Douro Valley 24-25 May

As one big toenail  started to suffer after the descent yesterday, we took the easy option for the Serra do Marao walk, just 10 km and only 790m descent.  Our coach drove high up before dropping us at a beautiful scenic place on a ridge. 

Heather and gorse

 

Walking down, the heather was replaced by bracken and small flowers, then the vineyards.

 

We had seen so many vineyards by now and did not appreciate how special they were.

Quoting from the internet:

The Douro Region is protected by mountain ranges to the north and west.  The western mountains, the Serra do Marão, block the flow of moist air from the Atlantic Ocean.  As a result, the Douro Valley is very hot in the summer months, with temperatures that routinely reach the 100-degree (Fahrenheit) mark and sometimes spike as high as 120 degrees.  In the winter, temperatures can drop to freezing. The soils of the Douro region are primarily schist or slate.  This makes the area uniquely suited for growing wine grapes as the rock fractures vertically, roots are able to deeply establish themselves.  

The Douro vine terraces are classified World Heritage sites and date back to Roman times.  We were amazed to see how rock was ‘ploughed’ and planted with dead sticks in deep fissures.  When the sticks sprout, they are grafted for production of the desired grape variety.

The next day was 'free' - do as you please.  Many people went to Porto but we were happy to stay in Regua and potter about.  It had been very hot, over 30, every day so a rest was in order.  We walked around the Museum which features the history of the port wine industry, going back to monks in the 14th C and spurred on by Marques de Pombal, whose name and effigy looms large in the Douro region.
That evening David went for a walk and was drenched by a sudden storm.