Bragança is far from everywhere, and its people will tell you that is how they like it. The city sits in the northeast corner of Portugal, in the region called Trás-os-Montes, Beyond the Mountains, with Spain only a few kilometres away. The old walled citadel on its hill is the star: a medieval castle with a tall keep and, inside the walls, the Domus Municipalis, a five-sided Romanesque building that has no real parallel elsewhere in the country. Its original purpose is still debated, though it seems to have been a council chamber and cistern.
The name carries a lot of history. The Dukes of Bragança became the ruling dynasty of Portugal when the country broke free of Spain in 1640, and they reigned until the monarchy ended in 1910. For a small city of about thirty-five thousand people, that gives it unusual prestige. The local sausage, the alheira, tells another story: it is said to have been invented by Jewish converts who made smoked sausages without pork to avoid suspicion, and it is eaten here with fried egg and potatoes.
North of Bragança lies the Montesinho Natural Park, a high country of chestnut woods, heather moors, granite villages and sparse population. Wolves and Iberian wildlife survive here. The roads through the park are quiet, narrow and often rough, with open views, and in winter they can be very cold, with frost and snow possible at height. Summer brings dry heat during the day but cool nights. Spring has green hills and wildflowers, and autumn gives the chestnut forests their gold. Do not expect much traffic, and do expect long gaps between villages.
As the regional capital, Bragança has fuel stations, supermarkets and a good range of places to eat, so it is a sensible place to prepare before riding into the park. Samil, just outside town, is a small neighbour, and Vinhais lies to the west. Climb up to the citadel in the evening, when the stone glows and the city lights come on below, and you will see why people come back.