Why this ride
A 278 km one-way ride from near Samora Correia, about 5 h 01 of riding. It goes by way of Silveira, Colares, Sesimbra and Charneca de Caparica. Arrábida and Setúbal is the high point. Much of it runs through woodland.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep · short arc
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 278 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 01
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Atlantic Coast N247
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For 68 km this is Atlantic Coast N247, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 52 km
- Named road
- Atlantic Coast N247
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Fuel stop near Samora Correia
Planning note
Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep is where the day begins. Next is Lisbon / Portugal return.
2. Near Silveira, on the way back
In 1810, the Duke of Wellington, defending Portugal against Napoleon's army, built a series of forts and earthworks across the peninsula north of Lisbon, from the Atlantic to the Tagus. The Lines of Torres Vedras were so strong that the French, arriving in front of them, simply stopped, and after months of hunger they retreated. Forts and redoubts survive on the hilltops around Torres Vedras, and some have been restored.
Read the complete Near Silveira, on the way back write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Lisbon / Portugal return comes up about 62 km into the recorded legs. Next is Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep food stop.
3. Colares
In Colares, the vines grow in sand. The vineyards, on the dunes near the Atlantic, are dug deep into the sand to reach the clay beneath, and the vines, low and sprawling, are protected from the wind by fences of cane. Because phylloxera, the insect that destroyed Europe's vineyards in the nineteenth century, cannot survive in sand, the Ramisco vines of Colares were never grafted, and some are very old. The wine is rare, tannic and long-lived, a curiosity of Portuguese wine.
Read the complete Colares write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
A break here. Next is Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep photo pull-off.
4. Sesimbra
Sesimbra is a fishing town that has become a beach resort without quite forgetting what it was. In the morning the boats come in and the catch is sold at the harbour, and by lunchtime the grill smoke is already rising from the waterfront restaurants. The black scabbardfish, the espada, and fresh sardines in season are the local specialties, along with swordfish. Above the town stand the walls of a Moorish castle, with a view down over rooftops to the bay, and a smaller sea fort guards the waterfront.
Read the complete Sesimbra write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep photo pull-off, about halfway. Next is Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep checkpoint 8.
5. Near Charneca de Caparica
Start and finish here and you are on the south bank of the Tagus, in the pine-scented suburbs of Almada between Charneca de Caparica, Corroios and Sobreda. It is a residential area of houses, schools and supermarkets, without much to look at in itself, but its position is very good: close to Lisbon across the river, and close to the open roads that lead south to the Arrábida hills and the city of Setúbal.
Read the complete Near Charneca de Caparica write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Finish at Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep checkpoint 8. That is the ride. Next is Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep high point.
6. Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep high point
Palmela's castle crowns a hill above the Setúbal plain, and from this high point you see everything: the Sado estuary to the south, the Tagus and Lisbon to the north, the Arrábida range filling the horizon, and on a clear day a slice of the Atlantic. The Moors held the castle until it fell to the first king of Portugal in the twelfth century, and it was later the headquarters of the Order of Santiago, a military order whose knights helped defend the frontier. The fortress, now partly a hotel, has a bastion walk that is worth the climb.
Read the complete Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep high point write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep high point is the summit of this stretch. Next is Scenic stretch near Pinhal Novo.
7. Scenic stretch near Pinhal Novo
Planning note
Scenic stretch near Pinhal Novo closes the day.
Leg by leg
Fuel stop near Samora Correia to Near Silveira, on the way back
Fuel stop near Samora Correia → Near Silveira, on the way back is 62 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep high point to Scenic stretch near Pinhal Novo
Arrábida and Setúbal Sweep high point → Scenic stretch near Pinhal Novo is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.