A walk through the hills / Serras do Porto - Valongo | Portugal

Hello Everyone :)

It is of interest and continues to be of interest, mainly for the locals, much more than for tourists or for those who go there just passing through, to see what has been done there to attract more people to visit.
But everyone knows what happens when rural and natural areas start to be invaded by people, especially those who don't have memories of spaces, memories or stories to tell.
This mountain still holds several memories that will accompany me for the rest of my life, until the times when I stop remembering.
Many moments of childhood, youth and even later, more recently it was my shelter during the hysteria that set in with the pandemic.
It was here, in the freedom that it gave me, that I was able to keep my sanity :P

Several interventions have been carried out there, the last being the installation of a huge staircase that takes us from one of the most popular places, the "Fojo das Pombas", to the top of the mountain next to the chapel of S.Justa, but on this walk, I took the opportunity to walk along a rail path that I used to walk with my grandparents and cousins when we were children.
The characteristics of this place have already been widely shared by me, especially during the pandemic times, in which I shared many places that I visited during our family outings to relax, breathe fresh air and stretch our legs.

For those who didn't have the opportunity to read it, it was mainly referring to the geological features that we can see here, with the mountain range completely full of holes, the result of intense mining activity that left behind a series of corridors and underground galleries interconnected and ventilated through various ditches that can be visible along the entire path and for which it is necessary to pay the greatest attention and prudence.
The trek started at the Environmental Interpretation Center installed at the foot of the mountain.

It would have been quite interesting to go inside and register what the interior is like and what we could learn there, since I never had the opportunity to visit it since it is a relatively recent installation, but unfortunately it was closed.
From there we went straight to Fojo das Pombas where there were already some people exploring, guided by some kind of tour company, all crammed into a jeep with proper identification, but as our intention was not to waste time and we already know that area well area, we head towards the path that immediately begins to gain some inclination, but not before making a detour to show my daughter a small side entrance to Fojo that is not as well known by those who have never explored these lands.

Now there was just one direction and that was going up, so what followed was effort and climbing, always meandering through the trees trying to make the most of the shade they offered at that time of day.
A little after the halfway point, just the promise of an ice cream at the top made the little one gain legs again and continue without stopping and finally we got there, seeing the chapel we knew we had arrived.

It was there in a small café that we rested and recharged our energy to go back down, but this time through that staircase, but anyone who thinks that going down doesn't make their legs hurt is wrong! less, but it also hurts something!

It was an afternoon well spent and I know that just as I still keep the memories of walks taken in distant times with my grandparents and cousins, my daughter will also keep this one to remember later.

That´s all for today :)

Photo by @aleister
Camera - Canon EOS 600D
Lens - EFS 18-55mm
Location - Portugal

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Always remember:

Value your time, because every fraction counts, and the price of anything is the amount of life you trade for it.
May the memories of the travels be eternalized in the photographs, and may the photographs transport us back to the travels ;)