Things to Do Around the Geres (Portugal)

Encompassing no less than two mountain ranges, Peneda –Geres is the only National Park in Portugal, and it certainly makes up for it with its unique charms. This is one of the most beautiful nature reserves in Europe, covering almost 300 square miles of ground, and featuring dozens of unique specimens of fauna and flora.

If you’re the least bit interested in trekking and communing with nature, you may have already heard about this park in Western Europe – often referred to simply as The Geres. If not, this article will bring you up to speed regarding these lovely natural grounds in the North of Portugal.


Trekking

For anyone who enjoys taking long walks across mountains, valleys and forests, the Geres offers a suitable diversity of options. There are several official trekking routes available, comprising all kinds of difficulty levels and terrain types.

If you’re not afraid of walking several hours on end, we recommend checking out the Carris trail. This is one of the longest trails in the area, which will take you across the highest part of the Geres mountain range, and back to the Village of the Geres. The “Carris” area is stunning, although a bit challenging for novice explorers; tread attentively and make sure you always carry a big water bottle with you – there are a few natural springs along the way, but they get scarcer as you get to the higher grounds.

Mountaineering

Looking for a good spot for rock-climbing? If you’re the kind of person who’d rather stray away from the beaten path, there is no shortage of places to keep you entertained around here. You might want to check out the Caledonia Rock near the heart of the Geres. It’s a hollowed gigantic rock that you can actually climb from the inside; getting up shouldn’t be too hard if you’re a genuine mountaineer; when you get up there, asides from a spectacular scenery, you’ll see plenty of other great sites from rock climbing.

Rural Tourism


For those who’d rather just lounge about the surroundings of a quiet village, rather than walking hours on end, or acting out the inner mountain goat– we recommend heading to the quaint village of Campo do Geres. Besides being located in a strategic spot near the centre of this natural park, it’s also much more relaxing than the main (eponymous) village of Geres, and there isn’t too much of a touristic feel to it. You can easily rent a quiet little cottage and explore the surroundings to your heart’s content, or just stand still and stare at the pretty mountains.

Canoeing

There are also a few great places for canoeing in the Geres, usually over placid and surprisingly vast local dams.  It’s very much recommended you try it, although it may imply visiting the relatively crowded and “mainstream” areas of this natural park.

Natural Springs

As with any worthwhile mountain, the natural springs here come in all shapes and sizes – but the most recommendable ones are nestled casually in sunny hollows between secluded rocks. Some of the best memories I have of the Geres involve exploring random trails in a Summer day, and looking for the next natural pool for a bit of leisurely immersion. Lovely!

We hope this guest post inspired you to visit the Geres Natural Park. It was brought to you by the UKHolidayPlaces, a travel group operating from the UK – but with an adventurous eye spreading around the world.

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