We started the journey by crossing a large hydroelectric dam and then followed a narrow mountain road upwards into the village of Brufe. From there we followed a series of rural trails, paved with centenary cobblestones. These extremely technical trails are covered with drops, mud puddles and river crossings. They run on a plateau and pass trough another small two villages: Cortinhas and Cutelo. Due to their remote location these villages have very few inhabitants, most of them eldery. Agriculture is the main mean of subsistence; fields and cattle are a constant part of the landscape. The stark contrast between these villages the modern parts of the country can sometimes be shocking.
Exiting the village of Cutelo we found ourselves riding down a smooth descent through a large and flowing trail, covered in wet grass and some loose sand. From there we crossed an asphalt road and went on to descend an old and twisty mountain path, once again paved with large stones. Constantly snaking down a valley, it crosses ancient bridges, muddy water courses and a few forests.
This road started relatively smooth, but as we descended we found the ever increasing damage caused by the passage of time. Dozens of loose rocks, overgrown vegetation and the deep ruts carved by rain water make this section into a fun challenge that forces us to use all of our MTB handling skills just to reach the bottom safely.
A few other short trails left us in the left margin of the Lima river. From there we climbed a few miles along an asphalt road and reached the old village of Lindoso. This village, located very near the border between Portugal and Spain has a very rich history. A 13th century castle is located in the town center and is surrounded by dozens of traditional stone structures called "espigueiros", used to store and dry cereals. Definitely a place worth a visit...
From there we started the ascent to the 4450 feet Louriça peak. The climb is done via a wide dirt road, engineered with an almost constant grade. As we slowly ascended the mountain the winds gradually gained strength and speed. Each turn of the climb completed left us with the wind in a different position. From some angles it was a strong tailwind, propelling us uphill. At its worst, it turned into a fierce headwind, almost able to stop us in our tracks.
The last mile of the climb was especially difficult, as it combined the wind with even more physically demanding grades. We had to gather all our remaining energy to traverse this section and finally reach the top.
The mountain top was cold and gusty, a very uninviting place. We admired the awe-inspiring view for a few moments, chewed on some energy bars and started to make our way down.
The descent starts as a fast roll-down along the very same trails used to reach the top. But we quickly abandoned this tame dirt road and headed to a series of singletracks and exhilarating technical sections. We rode quickly trough forests, their grass floor covered with fallen Autumn leaves and we passed over lichen covered bridges and splashed our bikes in muddy swamps.
We were now in the village of Ermida. This cliffs surrounding this village conceal the most breathtaking trail of this ride. A singletrack, carved in the mountain with thousands of stones, winding in an apparently never-ending sequence of turns. The first impact is staggering, as the trail disappears into the cliff.
And it can be ridden quite fast. Each rocky step approached with confidence, letting the bike flow almost effortlessly into the next turn. Fun and undeniably beautiful.
At the bottom of this singletrack lies the village of Lourido. After a quick rest we headed to the final climb of the journey. First an easy dirt road, then a long, steep and sinuous mountain road.
The shy winter sun started to disappear while we were still fighting with the climb. We stopped quickly to mount our lights and immediately kept going. When we finally reached the top of the mountain pass we were rewarded with a sublime view of the crepuscule.
We crossed the mountain pass near Brufe and pedaled through the darkness, descending again towards the dam we had encountered 9 hours before. The wind was strong again, howling fiercely while we negotiated each turn of the road. After passing the dam only a quick climb separated us from our cars. We had reached the end of our journey.
