The highest mountain of Portugal
Fascinating for its natural and cultural history, Parque Natural da Serra da Estrela was one of Portugal’s first designated parks, and at 888 sq km remains the country’s largest protected area. The rugged boulder-strewn meadows and icy lakes of its high country form one of Portugal’s most distinct and unexpected landscapes. It's a glorious, seasonal beauty: the altiplano (upland) area is stunning in the morning or evening light. On the slopes below, rushing rivers historically provided hydro power to spin and weave the Serra’s wool into cloth. Nowadays traditional sheep-herding is giving way to a service economy catering to weekending tourists.
The presence of the 1993m Torre – Portugal’s highest peak – at the park's centre is both a blessing and a curse. It forms a dramatic backdrop, but as the only place in Portugal where snow dependably falls, which means it’s almost exclusively visited by people who love to ski or board and people that just want to have fun in the snow - also lures winter hordes with little consciousness of their impact on the high country’s ecosystems.
This region has to offer many attractions, from the typical gastronomy, especially the Serra cheese, breathtaking landscapes, monuments and museums to its rich and varied fauna and flora. Also, the Serra da Estrela region and its surrounding its ideal for the practice of outdoor activities such as hiking, skiing, mountain climbing, snowboarding, trekking, canoeing, parachuting or birdwatching.
I definitely recommend everybody to put Serra da Estrela on your plans if you pretend to visit Portugal in the winter time, it's magical and surely you will leave with memories that you never forget.
I won't forget the shades of blue that my eyes catch for as far as I could see...and all the fun that I had with my hubby and cousins, it was a blast!!!
This is nature in its purest form in the winter time: Raw, brutal, bizarre, magnificent and mesmerizing frozen mountain rivers and dizzying cliffs full of rocks covered in snow...the amazing surroundings make it impossible not to admire this as the most beautiful natural scenery of Portugal.
I experienced sun, blue skies, clouds, fog, a temperature of 3º C degrees (37º F), snow and ice on the road and animal footprints paths on the snow continued on into the mountains (I don't know what species were, but I guess it was wild goats and wolves).
But it all comes together rather beautifully!
Utter silence and a cool crisp breeze.
Cool Snow man made by my cousin, of course I had to take a snap...he is adorable with the fancy accessories that I add myself.
When you can’t help but smile until your cheeks ache and your teeth hurt from the cold!
You and that vast, mind blowing view...
Me and my little cousin Diana enjoying the beautiful views on the golden hour...simply amazing.
...and of course the cliché group shot.
After all this exciting experience we were fully and incredibly content.
With this in mind, I hope you can come to enjoy the true Serra da Estrela Nature in the Winter as well in the Summer, because it is worth it.
S|C|W
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