The hike takes you through rolling landscapes of valleys, ravines and hills, offering panoramic views over the coastline, the villages of Carrapateira and Vilarinha and the Monchique mountain.
Starting on Carrapateira, the trail follows along open fields, pastures and low scrublands, on which you can see the colourful Ononis ramosissima. Here you’ll find jackdaws and a few birds of prey. Climbing up the first hill you can see the Amado beach and the vast dunes of Carrapateira.
The landscape rolls on, now covered in stone pines, as well as an undergrowth abundant with cistus, lavender, gorse and the exuberant, yellow-leaved broom.
After crossing the N268 and climbing up again, you’ll see the Vilarinha valley and, beyond it, Monchique mountain, with 902 m of altitude at its highest point, the Fóia.
A footpath leads down to the Vilarinha valley, nested into a ravine covered with beautiful woods of cork oaks and strawberry trees. In the thick scrubland you’ll find groves of heather, rockrose, brambles and lianas like the aromatic honeysuckle. The air hums with the songs of different birds: nuthatches, nightingales, woodpeckers, and others.
You’ll cross the agricultural valley still teeming with fruit trees and agricultural fields. Nowadays, in the village of Vilarinha, rural tourism exists side-by-side with cattle pastures.
Climb onto the northern hill through a path lined with stone pines and cistus. You'll leave the wide Vilarinha valley and its oak-covered hills behind you. Following the crest line, you’ll find a series of valleys and hills, until your eyes settle on the sea and the vast dunes of the Carrapateira.
Municipality: Aljezur
Location: Carrapateira
Type: walking
Circular trail: yes
Distance: 13,2 km
Average duration: 3h30m to 4h
Cumulative elevation gain: 400 metres D+
Type of path: dirt paths
Start of the trail: 37º 11' 01.00" N 8º 53' 43.14" W