Camino Portugués
10.6 km, 184 m up and 17 m down, through 4 places, 2 of which have somewhere to sleep. Where you stop is up to you.
Every place on the path in order, with the distance from Ponte de Lima. Most are too small to sleep in — a fountain, a chapel, a bar that may or may not be open — but they are what the day is actually made of.
Cross the bridge, passing the museum of toys and the albergue and turn right on the first street. The camino joins a small country lane, passes under the highway, and into Arcozelo.
Ponte de Lima has played host to a very large festival known as ‘As Feiras Novas’ every second weekend in September since 1826. It is a massive party, and if you have not made a reservation long in advance, you may find yourself without a home for the night.
The camino makes a series of well-signed turns before arriving at the Ponte do Geira. Cross and keep to your left. You will pass under the highway once, over the river on a new bridge, and then back under the highway twice, all before arriving in Arco.
A bridge crossing. The camino continues uphill, passing under the highway multiple times, and over the river on a new bridge before reaching Arco-Revolta.
The camino parallels the road (minor) for a short stretch here, and only turns left when it gets to the colorful Capilla de Codeçal. Immediately opposite the Capilla is a handy and friendly bar. It is a steady uphill climb from here, past Labruja (2.3km) and Bandeira (600m more) and to the Alto da Portela.
A hamlet on the climb from Arco to the alto. No services. Keep climbing.
A hamlet 600 m beyond Labruja. No services. The alto is close.
Distance, climb and descent are measured along the GPS track for this camino — 101 recorded points across this span, the same track the app carries. The town-to-town figures in my data put it at 10.7 km.
Esta entidad ha sido beneficiaria de una ayuda del Programa de incentivos a la movilidad eficiente y sostenible (MOVES III), gestionado por la Xunta de Galicia a través del Instituto Enerxético de Galicia (INEGA) en el marco del Real Decreto 266/2021, y cofinanciada por la Unión Europea — NextGenerationEU, dentro del Plan de Recuperación, Transformación y Resiliencia.