Alternate Routes Out Of Lisbon ?

[jimb01930]

Does anyone know about this route? http://www.agencia.ecclesia.pt/cgi-bin/noticia.pl?id=95363 Thanks to Mike for bringing it to my attention! It appears to be an alternate route for Fatima hikers from Lisbon. I have heard it has more accommodations along the way. That may make for shorter days than the Brierley guide recommended route. Is there a similar route to Fatima from the north that one may take to rejoin caminho? If not bus / train recommendations?

Looks like a heat wave which may last two weeks will hit Lisbon the same day we do, August 22. I am trying to come up with alternatives to 20 mile days in 100 f heat.

 

[peregrina2000]

I don't know this route, Jim, but based on the article it's not along the ocean for a lot of the way. Estoril to the big beach at Guincho is a few kms, from there it goes inward to Sintra, then up to Mafra, Obidos and Alcobaca. Those places are all tourist destinations so there will be accommodation (not sure about Mafra, but the rest for sure).

What I would wonder about is whether its all on roads, though. If so, I don't think there's any advantage over the Caminho. If you do decide to stick to caminho through Alverca and Alhandra, Azambuja, etc, you can easily make use of the train line to jump up or back. That could help you if you're in a pinch with the heat. The commuter line runs as far as Azambuja. There is no shade at all between Lisbon and Azambuja, so it will be a killer if the temps are as high as predicted. I hope you work this out. Bom caminho, Laurie

 

[peregrina2000]

With a little googling, I found some more information on this route:

http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=aoqcngtbjihdbxvp (I think this is the gps version) -- something I read recommended bringing the "track" (gps, I assume) because the route isn't marked in a couple of places near the monuments in Mafra and Alcobaca.

It looks like a very nice route, and I'm pretty sure that from Fatima you can continue north to rejoin the caminho south of Coimbra -- actually Mike may have done that if I remember correctly. Laurie

 

[Diogo92]

The only problems with that route are the marks and the turn around that you will make. Instead of going directly north, you are going west, then north. If you take a GPS has Laurie said, it would be great.

Other problem that you may face it's the distances. From what I've seen from the route, you will stand isolated in small villages that don't have many means of transportation. For example, you don't have the train line to jump up until a certain place, and usually the bus connections are very complicated.

It's a great trail, but if you don't want to walk long distances in tarmac, I would not advise you to do it.

Best Regards
Diogo

 

[mikevasey]

The route does go west on the GPS from Cacais but I think that walkers may just head north through the national park to Sintra, there was an already established route as possibly part of the E9 linking the locations.

The length of the route i keep seeing (without any evidence to back it) is 140km from Estoril to Fatima that is similar for Lisbon to Tomar which is about 150 km and they roughly are on the same latitude. The problem for Fatima is afterwards its not great place to reconnect with the Central Caminho. The waymarked route i took followed the road, next time i will just plan my own route( possibly going through Leiria and Pombal) and maybe reconnecting at Condeixa Nova or Cernache.

For the places it says it is not waymarked that happens elsewhere, you have an historic center and the local authority are not keen on the idea of graffiti being sprayed on walls, Oviedo will not allow the yellow arrows in its centre.

Good luck and I hope the weather breaks for you.

Mike

 

[jimb01930]

Thanks! Looks like the weather forecast is moderating somewhat and the high temperatures of each day returning towards averages as the week goes on. We should arrive Lisbon on Friday and may spend a few days kicking around the city letting the worse of the heat pass. From the charts I am seeing it appears that the high temperatures of each day are not reached until late afternoon / early evening so we may be able to get some distance in if we get going early enough each day.

At this point I am leaning towards following the Brierley guide with the option of hopping a train if needed. I do not see the value of risking being tired, overheated, and isolated late in the day in unknown area.

 

[peregrina2000]

I think that taking the Caminho from Lisbon is a very sensible idea, exactly because of the fact that you'll have the commuter trains close by if you need them.

I don't know if anyone has mentioned the CSJ online guides recently, but there are two, one for Lisbon-Porto and one for Porto-Santiago. I did the first one, and realize that it's about time for an update, so if anyone out there walks from Lisbon and wants to help me with suggestions and additions, that would be great.

http://www.csj.org.uk/guides-online.htm

That's great news about the temps falling a bit. If you do stay in Lisbon for a few days, I put together a walking tour for some friends a while back, and I think it gives you a good introduction to the city. And lets you do what you want to do -- walk! http://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/my-walking-tour-of-lisbon.7257/

Bom caminho, Laurie