Day Eighteen on the Central Route of the Camino Portugués ~ Ponte de Lima to Rubiães, 17.7 Km (11 Miles)

Day eighteen on the Central Route of the Camino Portugués is mostly off-pavement on paths and cobblestone lanes and includes a rigorous climb in the middle of the day on the ancient Roman road, the Via Romana. It may take some digging deep, but if you go slowly and savor the experience it is no trouble at all!

Those who understand others are intelligent. Those who understand themselves are enlightened. Those who overcome others have strength. Those who overcome themselves are powerful. ~ Tao Te Ching: Annotated and Explained

Due to the rigors of the walk on this day, Magdalena, our wheelchair bound friend, decided to opt out entirely and take the bus to Rubiães. It was a wise choice. There is absolutely no way, short of carrying her and her chair that she could have done it with us, as you will see below. 

Map and Stats of Day Eighteen on the Central Route of the Camino Portugués

Here is our map that I created from our GPS tracks, with accommodations, cafés and nearby supermarkets. As you can see there are fewer services on this very rural day, so plan accordingly and carry food in your pack. 

When you look at the elevation profile below, there is a significant elevation change of 390 meters (1280 feet), over 10 kilometers. As my friend Glyvia, from Spain says, after Ponte de Lima, it is up, up, up! And she is right. However, if you understand yourself and your capabilities and take it at your own pace, you will be just fine. 

The walk is so lovely and off-pavement, that you may not even notice the climb until just before the top, the Alto da Portela Grande de Labruja, on the ancient and rocky Roman road. 

Photo-Rich Travelogue of Day Eighteen, Central Route of the Camino Portugués

We woke up to a drizzle, when we looked outside our window of the Casa da Vila in Ponte de Lima. The streets were glistening with moisture, so we geared up for a rainy day. 

Here is Rich, where we started our day, heading north on the medieval 14th century bridge in Ponte de Lima, with the church, the Igreja de Santo António da Torre Velha in the background. 

After crossing the bridge, we walked by the Albergue de Peregrinos de Ponte de Lima, below photo taken on a later, sunny day!

Our friends were all staying here, but we had agreed the evening prior, as we exchanged contact information, that we would meet up again, either on the trail or in the next town. 

After the albergue, you walk on the pedestrian way, and take the first hard right, walking by a park on your right side. 

You come to a T-intersection in a few hundred meters and take another right, continuing to follow the park. Turn left in another hundred meters, at another T-intersection.

In another one hundred meters or so, take a left off the road to join a path system through the countryside, shown below.

The path eventually becomes a stone and concrete one as it follows a canal system on day eighteen, Central Route of the Portuguese Camino.

Leaving the canal, the path becomes stone....

...and turns to cobblestone as it crosses the EN202 and continues onward, after a bit more than a full kilometer from the albergue.

The drizzle soon ceased, but the road, now dirt, was still quite muddy, as we walked under the A27. It was under the overpass that we finally stopped and took off our rain gear, as it was quite muggy with it still on. The mistiness remained for a while. 

The muddy, dirt road meets the paved road ahead as you enter the town of Arcozelo, shown below. You can see the church ahead. We had just walked a glorious 2.5 km off pavement to this point from Ponte de Lima. 

The Camino turns right onto the CM1240-1 to bend around and come to a roundabout, turning left as you enter town and toward the church. Just beyond the roundabout is a water fountain. 

We walked by the church, the Igreja de Santa Marinha de Arcozelo, where the loveliest of wisteria vines were showing us the way.

In the village, just beyond the church, the way to one of only a few open cafés on day eighteen can be seen. You must turn left, here at the sign and walk down a lane to the Café Veiga, about 100 meters to the west of the Camino. The café does open early (0600 as of this update) so if you are in need of breakfast this would be the only stop for you!

We continued to wind around the town, as the yellow arrows directed us to turn left onto this next lovely, grape-vine dotted road.

About 1/3 kilometer for the town church, we turned right onto another path, walking through more glorious Arcozelo vineyards. 

After not quite 1/2 kilometer, the path joins a paved road at a Roman bridge, called the Ponte do Arco da Geia. This bridge is a bit more than 3.6 kilometers into your day. 

The next paved intersection after the bridge, about one hundred meters onward, the Way turns left onto a side road, below, and follows it through the fields. If you were to stay straight here instead of turning, you would encounter a café and a mini-market several hundred meters away at the intersection with the N306.

Continue on the side road for about 1/2 kilometer, then briefly on a dirt lane, coming eventually to this T-intersection, below. Turn left onto this lovely cobblestone road. This is authentic cobblestone in this area, not the pre-fabricated granite setts that you see mostly in the cities and elsewhere.

