Pego do Inferno

We have been alternating between a few days of sunny weather and a few days of rainy weather. When it is sunny we do two things: laundry and exploring by bike or on foot.

Carnaval

Thursday was a sunny day and we were preparing to ride out to a nearby waterfall when we heard some whistles and a chattering crowd of people. What a surprise to see a seemingly endless line of children dressed in costumes! We stood on our terrace to watch them make their very orderly way to the riverfront, the location for Desfile de Carnaval Infantil (Children’s Carnival parade). Here is a 💎 Highlight Video and some photos. The festivities are only just starting, and I will write a separate post on Carnaval in the Algarve.

Cascata de Tavira

Moinhos da Rocha, also known as Pego do Inferno, is the largest of a set of three waterfalls on the Asseca River in Santo Estêvão, about 10 km from Tavira. So on Thursday, we decided to ride our bikes to the waterfall.

It is absolutely peaceful here. At the base of the 3m high waterfall is a lagoon whose blue-green water welcomes a swim, and one visitor did just that. Recognizing me as um estrangeiro (a foreigner), the swimmer told me the water was very cold by miming crossed arms and chattering teeth. Here is a 💎 Highlight Video and photos of the ride.

These next photos show where to turn (both right hand turns if you are coming from Tavira).

Pego do Inferno translates to Caught in Hell. Why is such a beautiful waterfall given a such a harsh name? Legend has it (it’s always a legend isn’t it) that a carriage fell into the lagoon and was never found. Some part of the legend say that the lagoon is bottomless and is connected to the Gilão River and the River Guadiana with tunnels. Despite the legend’s claim, the lagoon has been measured to be 7m in depth.

When we arrived to the location, we parked our bikes nearby some van life folks who were just about to head down the trail to pick some oranges. This area used to be maintained by Tavira City Council. It had parking, a pedestrian walkway, a bridge to access the lake, and a wooden staircase. But a fire in July 2012 destroyed the structures, and the area was closed to the public.

Today, the waterfall and its lagoon is accessible through a somewhat hidden trail. The 100m walk leads to an overlook, turning away from the overlook the path descends into a grove of orange trees, then through a small bamboo forest before emerging to the bank of the lagoon.

The other waterfalls in the set are Cascata do Pomarinho and Cascata da Torre, although it is not yet clear to me how to find Cascata da Torre.

Quintas e Mais

Friday was rainy and because Saturday was a sunny, we went to walk along the quintas (farms) to the north of us. In the map, the farms are the upper loop and the lower loop is our path from our apartment through the urbanization and back.

What am amazing walk through these farmlands. Cheery yellow flowers lined the path, and we had the trail mostly to ourselves, seeing the occasional cyclist, and one group of horseback riders. This is the walk Tom does with a group every Tuesday morning. The loop amongst the farms is 3-4 miles but the entire walk to get there and back takes it up to 5-6 miles.

Here is a 💎 Highlight Video and photos.

Portuguese Lesson

A simple sentence like a água está muito fria (the water is very cold) is still very difficult for me to understand when spoken. This is especially true in the Algarve where the beginnings and endings of words are cut off and the words are combined. For example instead of speaking distinct words like this “ah a-gwah stah moy-too free-ah” it would be more like this “gwa-ta-mooyt-free-ah.” We do it in English too when we say things like “y’up?” for “are you up?”