Hiking the Schist villages trail in Lousã

Having abandoned my plans to do part of the Camino Portuguese, I was adamant that I was going to do some solo hiking on this trip. Torn between a longing for a long, long walk and a need for rest and comfort after a hectic and stressful few months, and limited by the amount of time at my disposal, I struggled to decide where to go. I found inspiration in a travel blog Nomad is Beautiful, specifically their post: Outdoors in Portugal: Some of the Best Hiking Paths. I picked Lousã in Central Portugal for its proximity to where I had originally planed to walk and the description in the blog. I knew nothing else about it.

Starting the hike this morning, I felt more adventurous than usual before a hike. I had done only some hurried, distracted research before embarking on this trip. I booked myself into the Palacio da Lousã as recommended in the blog, and figured that I would be able to work out what I was doing when I got here. Some of the research I did got mixed up in my head and I had the impression that the hotel would be able to sort me out with maps, a packed lunch and walking sticks. This was not the case. The hotel did agree to make me a packed lunch when I asked, and were prepared to provide me with a sandwich, fruit, water and juice. I did not take them up on it in the end, having made myself a ham & cheese bun to take away at breakfast. To my queries about maps, they did give me one. But as far as maps go, I expect a different level of detail in my hiking maps than what I go. They directed me to the tourist information aka Ecomuseu das Tradições do Xisto where I was told, "they would have hiking maps".

At the Ecomuseu,  I was later given the same map I got from the hotel. Not much help on that front. They did show me how to navigate the Lousã municipality's website (in Portuguese) to find maps of the hiking trails. Not much help if there is no network signal out in the forest on the mountain. They suggested that I download the maps. I took a screen shot instead, with a silent prayer that my phone battery would last until I made it back to civilisation.

If I understood correctly, I should start on one trail until Castelo da Lousã (Lousã castle), then continue on another trail or many different trails depending on which one I wanted or how far I wanted to walk, loop back to the Castelo, and return on the same trail as I started. There are many choices, so I can take whichever one I wanted. Oh, and all the trails are marked with the same two colours. Red and yellow, all the trails were red and yellow. Hmm... They printed out a guide on the markings which are used on the trail and wrote out in English what they meant. With final instructions to turn left once out of the building, down the street and left again; then to just go on, they asked where I was from for their statistics, and waved me off.

I set off with a feeling that I was going to end up on some random trail I did not meant to be on, or criss-cross from trail to trail to trail in circles and never find my way back. I was not unduly worried though, I'd been on enough hikes to be fairly confident that things will probably be a lot clearer when I got out there. If I really was unsure about where I was going, I could always backtrack and head back. The uncertainty though, fueled the sense of adventure and I felt quite the intrepid explorer as I set off.

The first sign - onwards towards Castelo!

All worries were unfounded! There was maybe about 800m between the Ecomuseu and the edge of town where there were no signs or markings that could remotely be interpreted as hiking related anywhere to be seen. But, I was clearly heading in the direction of the forest anyway, so I followed the specific instructions to "just go on" was eventually rewarded with the first of many signs and markings.

From Trial 1 to the schist villages trails. 

Where the first trail (PR1) moved on to the schist villages trails (PR 2, PR3, and PR4), these were clearly marked. Similar signs were placed every time the trails crossed, so there really was very little danger of confusion.  

Turn or keep right at next fork.

Where there was a fork in the path, or a turn-off from the path, these were also clearly marked. There was very little chance of making a mistake. If there was a turn to be made or a choice betwee two or more paths, the wrong ones were marked with an x a few metres in. So if anyone paying half a bit of attention, could have no problems. The markings were sensibly placed. Where there was no reason to be uncertain, they were spaced farther apart. Where there were many turns in the path or where the terrain was rocky so the path was less clear, they were placed more closely together. The one time I had to backtrack to check a marking was when I saw the markings from the wrong angle and mistakenly turned right instead of left. 