The building ahead, shown below, after about 2/3 kilometer on the road, is the Parque de Pescas, a fishing park with a cafeteria, the Oasis do Caminho that we passed after approximately 5.0 kilometers into day eighteen. According to the link to their Facebook page, they are open from 0600-1900 every day! They also provide accommodations in a tent with ½ board for a very reasonable price, open mid-March to October. The homemade Italian food here gets raves on Facebook. It could be an appropriate break from the albergue grind for you. 

For us, the Oasis was closed each and every time we walked by, so be sure to call ahead if you plan to stay here. 

After passing the Oasis, there is a bit of a climb on the dirt road that bends and joins this road, below, that skirts the A3 then walks down and under it, pictured farther below. 

The Way then weaves around and under the A3, three times, as it crosses a bridge, below, with a "Welcome to Labruja" sign on the other side.

After leaving the pathway under the A3, the Way turns onto this dirt lane, below, and into the forest as it climbs a steep section that was muddy from the rain when we passed through.

In about 300 meters, the Camino turns to the right onto another dirt road, where the road levels out, shown below. 

Then it's onward through the nice forest road, when in another 300 meters we passed by these meditation rocks. 

In about 1/2 kilometer more you come to a waterfall. You can hear it for a while before you can actually see it. It is a very inviting sound.

At first I thought it was just the sound of a creek, and was pleasantly surprised when we came upon the peaceful waterfall.

Just beyond the waterfall you come to more authentic cobblestone, after 7.0 kilometers total for the day. 

At the top of the hill, the forest opens and you enter a cluster of buildings, following the road as it turns to the right, shown below, and becomes the paved Rua da Foz.

This off-pavement section from the last bridge underpass to the Rua da Foz is a wonderful 1.5 kilometers of fun!

Next, you come to a T-intersection with the M522 and turn left to walk by the sign for the next town of Arco. 

Follow the M522 for about 2/3 kilometer, passing the town chapel and enter the next town of Revolta. 

A few steps onward and up a hill in Revolta there is a little chapel, shown in the next photo, which is open for pilgrims. This is where the Camino leaves the M522 for a side road to the left. There is a café across the street from the chapel, not pictured, called the Café Nunes.

Since this was the only café open on this day eighteen of the Central Route on the Camino Portugués everyone was stopping here! There were about 30 pilgrims coming in all at once. There was no table waiting, but pilgrims lined up at the counter to order and collect their order afterwards. What a three-ring circus!

The Café Nunes is just shy of 8 km into the day. It is the last café before the big climb up the mountain, and the last until you reach Rubiães, 10 kilometers away. Is it any wonder that everyone was stopping here? We ordered our coffee and left as soon as possible. 

After leaving Revolta, turning to the left by the Capela, the paved road is a pleasant and rural one, shown below.

Less than one kilometer later, the town of Labruja appears ahead, with its church dominating the skyline. You may have noticed, or maybe not, that you are now climbing a bit more steeply. The real climbing begins after the Café Nunes!

Labruja is located only 9.5 kilometers into this stage, but if you are staging your Camino differently, as we have on one occassion, it is a very attractive little town, as you can see in the photos below.

There are new accommodations popping up here, the first one you pass is the charming Quinta Labruja, at the entrance to the town, just shy of nine kilometers into the day.

After staying to the right and passing the Quinta, turn left immediately as the road bends to the left. 350 meters later you pass by the Casa da Valada, also right along the Camino.

Just a few meters beyond the Casa da Valada is the O Conforto Albergue, the orange building that you can see ahead in the next photo. We chose to stay here our second time through, and when I saw that it was perched below the E1 highway, I was worried we would hear traffic all night long. However, we did not.

And here is a view of the valley and its two historic and marvelous churches from the terrace of the O Conforto.

Since we had arrived early in the afternoon, we visited the churches and the town bar, the Restaurante Sr. Do Socorro, whose owner is extremely friendly and speaks near perfect English. Unfortunately, the bar is a full one kilometer from the Camino, so it’s not very practical a stop if you are passing through. But since we wanted to see the amazing Santuário do Senhor do Socorro, below, why not have a stop at the bar right next to it? Plus we were hungry!d

The proprietress  of the O Conforto was not all that friendly, unlike the owners at the Casa da Valada, according to our friends who stayed there. Interestingly, the owner of the bar, says the O Conforto owner has some mental health issues. However, what she lacked in social skills she made up for in the meal that she cooked for us (for an extra, reasonable charge)! It was an amazing creamed cod fish and potato casserole, the likes of which we had never had before! Plus her pudding for dessert, with a cinnamon crusted top was delicious! And a full bottle of wine came with it. Our friends at the Casa Valada had only an omelet for dinner, so if you stay in Labruge, consider this information when you choose one of these albergues! Both places have private rooms as well as dormitory beds.

