The highest point of mainland Portugal is a disappointment for about thirty seconds and then a joy. Torre is a bare, rounded granite summit in the Serra da Estrela at 1,993 metres, and it is seven metres short of two thousand. Some years ago a stone tower was built on top to make up the difference, so the monument can claim the round number even if the mountain cannot. Around it the plateau is a landscape of boulders, thin grass, small lakes and wind, and in clear weather the view is vast, running across the plains of the Beira to the Spanish border.
This high country was shaped by glaciers in the last ice age, which scoured the broad valley of the Zêzere River and left behind rounded rocks and glacial lakes. The mountains are cold and often cloudy, with snow from late autumn to spring, and it is the only place in Portugal where people ski in any numbers. In summer sheep graze the slopes, and shepherds still make Serra da Estrela cheese, a soft, creamy sheep's milk cheese that you can buy in the shops of Covilhã and Manteigas. The breed of mountain dog named for the range, big and thick-coated, was bred to guard these flocks.
The road up from Covilhã is a proper mountain climb, with long bends, big views and a high, open feel as you leave the trees. The tarmac is generally good, but weather rules everything: fog can reduce visibility to a few metres, wind makes the exposed plateau cold even in summer, and in winter the road may be closed by snow or ice. Choose a clear day, go early, and bring warm layers and waterproofs. Mid-summer weekends can bring heavy traffic, so weekdays are quieter.
There are small shops and snack stalls near the summit selling cheese, sausages, honey and warm clothes, which are useful when the wind bites. The nearest larger town is Covilhã, about ten kilometres away, where you will find petrol stations, restaurants and everything else, and Manteigas, a smaller town in the glacial valley, makes a pleasant lunch stop with a spa tradition. Fill the tank before you climb, because nothing at the top will help you.
When the mist lifts and the plateau opens, it feels like another country altogether, closer to the Scottish hills than to the Mediterranean south.