Goats, Granite, and Castle Glass

Day 13: Celorico da Beira to Vila Nova de Foz Côa (43 Miles / 4,050 ft.)

Breakfast began with bread, yogurt, juice, ham, cheese, marmalade, and a cheerful conversation conducted through Portuguese, a little English, homemade sign language, and plenty of smiles.

Less than a mile into the ride, we encountered one trail runner, then another, followed by a steady stream of them. It turned out to be the Trail do Cerco, with several races winding through the hills around Celorico da Beira. We repeatedly crossed their route, sometimes on another brutally bumpy old stone road, and received plenty of “bom dias” and smiles as we cheered them along.

Eventually, the runners disappeared and we climbed into the quiet mountains on a narrow road we named Goat Road. The name was not very creative. We simply followed a small herd of goats for a while. Around us were enormous granite boulders, ripening red and yellow apples, and thousands of olive trees. High above the crumbling slate farm buildings, modern wind turbines turned along the rocky ridges. It was a striking mix of old and new.

We explored the castle at Trancoso before continuing to Moreira de Rei, where we found an amazing wine press carved directly into a granite outcrop. Grapes were crushed in the upper basin, and the juice flowed through channels into a lower collection area. Rock presses like this preserve the region’s long winemaking history. Grapes are now processed in modern wineries, but vineyards, olives, and the autumn harvest still shape life here much as they have for centuries.

At Marialva, we climbed through the castle ruins to the Torre do Relógio and started a new tradition by collecting a small piece of “castle glass.” At a nearby café, we cooled off with Cokes and a sonho de abóbora, a pumpkin fritter traditionally made around Christmas.

After some fast descents approaching 40 mph, we skipped the final castle and continued toward Vila Nova de Foz Côa. A stop at Intermarché supplied everything needed for another famous pasta dinner.

It was a wonderfully quiet Sunday of goats, runners, castles, giant rocks, and roads nearly empty of cars. Exactly the kind of day that keeps bicycle travel interesting.Read more