Thirty thousand years ago, give or take, people in this valley scratched horses, aurochs and ibex into the schist rocks along the River Côa, and their drawings would almost certainly have been drowned if a dam had been built here in the 1990s. Instead, after a fierce campaign, the dam was abandoned and the Côa Valley rock art became one of the most important open-air Palaeolithic art sites in the world, listed by UNESCO in 1998 together with Siega Verde across the border in Spain. Faia, in the side valley near Vale Afonsinho, is one of its core sites, with engravings and some rare painted figures on the rock faces above the river.
Visits to the rock art sites are by guided tour only, arranged through the Côa Museum in Vila Nova de Foz Côa, a striking modern building set into the hillside above the valley. The tours, often in four-wheel-drive vehicles over rough tracks, take you to the rocks at the best times of day for seeing the engravings, when low light brings out the lines.
The landscape is rugged and beautiful: steep valleys, terraced slopes planted with almonds, olives and vines, and the Douro winding through deep gorges to the north. The Douro wine region, also UNESCO-listed, begins here, and its terraced vineyards are one of the great sights of Portugal. In February the almond trees around Foz Côa burst into white and pink blossom, a celebrated spectacle.
The riding is superb. Roads wind through the valleys and over the hills, with tight curves, steep gradients and spectacular views. The N222 along the Douro, between Peso da Régua and Pinhão, is often called one of the best driving roads in the world, and the roads around Foz Côa and Meda are quieter but just as twisty. Surfaces are generally good, but watch for gravel, farm vehicles and the occasional wandering dog.
Vila Nova de Foz Côa, about seventeen kilometres away, has fuel, food and accommodation. Local food includes roast kid, cured meats, cheese and, of course, port and Douro wines. Come in late winter for the almond blossom, or in autumn for the grape harvest. Summers are very hot. Stand before an engraved horse on a rock above the river, its lines faint but sure, and feel the extraordinary span of human time.