The Fisherman’s Trail: 45 miles on the Coast of Portugal!

Last month (12/24) Sadie and I headed to Portugal to hike a trail that some friends of us told about on the south western coast. The trail has various start and end-point options that can make the trail ant length that you choose. Some people even do the Fishermans Trail as part of their journey on a Camino De Santiago! We did a 45 mile segment as recommended by our friends and absolutely loved it. We would recommend it to anyone who’s looking for a great hike to do outside in the fall/winter/spring months! 

Want to see the gear I took? Check out the Blog Post or the Video!

Getting there: We flew into Lisbon and stayed one night there before catching a bus to Porto Covo the following day. Bus tickets were $13.99 total for both of us!

Our Complete Route: 

• Porto Covo to Odeceixe

• 45 Miles (72.4 km)

• 3,681 ft (1,121m) elevation gain

Day/Night 1: 

• View Day 1 Strava Track Here

• 12.03 Miles (19.36km) 

• 1040 ft (316 m) elevation gain

• Hotel in Vila Nova de Milfontes ($50)

Day/Night 2: 

• View Day 2 Strave Track Here

• 14.53 Miles (29.79 km) 

• 1,125 ft (342.9 m) elevation gain

• Hotel in Cavaleiro ($51)

Day/Night 3:

• View Day 3 Strave Track Here

• 18.51 Miles (23.38km) 

• 1,516 ft (462.08 m) elevation gain

• Our FAVORITE food & drink spot on the trail!

• Hotel in Odeceixe ($51)

Notes:

• This trail can be heavily impacted by wind. Our friends said it was quite windy during their hike in October. 

• There is water along the route but sometimes more than 8 miles apart. Plan accordingly!

• The trail surface varies but much of it is sand. I felt that it required around 50% more effort to move than on hard-packed dirt. Sadie and I are comfortable walking 20+ miles in a day but that would have be challenging on this trail because of the sand. Lower your distance expectations! 

• There are multiple towns with food and accommodations along the way in addition to the ones we stopped in. We carried snacks and one bottle of water each and stopped in each town for our main meals.

• Weather: For us the weather in December was wonderful. The temperature was between 45*F and 65*F and it only rained a couple times, mainly at night. 

• WATCH THE TIDE: Some places that we traveled on the beach may not be accessible during high tide. On day two we followed the beach for a while before climbing up the steep hillside back to the normal trail. This was only possible because of the low tide, I believe. 

• We primarily used our credit card on this trip but a few places requested cash. I generally carry $100-200 in local currency in case it's necessary. 

Have any questions? Email me at chase@roadtoridge.com or leave a comment on the youtube video!