PR3 hike from Ermelo to Figas de Ermelo
Summary
If you’re staying around the Duoro, or maybe Porto, I’d really recommend this 5 hour roundtrip hike from the beautiful mountain town of Ermelo to the waterfalls in the heart of the Alvao National Park. Clearly signposted all the way, you’ll get some great views over the nearby mountains, walk through some of the gorgeous forest and reward yourself at the top with a swim in the natural pools and waterfalls. Best of all, you’ll have it largely to yourself as, from what I saw, there are only see a few people along the way
Overall a great hike for a break away from the various wine tours!
highlights
#1 Wandering through the pristine forests with that gorgeous smell of pine in the air
#2 Looking out for miles around and being able to see the surrounding mountain tops in the distance
#3 Tantalising views of the waterfalls on the way to the top of the hike
#4 Reaching the top of the waterfall and being able to jump in for a refreshing swim in the natural pools
#4 Getting to walk by some of the local wildlife
Travel Tips
- Distance – give yourself a good 5 hours for the overall hike and I’d say you’ll need moderate fitness to do it. The total distance is 13km / 8 miles with a steady incline all the way to the top. I tracked it at 20,000 steps, and the equivalent of 160 flights climbed
- Start early – I’d really recommend starting early (say 9am or before) as, from what I saw, you’ll have the hike almost entirely to yourself for the trip up to the top, whereas it started to get a bit busier (maybe 10 people :)) on my way down. It was a fantastic experience being able to swim completely on my own in the pools. Plus, its cooler in the morning
- Direction – I went the anticlockwise route because it saves the section where it is mainly road (the north west of the route) for the way down. The route is clearly signed but, naturally, there may be a couple of times when it’s reassuring to check google maps etc, which followed the route correctly
- The one hour option – if pressed for time or without the right level of fitness, there is also the option to drive up to much closer to the falls, where you can walk there and back within an hour or so
- For more detailed tips on a stay in the Duoro, see this entry for Wine tasting around Pinhao in the Duoro Valley. And for further tips on Portugal’s other top experiences, and for a 2 week itinerary, see the travel entry for 2 weeks for the best of Portugal
Experiences nearby
The below map shows experiences nearby with a colour that reflect the Overall Score of those experiences
Other Short Beautiful Hikes around the World
Score Detail
Background - how many times have you asked someone what a travel experience was like and the response was "amazing" or "awesome"? That response is nice to know, but it makes it hard to differentiate that experience compared to others. That is exactly what these scores are trying to do - differentiate the experience by giving a score out of 10 based on 6 categories and then giving an overall experience score
This overall experience score is calculated by: take the highest of the "Culture" or "Nature" score (1-10) + "Fun factor" (1-10) + "Avoiding the crowds" (1-10) + highest of the "Unique" or "World Famous score" (1-10). Then convert into a score out of 100
Extra detail - the logic being that I find all of the 6 individual scores important, but I don't want to mark an experience down just because it doesn't cover both "Culture" and "Nature", or because it isn't both "World Famous" and "Unique". Take the examples of Safari in The Serengeti and walking through Rome - they both appeal at opposite ends of the nature / culture spectrum, and you can have a fantastic time without needing to appeal to both sides. So, their overall scores aren't penalized for their lack of one or the other, and I've done the same for "World Famous" vs "Unique". But . . . I do think that the "Fun factor" of an experience is important, irrelevant of other factors, and so is "Avoiding the Crowds" (or where there are crowds that add to the experience). So, both of these scores are standalone