X - wrong way

Nomadisbeautiful writes that the Lousã mountain path is worth taking mainly for the schist villages. I agree, but not entirely. The schist villages were indeed remarkable to see. Especially coming out of the forest and valleys and whatnot. The hike itself though, was for me completely worth the effort. I lugged my camera along with me (proper SLR plus different lenses, so yes, lugged) and kept it in the bag whenever I was not using it, for fear of damaging it if I stumbled on the treacherous ground. There were times, I wondered if it was worth my while putting it back in the bag. Every other time I turned a corner, I encountered something I wanted to capture.

I ended up taking the trail (as intended, so no mistakes or criss-crossing) from the Castelo (PR1) through Talasnal and Casa Novo (PR2) only. Talasnal has been done up a lot more than Casa Novo, but a lot of work seemed to be ongoing at Casa Novo, so things are perhaps a-changing. I found a nice little café in Talasnal where I stopped to use the toilet, had a pot of tea, what I assume was chestnut tart ('pastel de castanha') and a chat with a cat. It spent a lot of time under my feet, so I didn't get a picture. I didn't touch it, but we talked. I told him about my cat. He didn't understand what my cat had to do with me not sharing my chestnut tart.

Following the yellow & red markings of the trail

Santuário de Nossa Senhora da Piedade, just before Castelo da Lousã

Talasnal

This way to the café

Pleasantly surprised to find a terrace on the other side

Talasnal, from a distance

Over the wall and hills and beyond

In the forest

Casa Novo

This was definitely not a walk in the park. The path lead up hills, into valleys and up again. I had to stop to catch my breath many times on the uphill, and creep down slowly on the downhill. Once or twice, I was scrambling on all fours. I would have slid down on my bum at some point, had the path not been too rocky and stony for any sliding. On account of my dodgy knees, the downhill bits worried me more than anything. Channelling a bit of Bear Grylls, I found a suitable branch that I broke off a fallen tree, broke off the twigs, smoothened the splintered bits with a rock, and used it as a walking stick. That definitely made a big difference. 

Forget the stairmaster, just get up this mountain

"Then sings my soul, my saviour God to thee
How great thou art, how great thou art..."

Just out of the edge of town, about one kilometer into the trail, elation set in. There was something about being out in a mountain forest, on my own, that fed my soul with a sense of wonder and joy, and I found myself singing those words, "Then sings my soul, my saviour God to thee..." It dawned on me that maybe this is why pilgrimage often takes the form of a journey on foot. Or perhaps it is walking that is so closely related to the search for God or a communion with God or something spiritual. It made me want to throw my arms up to the sky and celebrate, worship... everything. The sun, the sky, the forest. Nature, Life! Creation at its best and the master of all creation. 

I felt so thankful that I found myself where I was. And it not being the first time I had a thought like that, I also felt thankful that I often find myself in places where I am thankful to be. To have the chance to travel and experience the world in all its splendour, what a blessing that is indeed. 

It also dawned on me that maybe this is also why some pilgrimages should be undertaken alone. If not, we could easily allow ourselves to be distracted and to hide in company of people and conversation.

Anyway, my stats at the end of the hike:

Trails hiked:

1. Aldeias do Xisto: PR1 – Rota dos Moinhos 

2. Aldeias do Xisto: PR2 – Rota das Aldeias do Xisto da Lousã

Distance: ca 11.5 km. 

Time: 4 hours and 15 minutes

Weight of my backpack: ca 7 kgs.

Encounters: 

1 lizard - muddy yellowish green with lots of tiny blacks spots, unhelpfully did not stay to pose

1 snake - slithered lightning fast away under a rock when I sat down for a break and but stuck its head back out to check me out

That is a normal sized leaf - it was only tiny!

1 dog - beautiful German shepherd which scared the living daylights out of me as I loitered next to jump buildings trying to decide if it was worth taking a photo when it came barking up against the fence

1 cat - who wanted my chestnut tart, or maybe just any food

2 jet planes - super fast and super loud

Lots of butterflies

Less than 20 people once I left town

And contrary to the weather forecast, no rain!