Back on the Camino, after another 100 meters or so past the O Conforto, if you take the next left turn, the Quinta da Enxurreira is less than 100 meters off-Camino, however this accommodation may require a 2-night minimum. 

Then it was onward, after the albergue, staying right here, to join the M522 once again, shortly thereafter. 

Walking only briefly on the M522, for about 100 meters, and the Way veers to the right, onto this quaint road below, the Rua da Fonte das Trés Bicas, or loosely translated, The Street of the Source of Three Spouts (fountains).

This landmark fountain can be seen shortly onwards, 50 meters or so, shown below.

Just beyond the Fonte das Trés Bicas, a potable water source and safe to drink, is this lovely waterfall and a picnic area if you need a place to take a break. The spring azalea bush was too gorgeous not to pause and photograph! (The waterfall may be dry in seasons after the spring.)

The Camino onward meanders around, but does not join the M522, and turns to cobblestone. Here are two photos of it at its peak charm. In the second photo you can see the large yellow rain cover on the pack of Michal, from Poland, with whom we would chat this day, and eventually he would join our Camino group. 

After about 10 kilometers into the day, we crossed the M522, walked another 200 meters and crossed it again, turning off onto this path shown below. We continued on, northward and toward the mountain called the Alto da Portela Grande de Labruja.

We continued onward on the dirt path, widening into a road, as we entered the forest and away from civilization for about one kilometer, on not-so-steep terrain. Then the real climb begins! We joined the rocky ancient road shown below. 

We stopped to catch our breath in this steep section, below. A kind pilgrim took this shot of us and our newly-found friend.

Just when we thought it couldn't get any steeper, it did! This really rocky and steep section below is just before the Cruz dos Franceses (the French Cross), also pictured below. This cross is the equivalent, I suppose, of the Cruz de Ferro on the Camino Francés.

Take heart, because when you reach the French Cross, you are only about 300 meters from the top! We paid our respects at the cross on the central route of the Camino Portugués on our day eighteen. 

I call this next section the "hike-a-bike" section, because the bicyclists ahead are carrying their bikes on their shoulders! That is how difficult this final section is. Take your time and enjoy the ancient road. There is no competition and you have plenty of time to reach the top. Remember ~ those who know themselves are enlightened!

We continued to climb and suddenly, above us was the top! The famed Alto da Portela Grande de Labruja.

We reached the top after approximately 12.4 kilometers. All-in-all, the really steep, rocky and tough part of the day is only about 800 meters, even though it feels much longer!

Here is the viewpoint from the Alto. We hung around and rested and had a bite to eat, to prepare ourselves for the final 5.3 kilometers. There was no hurry on this shorter day. 

My mind wandered to Magdalena and again, I was grateful that she knew herself and the wisdom of her choice. Bringing her up this Roman road would have been near suicide for all of us. I didn't know where Matt, Magnus and Borut were on this day, but I knew we would meet up in Rubiães down the road. They probably were behind us, as they liked to sleep late when possible. We did not see them all day on our walk.

After resting, we set off on the flat mountain top, following the well-waymarked route. The weather appeared to be threatening rain, as we peered down the mountain on the other side.

Here is a photo of the downhill side. It is almost as bad as the uphill! The Way was very, very steep and muddy from the rain. I hoped it wouldn't rain again until we got through this section!

And then the route flattens and smooths out as you soon walk by a wooden sign, in the middle of the forest that lets you know you are entering the next town of Águalonga.

The Águalonga sign is directly across from this cross, below. The cross is seen after almost a kilometer from the top. 

Then the forest opened in another 400 meters from the cross and we came to a cluster of buildings, near the town of Romarigães, shown below.

A few meters later the road becomes paved, crossing over and straight ahead at an intersection. Onward a few meters is the Quinta da Preza (+351 916 648 547). A rooster crowed, drawing our attention to the Quinta. 

And as we entered this cluster of buildings, we saw the quaintest of sights, a woman leading her sheep through town. 

One-third kilometer later, we crossed another paved road, to enter another cobblestone one, with amazing grape arbors to harbor us. I do love the Portuguese countryside and day eighteen of this central route of the Camino Portugués was no exception!

