Manteigas lies at the bottom of a valley that was cut by a glacier. The Zêzere river runs along the floor of a great U-shaped trough, with granite walls on either side rising to the plateau of the Serra da Estrela, and it is one of the clearest examples of glacial scenery in the Iberian Peninsula. The town clings to the lower slopes, a tight cluster of stone houses with slate roofs, steep narrow lanes and the smell of woodsmoke in winter. At under a thousand metres, it is a gateway rather than a summit, and it is the best base from which to explore Portugal's highest mountains.
The road up from Manteigas is a classic. The N338 climbs through chestnut and pine, past waterfalls and boulder fields, and emerges onto the high plateau near the Torre, which at 1,993 metres is the highest point of mainland Portugal. The ascent is full of tight hairpins and long, climbing bends, with views opening out behind you across the valley, and the surface is generally good. At the top, the landscape is bare granite, heather and little lakes, and the air is cold and clear, often with wind and cloud. Snow can fall in any month but July and August, and in winter the road is sometimes closed.
The mountain is also the home of Serra da Estrela cheese, a rich, soft cheese made from the milk of local sheep and curdled with thistle flowers, an old tradition still practised in small dairies around the mountain. It is eaten with bread, often with a spoon, as it is so runny, and it is the best thing to bring home. Wool and weaving were once the main industry of the region, and Covilhã, fourteen kilometres off and the nearest large town, has an old textile district and a museum.
Manteigas has thermal springs, small restaurants serving hearty mountain food, and a few shops, but for fuel and bigger supplies Covilhã is the place. The nearby Poço do Inferno waterfall, which tumbles into a rocky pool, is a short walk from the road, and is worth the detour. Take warm layers, because the weather on the high ground changes quickly.