Serra da Estrela Things to Do

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1993 meters, that is the height of the highest point in the Serra da Estrela mountain range. So in comes the "Torre" or tower. This highest point is less than 2,000 meters high, and as you may (or not) understand, that might be a small thing, those 7 meters, but apparently, from the story that I read, the then King of Portugal declared that there be built a tower (yes the Torre) on top of this 1993 meter spot to a height of 7 meters...
Yes that now makes it a more impressive high spot of 2,000 meters.
Now thats pretty neat being a king isn't it.
That last photo is me with my trusty VT flag.
You will also find there at the highest point a touristy type shop where they sell local crafts and especially the Serra da Estrela Cheese.

You have the old lady's head, couldn't fail the old man's one. The caprices of nature are funny, but the resemblance is real. And those spread rocks are a good pretext to wander around in the mountain, a national natural park.

Easier to see than the old lady, you don't need to leave the road to do it.

Here and there some strange rock formations capture the visitor's attention, becoming clearly identified attractions.

The old woman's head is the most known of them, a little bit out of the road but easy to see if you follow the signs.

Until yesterday, this artificial lagoon was just a detail, in the way up or down the mountain in search of snow. For the first time I saw it with snow, and got a different image of it - it is, really, part of the mountain and a nice stop for a brief moments freezing and laughing in the snow.

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This dramatic rocky valley is the most beautiful access to the top of the mountain, but...

My first time climbing it was with a Renault 4 - a weak vehicle, that, as we were going up was loosing power. I was distracted from the landscape and seriously worried about the chance or not being able to reach the summit, when I saw my friend J. Fernando, with a powerful car, stopped and stepping the tires.
The way is steeper than it looks and the rarefied air does the rest - as all the people used to travel in high mountains know well - we didn't...yet.

I don't know where did the name come from, but this is only a small beautiful waterfall, in a wet and cool place in the mountain, near Manteigas - a brake in the snow games, a chance for a picnic, or just a quick look.

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The highest point of the mountain reaches 1991 metres. To round it to the 2000 meters, one 9 meters tower was built in the top, becoming the reference to everyone who visits it. That's also the area where the snow lasts longer.

As everybody goes there, and the road has a dead end, in winter holidays it may become too jammed, and without parking. To prevent that, the many stalls that along the years where installed to sell the local products were forbidden and moved away.

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No! I will not translate the word "sku".

It doesn't exist, but all the Portuguese use it. And, in a country where snow is such a rarity that ski is a very restrict sport, what can a common citizen do, in those happy days where snow and sun meet in Estrela?

Sku, of course, and laugh...