of sheep to graze the land in the moat. These were a breed of sheep which I have not seen before, with spiral horns and long legs:

At the top of the hill is the site of the original castle:

A couple of interesting sculptures in the town:

When we returned to the park-up, our neighbours were “enjoying” a nice musical concert which went on for a while. I suppose you cannot complain when the park-up is free, including electricity!

That is it for now. TTFN.