Caldas de Moledo

Today was a 5-star day. Down to the Douro from Lamego, always on untraveled roads or dirt paths (though I bet at least 80% of today was on asphalt). When I got to Peso da Regua, which is a busy commercial town right on the river, I had a few kms along the water till the start of some tough ascents. The views were gorgeous, even though the Douro was out of view till the last few kms. It was a hard steep ascent and I was lucky that a woman in a village was out feeding her birds, so that I could ask her for water. She was very sweet and said she’d pray for me.

The vineyards are still bright green, and white houses with orange tile roofs are sprinkled throughout. The hills extend in all directions and at all angles. Most are planted with grapes, but there are a few patches of olive trees and even - gasp - a few eucalyptus. The last four or 5 km into Mesao Frio were on a very untraveled road with spectacular views of the river up and down. I have been to the Douro four or five times as a tourist, but I have to say I have never felt as overwhelmed by the beauty of it all as I did while walking in it all day

The contrasts are so stark. There are huge modern wineries with gleaming stainless steel vats. There is an elevated highway that seems to fly over the hills. There are lots of high voltage transmission lines. Peso da Regua is busy noisy city with a lot of business going on. But almost all day, I was walking through tiny villages where most of the houses are boarded up or in ruins, or on narrow paths between stone walls, or through a few beautifully restored estates offering wine tasting. And in at least six or seven of the vineyards I passed, there were crowds of people picking grapes by hand. I didn’t see any machinery at all, just people stooped over picking or carrying buckets of grapes on their heads.

Lucky for me, the rain that was forecast never fell. Tomorrow we’ll see. Right now I’m sitting out on my balcony with a view down over the river and all is right with the world.Read more