Praia Amado

This place deserves its own report because it is one of our places of longing with a history.

On our 25th wedding anniversary in May 2013, we were in Portugal. Simone surprised me emotionally with a padlock in which our data was engraved. A suitable place had to be found for this, which should permanently accommodate this day. After a long search, we found it at Praia Amado at a viewpoint on a cliff, directly above the Atlantic Ocean with a view into infinity. In the nearby port, we found an old anchor chain which we connected with the padlock at the far end of the platform below the tread surface.

This was our way of setting a sign, which should be visited at intervals to check if the padlock is still there.

Saturday was our day for that. Google maps predicted a distance of 16 km by bike from the parking space. However, through the countryside. Well, we already know about that. The first part through a nature reserve was still bearable. When we reached the vicinity of the beach, I was influenced by a sign indicating a new cycle path.

We have to try that.

Big mistake - not everywhere where it says cycle path is actually a cycle path. Anyway, that was a detour that might be attractive for mountain bikers. Our city bikes, however, had to be pushed again over long distances and I don't want to describe the curses and looks behind me. Especially since we had already been to this beach before and knew the access road. One insight of the day - if you want to cycle freely in Portugal, you can't avoid gravel and rock paths. You need a mountain bike!

But in the end, the beach lay before us in all its glory and we used the day for sunbathing and watching the surfers.

There are plenty of them here, both beginners struggling to carry the board up the beach and advanced surfers who know exactly how it's done.

Would you like a small selection of types (they all somehow look like Tim😉)?

And then there are the old surfers who have exchanged the board for a child but still hold on to this beach.

You could stay here for hours and enjoy the world.

But we still want to check on our padlock. It hangs within sight of the beach at the viewpoint.

We ride our bikes with a pounding heart to the path. Exciting question whether the padlock is still there and whether the magic is still there. Clear answer to both questions - YES.

It was already a special moment to leave the path and search for the chain and padlock under the planks at the edge of the cliffs (Rainer and Conny, you know what I mean!). So much more the heart jumped when our sign was still there and had bravely withstood the weather of the past few years.

If someone should find their way to this area, the padlock is hanging at the end of the platform on the 2nd pillar below the planks.

In sight is the restaurant Sitia do Forno, where you can enjoy the afternoon perfectly with a small meal or the sunset. In any case, we did it again.

With the last hours of sunshine of the day we reached our parking space and felt great. A great day in Portugal with many memories.

From now on, we will continue north along the Atlantic coast. This is new territory and promises exciting experiences.

We don't want to continue driving until Monday. Sunday promises to be sunny and beautiful, which I definitely want to use for a road bike ride. The cold is subsiding, not fully cured yet, but it's the last opportunity to ride a road bike here. And there's another task to master.

Salema - the nearby fishing village is in a hollow. To reach it, you have to overcome a hill. There is a road with a 20% ramp that we already knew from previous vacations (but only by car). Once you ride this ramp with the road bike ... was my own promise from earlier days.

The time had come on Sunday. My tour planning included a distance of 73 km, at the end of which was this ramp.

The tour through the hinterland and hilly areas offers great impressions on the bike. Since the area is very hilly, there are always little ramps and climbs together. And then it appeared at the end - the ramp. 20% on about 500 m, should be doable. Let me tell you, that was borderline. With the last bit of strength and the final energetic pedal stroke, I reached the summit and could have thrown up. That was anything but easy.

I have been cycling with a road bike in the mountains for a few years now. But this thing deserves a place in the top 5.

Tomorrow, we will finally continue north. This marks the second half of the journey. You can also say, we're going back.

I am very excited about the rest of Portugal and the northern Spanish coast.