ROUTE OF 25 LAGOONS
Next to the highest point of mainland Portugal, in the heart of the Serra da Estrela Natural Park, nature offers a unique set of lagoons.
Generally of glacial origin, the 25 Lagoons allow you to create original walking trails, suitable for the hot summer seasons.
The Serra da Estrela Tourism Region advises those with less experience to purchase a Tourist Card (1:50,000) from the Serra da Estrela Natural Park, as well as contact guides who allow you to walk the trails with greater orientation.
Viriato Trail
Duration:3h Distance:7km
Depart from Penhas da Saúde, a mountain village at 1500m altitude. Follow the road to Lago Viriato, whose waters supply the city of Covilhã. Continue up the EN339, passing the crossing to Manteigas, until you find the Nave de Santo António (1550m) down on your right. The Nave is a sandy plain that was once a glacial lagoon. Extensive cervunal seeded with rounded blocks and cliffy rocks constitutes, in the summer, a mantle of greenery where the cattle are fed. Continuing along the road until you find, on the left, the Covão do Ferro Dam, also known as Padre Alfredo Dam. Next to the Dam, the path goes up the slope to the Terroeiro spring, on the side of Unhais, between the worst places, heathers and heaps of stones that rolled from the slope and between which you can hear the running of the waters. Continue in loops until you find a narrow passage between the fragments that stand out. Then there is a smooth slope with a suitable path for the passage of cows, sheep and goats that, during the summer, still come from Unhais to graze to the plateau. On the right, the view over Covão do Ferro, Nave de Santo António and Penhas da Saúde delights us. About 500 meters further on, on the left, we can see Unhais da Serra and further away the schistous mountains of Lousã that dazzle our eyes. Continuing between zimbrais and cervunais, with no marked path. Head north until you reach the Tower at an altitude of 1993m.
