Riding a motorbike with protective gear in the Alentejo summer heat, with temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius, takes some stamina! The best way to overcome this challenge was to combine motorcycling with a cooling dip in the Atlantic and some of the scenic river beaches inland.

The bike and beach summer tour of the Alentejo started with four ASB members meeting in Cercal and travelling via Santiago do Cacém to the famous Comporta beach to cool off from the afternoon heat. Continuing north, we took the ferry across the mouth of the River Sado to Setúbal. The next day, we paid an early morning visit to the rich Mercado do Livramento, which sells every vegetable, fruit, fish and seafood imaginable. Still in the cool, misty morning, we drove through the winding roads of the beautiful Arrábida National Park, where we had magnificent views of Lisbon to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the south.

After a slow, relaxing drive through montado forests, we took time to visit the Fluviário de Mora aquarium and take a relaxing dip in the Sorraia River. We stayed overnight in the pretty town of Arraiolos, famous for its handmade woollen carpets, and enjoyed local delicacies at the excellent O Alpendre restaurant.

The beautiful Praia fluvial at the Sorraia river. Photo by Walter Kollert

The next morning we visited the Italian Renaissance fortress of Evoramonte, a little reminiscent of Frederick II's Castel del Monte in Apulia. It is a unique military building in Portugal, built in the 16th century, with a square ground plan, with mighty towers at the four corners, decorated with Manueline-style ornamental elements modelled on ropes.

After this cultural excursion, we drove along some beautiful country roads through olive groves to Lake Alqueva, where we had another swim at the clean river beach of Azenhas d'El Rei, on the border with Spain. The weather got even hotter as we left the lake for the romantic village of Monsaraz, where there were fewer visitors than expected. From Monsaraz we went on to see the impressive concrete dam that impounds the Guadiana River, creating the largest artificial lake in Europe.

We spent the last night in Moura before heading to the Praia fluvial Minas de São Domingos the next day, where we had another swim in the crystal clear waters and completed our tour of around 900km through this beautiful region of Portugal.

Main image - The four bike and beach lovers in Portinho da Arrábida: Walter, Thomas, Carina, Peter (from left to right). Photo by Walter Kollert