Seawater Pasta and Hypnosis on the Fisherman’s Trail
The idea was there for a long time — it first came into mind when I saw photos of my friend Pauls (you can check them here) from the time he did this trail in January, 2017. At the time I was warming up my feet in wool socks during the Lithuanian winter and dreaming about nights on the Atlantic coast by the bonfire. Later when I was already working in a hostel in Lisbon I accidentally met a friend of Pauls who went on the trail inspired by the same pictures I saw — it took me only half a year to walk it myself.
My hiker friend Caro (with whom we went almost everywhere except of a hike) did some research using the amazing website for the Rota Vicentina trail and we were almost ready to set off on our adventure.
Rota Vincentina stands for a network of walking trails in southwestern Portugal: the Historical Way (rural inland trails through the main towns and villages), the Fishermen’s Trail (these are along the coastline, used by locals to get to the beaches and fishing spots), and several circular routes. Since we both didn’t have too much time we decided to do 20 km of the Fisherman’s Trail from Porto Covo to Vila Nova de Milfontes. It is recommended to do the trail from September till June because of the heat in summer, but we decided to give it a go in July after checking the forecast (one weekend was supposed to be chillier, 20–23 °C only).
After taking a bus to Porto Covo, a small town in Alentejo about 170 km south of Lisbon, we started our walk. It was easy to find the trail as it was very well marked though sometimes along the way it got lost in the mists and fogs and fallen clouds. We left sunny Lisbon with sunglasses and hats, but only the strenuous walking on sand kept us warm in the chilly Saturday afternoon. Not exactly what one would expect going to the South of Portugal.
After walking kilometers on sand, even a tiny part of trail on a firmer ground or even a wooden trail (rare oh so rare) felt like such a relief! The day was pretty cold, there was no sun, and we were sweating like we meant it. I guess we were lucky it wasn’t blazing sun.
Before going on the trip me and Caro were wondering about what should we cook for dinner. While sitting at a table in her tiny Príncipe Real azulejos flat Caro had her genius idea — what if we were to use seawater for pasta, so we don’t need extra salt? After some googling it was clear that such specialty was absolutely possible, but since ocean water is super salty, you can only use it in proportion to normal water like 1:3. But… We found a campsite place on top of a cliff and there was no access to the water… So normal water and (non-existent) sunset view had to be enough. And it definitely was.
And the super original bonfire. The night was cloudy so no stars or the moon. Being far away from the towns meant no city lights, so the darkness was deep. And there were sounds. Weird sounds. Like the water splashing against the rocks that seemed like a car door closing… A single tealight candle was giving us some light and inspired by that a hypnosis session began.
OK, not like that. It was more like a meditation in complete silence where you could only hear the sea somewhere in the background and Caro’s voice. It seems it is quite a common non-conventional medical practice and Caro has learned it from her father who is a doctor. Couldn’t say that I had a sudden enlightenment of what I wanted to do with my life but some things definitely seemed clearer. Or maybe it was just the atmosphere —I could always count on spending time and sleeping outside in the “wilderness” to bring me some clarity. To be honest I think Caro was feeling this herself, too —
And then in the morning there came the best invention of humanity —a moka pot. Used while camping. Never have I ever had better coffee in all my life. That I can say for sure. Thank you Caro’s friends who gifted her with this and thank you “Decathlon” in Ponta Delgada where I found my amazing cooker that fulfilled its true purpose again. Ugh the taste of real coffee on a morning Atlantic cliff..
Now being in Lithuania, sitting with a bad case of cold, wrapped up in a sweater and wool socks (again, them!), I reminiscence about a hiking trip I’ve done three months ago. Has it been that long?! It feels strange talking to friends, hearing them tell of the unbearable heat and sunny beaches while last month I’ve been trying to reacquaint myself with the lower degrees of Celsius and fall in love with rainy days again. Not lovely occasional rainy days, but non-stop, pouring, loud and cold rainy autumn days.
Well to be honest it was so much better than it sounds (another blog entry on the way perhaps?). Ready to embrace the South again.
