It was already hot! It was really hot, the weather technicians had promised and the forecasts only sinned by default. The day the Portugal de Lés-a-Lés caravan departed from the summery Algarve region to the hellish Alentejo region was the hottest day of the year, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees centigrade.
Behind were the beaches and swimming pools of hotels and tourist complexes in Faro and, ahead, the more than 2000 motorcyclists who accepted the challenge of the Portuguese Motorcycling Federation, traveled 440 kilometers to Castelo de Vide. Early in the morning, as soon as the sun had peeked over the horizon, the thermometers already marked 27º, and even before 9 am, in Alcoutim, they were already over 30º. And it went up until it reached values that no one around here had experienced this year.
A serene departure from the Algarve, leaving behind the mountains that separate the Alentejo and with Spain always on the horizon to, next to the Guadiana, enjoy all the curves of the beautiful M507 road renamed Rita Guerra. Beautiful, with dark tones and a Mediterranean aroma, she was enchanted by the curves and the breeze that moved sailboats up the river. A river barrier that accompanied the adventurers towards Alcoutim where smugglers, the Portuguese GNR and the Spanish Guardia Civil joined the lively elements of the Moto Clube de Albufeira at a fun checkpoint. It was the first of many mishaps that animated the caravan and helped to combat the heat wave, with plenty of water to drink and to soak your feet in on the river beach on the banks of Ribeira de Cadavais.
It was forbidden to stand still for too long because, with the clock ticking, the temperature would also rise. We entered the Alentejo which, even without the traditional ford crossing the Vascão, was quite noticeable on the less curvilinear roads even without the interminable straights that would come later. Before that, passing through the Islamic Mértola and its towering castle where the motorcycle club Falcões das Muralhas, assumed the defense of its territory. If it weren't for the many Spaniards who give an international touch to the long caravan, having ideas…
Road-book in Castilian… so that some Spaniard wouldn't get lost
Spaniards who were rewarded, soon after, with a debut in Portugal de Lés-a-Lés. If it is true that, on several occasions, the troupe went to the other side of the border, it is no less true that there have never been road-book notes written in Castilian before. Jumps to and fro almost without realizing the lines that were once moments of Iberian tension. Now, without much space in the motorcycles' suitcases for caramels, cod or other contraband, the passage was only notorious because there were warnings… in the road-book. Otherwise, only small stone markers, a ruined border post or an International Bridge (from Marco or El Marco) made of wood and where only one motorcycle can fit at a time. And cars, no way!
Always with a heatwave that almost melted even the most veterans, the village of Safara, right in the heart of the municipality of Moura, allowed to taste the delicious sausages of the region. And if you think it was a bad option, remember that salt helps to lessen the effects of dehydration caused by high temperatures and the hot wind that was drying the bodies. Let the actor Vítor Norte say it, experienced in many Lés-a-Lés always with his inseparable Gina, the no less experienced Yamaha Virago 535 that has been with him for a long time. “It was a hard day, very hard, at the level of the most demanding days of recording a film or a telenovela”, said taxi driver Manel Martins of the telenovela 'Festa é Festa' in Castelo de Vide.
Without a party, the trip to Amareleja provided what was expected! At the continental point where the highest temperatures are recorded, there were thermometers above 40º, whet the appetite for the lots of water that Moto Livres Club and the local authority made available in the castle of Mourão. With a fabulous view, time to enjoy the great lake of the Alqueva that dams the Guadiana and its tributaries, first of all discoveries of an Alentejo that never ceases to amaze. Whether in the photogenic monument of Homage to Cante Alentejano, as in the various menhirs, before and cromlechs that attest to the existence of very ancient civilizations in the region.
Even so, nothing that prepared the participants in the biggest motorcycle tourist event in Europe to discover the Aldeia Gaulesa do Ocidental, very close to the menhir of Outeiro which, at 5,6 meters high, is the second most imposing in Portugal. Perfect setting for an Obelix carrying menhirs, Asterix, Panoramix, Ordemalfabétix, Mrs. Decanonix and even the beautiful Falbala, characters perfectly interpreted by the elements of the Motards of the West. Time for the first dirt track (these villages are really old…) where the 250 Jawa 1952, driven by Hélder Alves, or the many Honda PCX 125s had no problem. After all, Portugal de Lés-a-Lés is an adventure for all motorcycles, not all motorcyclists…
The weight of History on Portugal Day
On Portugal, Camões and Portuguese Communities Day, time to remember some more points of great historical importance in the affirmation of Lusitanian independence, including the castles of Terena (from a distance) or Vila Viçosa (inside) before stopping again in Borba near the Fonte das Bicas I since 1781 quench the thirst of those who pass by. Barbacena and Arronches were points on the map visited before the new entry into Spain, which left Italians, French, Swiss, Dutch, Poles, Romanians, Germans, Luxembourgers, Croatians, Belgians, Americans and Hungarians more confused.
The Spanish twisted or lyrical Portuguese used in the navigation notes increased the difficulty of perception to the same extent that it increased the fun for the Iberians. Who, tired but in a good mood, all arrived at Castelo de Vide, the end of a 440-kilometre stage that will be remembered as one of the most demanding in the 24-year history of Portugal from Lés-a-Lés.
Just as the connection between Sintra do Alentejo and Covilhã should be remembered, with 360 kilometers of discoveries and emotions, flavors and landscapes. Its too hot!…
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