Camino Portugués
29.6 km, 119 m up and 84 m down, through 8 places, 7 of which have somewhere to sleep. Where you stop is up to you.
Every place on the path in order, with the distance from Povoa de Varzim. 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.
The entirety of the walk between Póvoa and A Ver-o-Mar can be done along the coast, following the shoreline. Shortly before arriving in A Ver-o-Mar the signs are unclear. If you get to a large soccer field (no grass) you want it to be on your right, but it will likely be on your left. If it is on your right, the way is across a small bridge. If it is on your left, simply turn left at the end of the field and keep on straight, across a different bridge but one which will likewise take you across a small sandy stretch into A Ver-o-Mar.
The Metro of Porto Line B (Linha da Póvoa) terminates here.
The name translates as something close to "to see the sea," which is exactly what you do from this small village. There's little in the way of services, but the beachfront walking between here and Santo Andre is some of …
The camino splits once more at the start of Santo André. You can either follow the coast or turn right towards the chapel, and then left at the first roundabout onto the Rua Santo Andre de Cima. The latter course will take you through quiet residential areas interspersed with vegetable patches and a few services.
Follow the camino along the coast. Shortly before arriving to Apúlia the camino splits, and this time the preferred route (for being more direct) takes you away from the beach.
The most direct route from Apúlia to Fão is away from the beach and through a brief stretch of heavy woodlands.
Crossing the Rio Cávado from Fão to Esposende is done via bridge, take your time as the pedestrian section of the bridge is quite narrow. At the end of the bridge turn left, and at the next roundabout keep to your left into Esposende.
There are multiple ways through town but the easiest is along the pedestrian path near the sea. When it comes to an end follow the natural bend in the road to the right. From there the camino turns inland towards Marinhas.
The camino from Marinhas keeps away from the sea, and climbs gradually to offer an elevated view. The path is along paved back roads with little traffic. Eventually, beyond Belinho, the camino crosses descends to cross over the main road and joins a narrow forest path down to the Ponte do Sebastião.
Most services in Belinho are along the main road, the N13, but there's a small supermarket along the camino itself. The village sits on slightly elevated ground, and the walking ahead descends through forest to the Ponte…
A small hamlet between Belinho and the Ponte do Sebastiao, with no services to speak of. Keep moving.
Distance, climb and descent are measured along the GPS track for this camino — 580 recorded points across this span, the same track the app carries. The town-to-town figures in my data put it at 29.5 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.