In another one-third kilometer, we crossed yet another paved road, the M1077, continuing on the lovely cobblestone. The Way continues to be quite open and wonderfully rural!

Walking on through a cluster of buildings, the Way leaves the pavement once again, below. There is the Roulote Café Bar here just before you head down the hill, so look out for it if you need refreshments!

Here are two peregrinos crossing yet another Roman bridge, this time a small one at approximately 15.3 kilometers total for the day.  

The church, the Igreja Matriz de Águalonga (São Paio) loomed on our right after we crossed the bridge. The sky still threatened, but no rain!

After the bridge, we climbed up a small hill, crossed more pavement and came to this small shrine.

There seemed to be a lot of cobblestone in the last kilometers of day eighteen on the central route of the Camino Portugués. We fondly started to call it "hobblestone" because it was very hard on our feet and legs. I couldn't help thinking, only one more day of cobblestone, before crossing into Spain! 

After the shrine, there is more climbing on cobblestone!

At the top of the hill there is this entryway, below, leading you to the Casa de Lamas (+351 936 752 567). The "we rent rooms" is in four languages, but most interestingly, just beyond the open gate is an in-ground and inviting swimming pool! We heard tales of pilgrims stopping here, just for a swim, often without a suit!

The Way then crosses the N301, below, and enters Rubiães.

One-quarter kilometer later the Way joins the EN201, turning right. You stay on the main road only briefly, as you walk by the Pensão Repouso do Peregrino and the Albergue de Alojamento Local Constantino.

Just as soon as it joins it, the Camino leaves the EN201, turning right here at this capela.

Next, you walk by the Quinta das Leiras and the Casa das Lages , two country homes that both look like fantastic places to stay. We walked onward.

The Camino re-enters the forest and comes out at the neglected Igreja de São Pedro de Rubiães, with its broken cruceiro.

Within about 120 meters from the church, the municipal Albergue de Peregrinos de São Pedro de Rubiães (open May-Oct) appears on your left. This albergue is quite large, with very large open rooms, about 34 places total. You reach the albergue at 17.4 kilometers from the albergue in Ponte de Lima. 

Just across the road from the albergue is the Café São Sebastião, where we all met up later to have a raucous happy hour!

Rich and I continued on down the hill, turning right onto the EN201, past another Via Romana waymark (with a Roman horse and chariot). We noted the next private place to stay, the Casa de São Sebastião, with dormitory beds, on the right, just behind the Café where we had happy hour. 

Our desire was to stay at a smaller, private albergue, just a few steps farther, the Albergue Ninho, shown below, for 12 Euro/night. The place, known as the "Pilgrim's Nest," (note the yellow bird on the building) is enjoying success as they add more rooms. It was easy for us to see why this charming place fills up. 

This wonderful old stone house has a unique kitchen and main sleeping area in a loft-like setup, then additional rooms are available in various configurations. Rich and I took a room that slept three, however, a third person never materialized so we had the room to ourselves. Much better than the muni's large rooms, and only a few euros more. 

All of our group, except for Magdalena and Michal, decided to join us at the Ninho. After our happy hour, we met a delightful Italian woman, Miriam, at the Ninho, who the guys bribed into cooking us all Pasta Carbonara for dinner! She agreed to cook in exchange for the meal.

The guys walked farther down the hill to the nearby grocery store, (see the map above for its location) for the ingredients for dinner, and of course, wine! Miriam made a wonderful meal, which we all enjoyed immensely! Magdalena wheeled down the hill with Michal, to join us for dinner. It was a perfect ending to an almost perfect day. The large courtyard at the Ninho was more than accommodating for a meal al fresco.

Reflections on Day Eighteen, Central Route of the Camino Portugués

This day was one of only a few of my many days on various Caminos that I had absolutely no issues! It was a perfect length for me, a perfect challenge as far as effort, and was filled with the charm of the Via Romana, forests, waterfalls, Roman bridges and delightful Portuguese villages and countryside. 

If I were to know myself to the fullest, I would know that days like these are extremely rare and are to be treasured as soon as I recognize them. While it is most likely that I will never overcome myself in this lifetime, it's times like these that I can see a glimmer of hope that it just might be possible!

Salutation

May your own day eighteen on the Central Route of the Camino Portugués be filled with delightful moments when you find your perfect stride, come to know yourself better and maybe even overcome that which brought you on the Camino in the first place. Ultreia!

And the Journey Continues:

~ Lisbon to Porto

~ Porto to Santiago Via the Coastal Route and/or the Sendal Litoral

~ Porto to Santiago Via the Central Route

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