Short and Sweet Around Paderne.

 AWW 26th April 2023.

Short and Sweet Around Paderne.

With midsummer temperatures forecast for southern Portugal, it was with some trepidation that this walk went ahead. Ros pulled out with a bad bout of hayfever, which left seven daring souls to gather at Moiras Encantadas as the heat began to develop. The aforementioned:

Linda, Miriam, Ken, Martin, Wendy, Marshall and Moi. Plus FOUR dogs once more - Toby, Bica, Rafa and Ted. 

The fella in the uniform said it were too ´ot to walk.

The intention was a maximum of 16k, but it was acknowledged from the start that we would not make the whole route, which consisted of three loops to the west and north of the town, ending with a short trip to the south. There are few photos for this walk, as I always forget to take them when in charge, but the participants get their faces recorded.

We set off along the road out of town to the west, crossing the bridge to Purgatorio (all the jokes were exhausted long ago), then turning left for a brief trudge along the Albufeira road, before turning off to the right, to pass under the A2 motorway.

Tarmac left behind for the moment, we made our way along the valley, then turned to climb the longish hill to Cerro Sao Vicente. We then followed an up and down course via Monte dos Valados, reaching our highest point at the hilltop settlement of Aldeia dos Matos. The heat was building, but with the saving grace of dryness in the heat and intermittent soft breezes, we were not suffering unduly. Regular water stops for ourselves and the four-legs helped us along.

                                          Paderne from Cerro do Valente (from Google Earth). 

                                                                           Water stop

By the time we reached the top of the climb, our water supplies were already becoming depleted, but narry a pump not well could we find, so we made our way along the ridge to the north-east of the hilltop. Coming to the edge of the plateau, we found our natural descent blocked, so we had to improvise a descent to the valley, where stock was taken under a tree.

It was decided at that point that we would make our way back to Paderne via the shortest route, as the heat and lack of water were beginning to have an effect. So we made our way through orange groves (delicious juicy fruits were nicked) to the side of the motorway, then along below it to reach a tunnel taking us back towards the town.

Reaching Paderne, we decided to try a different watering hole, as our usual haunt was busy with lunches. Cafe Capacho turned out to be ideal, with shaded tables, a delightfully helpful owner and a HUGE glass of vino for Moi. Prices maybe a tad on the high side.

At Cafe Capacho. Other photo didn´t take.

                                    Miriam was paying for the drinks, so she got a pic to herself.

Majority verdict was around 10.3k, which sounds about right. If this heat persists, Lord help us if it does, the walks will have to default to the summer schedule of early starts and finishes. 

The google photo shows the whole of the intended route. The section we walked is largely to the left of the motorway, plus the walk out of and back into Paderne.