Week 387 · Cabo da Roca · Ericeira · Nazaré · Silver Coast
Oceano
After leaving Sintra, we headed to the coast — about 5 miles as the crow flies but a 30-minute drive down the mountain. Similar to California, a lot of microclimates — it was 95 degrees in Lisbon, 85 degrees in Sintra village, and 75 degrees at the Palace at the top of the mountain — not a cloud in the sky. At the coast, it was 60 degrees and foggy.
We started at Cabo da Roca — the westernmost point of continental Europe — and drove to Nazaré, stopping for dinner in Ericeira.
Nazaré on Portugal's Silver Coast is famous for producing the largest surfable waves ever recorded. An underwater canyon — the Nazaré Canyon — stretches 230 kilometres from deep ocean to just offshore, funnelling and amplifying Atlantic swells to extraordinary heights. In November 2011, Hawaiian surfer Garrett McNamara rode a wave officially measured at 23.77 metres (78 feet), setting a world record. The record has been broken multiple times since. The waves occur on the north beach between October and March. The south beach, partially sheltered by the headland, produces much smaller waves suitable for recreational use. Cabo da Roca, 30km south of Nazaré, stands at 140 metres above sea level and marks the most westerly point of the Eurasian continental plate.
I was looking forward to using a body board on the 100-foot waves in Nazaré — but the waves were only 10–15 feet on the north beach and no one was in the water. It was rough and the only people surfing or using a body board were on the south beach which was partially protected — maybe 5-foot waves and packed with people. Also, the water was mid-60s and a little cold without a wet suit. So I rented a bike and rode up the coast a couple of hours to San Pedro de Moel on the "Estrada Atlântica" bike path while Sharon and Annelise relaxed in Nazaré.
I was looking forward to using a body board on the 100-foot waves in Nazaré. The waves were only 10–15 feet on the north beach and no one was in the water. The only people surfing were on the south beach — maybe 5-foot waves, packed with people, and mid-60s water temperature without a wet suit.
So I rented a bike and rode up the coast a couple of hours while Sharon and Annelise relaxed on the beach. Pretty much the entire coast from Cabo da Roca north to Figueira da Foz is a potential part-time retirement spot.
"Pretty much the entire coast going north from Cabo da Roca to Figueira da Foz is a potential part-time retirement spot — but you would have to have a car."