Since our river cruise was canceled, we decided to take a few days for a road trip to some places we had not been to in Portugal. We started with lunch in a beach town on the central coast, Foz do Arelho, with a fellow expat we met at the July 4 celebration. He has been living in Foz do Arelho for about 20 years. To say that he is a character is an understatement and we thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent with him.
From there we were on to Nazare. This used to be a small fishing village but has grown into a destination due to big wave surfing. There is a huge underwater canyon that is about 140 miles long and 16,000 feet deep just offshore. This canyon increases and converges the incoming ocean swell which, in conjunction with the local water current, dramatically enlarges wave heights. We picked the days we went because the waves were predicted to be big. The town has a spectacular beach that is around a bend from the Praia do Norte where the big waves are. To get to the best viewing spot, at a lighthouse, we took a funicular to the top of a long and steep hill. The picture in the middle was taken from the funicular.
We then walked a long way down to the lighthouse. On the way we passed the entrance gate for the Tudor Nazare Tow Surfing Challenge. (More on that later.) There was also a very scary looking scenic overlook that made us both weak in the knees just looking down at it. Finally, there is a large sculpture that is somehow related to a legend in Nazare involving, a deer, a horse, a man, and the Virgin Mary. Seriously. Will can explain it all in detail.
Once we got down to the lighthouse, there was a fairly big crowd. Getting a good viewing spot entailed getting alarmingly close to the edge of a cliff. It was very difficult to get pictures partly due to the glare and partly due to the terror. The waves were in the 20 foot range -- or about a third or quarter of what they can get to if the conditions are right. I cannot imagine seeing those really huge waves. The ones we saw were spectacular and you could feel them when they crashed on the rocks so far below where we were standing.
The waves here are too big for the surfers to paddle out, so they are towed out by a partner on a jet ski. In my opinion, the people driving the skis are almost as crazy as those on the boards. I know my photos are not good, but in some if you look really closely, you might see some skis or surfers. If you can pick them out, maybe it will provide a perspective on the size of the waves.
We were thrilled to score a tuk tuk to take us back up the hill. I was pretty sure we would just have to live down there if we didn't get a ride. Love those tuk tuks. From there, it was down the funicular again. That night we enjoyed the festive lights in town.
It turned out that while we were there, they announced that the tow surfing competition had been scheduled for the next day (Sunday). So on Saturday night, the town started to fill up. It was kind of like the Field of Dreams. Unfortunately, Sunday brought really thick fog and they had to delay the competition until Monday. I can't imagine what the crowds were like up there at the lighthouse. You can find a bunch of cool videos on You Tube. Search on 2021 Nazare Tow Surfing Challenge. Also, I encourage you to see the HBO Max docuseries The 100 Foot Wave. It is set in Nazare and follows the tow surfing guru, Garret McNamara from 2010 to 2020 as he searched for the elusive wave. I think his record was a 78 foot wave. At least watch the first episode (which explains the canyon) and the last two episodes. The videography in those last couple of episodes is phenomenal.
OK. On Sunday and Monday, we enjoyed visiting the town of Aveiro. It is a sleepy town that is home to a university and ceramics industry. It is known as the Venice of Portugal, but that is stretching a bit. It does have canals with boats and many churches. They did have some very cool Christmas decorations and it was interesting to go to a town that was not all about tourists. Of course, we did take the tourist boat ride and a tuk tuk tour.
So now we are back home in Cascais. We won't be going anywhere until after the new year. So, Merry Christmas, Feliz Natal, Boas Festas and all that.
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