Cycle Touring in Portugal: 5 Things I Learned (4K)

[@pereirarfc]

Camping in Portugal is legal nowadays, but you can only stay for max 24h at the same place. Is forbidden to camp in any natural reserve and in private properties (unless the owner allows it), we must have to take in account that 93% of the Portuguese forest is private.

[@colmclaurin9452]

A ripper of a fact filled video. Thanks mate there should more like this one, short and sweet to the point and directed to the end user to enjoy bike touring. 👍👍💯

[@IslandRides]

Thanks man, appreciate it!

[@StarEssences]

Portugal; part of my heritage from my Mother as her Father lived in LISBON. Maybe if I come into a lot of money I'll consider taking a trip to Portugal to experience more of their culture there. Thanks for sharing :)

[@IslandRides]

Hey Tracey, hope you make it over some day!

[@pyrkol]

Thank you for the video, i live in Portugal and learned a few things. As a light alternative to the "caminho de santiago", you have the "caminho de fátima" its only around 100 km from lisbon to Fátima and is shared with the caminho de Santiago. Ps. Part of the Caminho trails are gravel.

[@IslandRides]

Thanks Paulo. I hadn't heard of the Caminhos de Fátima. They look great.

[@vincenthesselink]

Thanks for the usefull info. I'm planning to cycle from the Netherlands to Faro where my brother lives.

[@IslandRides]

Wow, sounds like a great trip!

[@vincenthesselink]

@@IslandRides certainly a long trip! Just heard that my cycling buddy is not joining me next year. Maybe I'll start in the south of France. From there the Camino to Santiago and then to Almancil. If you have idea's or links I'd be thankfull.🙏

[@IslandRides]

@@vincenthesselink The landscapes near Torre are amazing, so that's a good option if you enjoy a climb, and the parts of the N2 that I saw were great too. I'm toying with the idea of riding the Camino (one of the Spanish routes) at some point in the next few months, so will hopefully get to learn more about that soon!

[@vincenthesselink]

@@IslandRides thx a lot, if you have more idea's or links I'm interested. Next week I plan to get my website online with photography projects en blogs. I might write aboute preparing for Portugal!

[@IslandRides]

@@vincenthesselink Sounds great! If you can share the link, I'll check it out!

[@gordoncraig8238]

Thanks for the useful info. I've been trying to get there recently and hope it will be the next I cycle in.

[@martinmichl778]

thank you, very useful information - enjoy :D

[@IslandRides]

Thanks Martin!

[@wingovertd]

Parabéns! :) You are always welcome here. in Portugal. If you need help next time, please send a message. Good content e really motivating video.

[@IslandRides]

Thanks man!

[@Buzzalong.cycling]

Nice video :) well done

[@IslandRides]

Thanks!

[@jonmacdiarmid3671]

I'd heard that Portugal has a lot of crazy drivers especially near the coastal areas I've never been but I've always fancied going for a ride. I've been planning a trip next year from N of Scotland to Cairnryan then down to Rosslare across to Bilbao then along the Asturias coast and the Picos to Santiago via Oviedo. The Camino route to Santiago De Compostela looks pretty bleak and flat from Burgos with no wild camping areas. I like the look of the N2. I'll maybe plan that one for another trip. Nice video thx.

[@IslandRides]

Hi Jon, I didn’t have any problems with crazy drivers luckily. Sounds like an amazing trip. Yeah, I reckon staying near the Camino del Norte might be more enjoyable than the French Way from a cycling perspective.

[@gordoncraig8238]

I saw that about the Algarve coast road. He said to ride on the footpath although it is not allowed there. Other roads seem fine.

[@the1nigel]

Thanks for the great video, full of inspiration. I am planning a ride N-S from Santiago de Compostela to Faro in October/November 2024. Will get onto EV1 in Portugal. Any tips welcome? Thanks.

[@IslandRides]

Sounds great man! I’m planning to do a ride finishing in Santiago around the same time! I mainly went east to west, so only did a bit of the EV1 route, but Cabo da Roca and Sintra are worth a look if you’ve got time for small detours.

[@the1nigel]

Thanks. Watch out for the prevailing Northerly wind - that's why I am choosing to go n to south.🙂@@IslandRides

[@StephenStrum]

really nice video with good information. I am 81 years of age and used to be a decent cyclist. Planning to rent eBike and see the Douro valley. Do you think I will get enough assist on the bike especially going up hills riding in the Douro? Or would I be wiser to cycle Andalucia where the grades are not as steep?

[@IslandRides]

Hi Stephen, sounds great! I think it would be possible to find a route in either that doesn’t require too much climbing. Looks like the N108 out of Porto follows the river for a while and so isn’t too steep (the first 45 km have 450 metres of climbing). I suppose the time of year could be a deciding factor as Andalucía is famously hot in summer!

[@josepedrorocha1596]

As a Portuguese citizen, I have to say: CONGRATULATIONS! I will ride all the N 2 one day :) Can I ask what bike you rode?

[@IslandRides]

Thanks José! I'd love to ride the full length of the N2 one day too! I was riding a Kona Sutra. It was my first long ride on it and was great overall, but I got through a lot of rear spokes, so will have to distribute weight better next time!

[@ruirodrigues6535]

Ah! A Kona...(could not resist)

[@vilavg3657]

I’m not a cycling purist but I want to embark on my first set of touring rides this summer. I’m thinking of doing 60~70 km a day for a week. Is an e-bike a good idea?

[@IslandRides]

I've never used an e-bike, but I don't see why you couldn't use one for a tour. 60-70 km per day is usually quite a comfortable distance on a normal bike assuming the terrain and elevation are reasonable.

[@SeeYouUpTheRoad]

Thank You I learned about the N2 from you. I live in the USA. I’ve been an ultra-cyclist for nearly 20 years and never heard of the N2 end to end. At about 460 miles and 30,000 feet of climbing I’d love to do the route in one go. It’s in the ballpark of the 500 milers I do with 35,000 feet (about 32-36 hours non-stop) Are there enough stores and fountains along the way to self-support in a race setup road bike? I’m not a cycle tourist. I’m considering moving to Portugal in the next 5 years. Thank You for the video!

[@IslandRides]

Hey George, that would be amazing! I didn't ride the whole length, but the section I saw had a lot of shops and fountains. This video would probably be worth checking out: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hKqrnGWDgt2oq9U&ab_channel=JackUltraCyclist

[@SeeYouUpTheRoad]

@Andy Smallwood man this sounds like something I need to do!!

[@briankisida]

Thanks for the video What kind of tent is that you have? I used to have one similar many years ago, I like all the screen.

[@IslandRides]

Not sure of the exact type, but it's made by Bfull. I've been using it for years and it's held up well!

[@Dahni555]

Great video! Just wondered what the dog situation is like? Did you have any bad experiences? Thanks

[@IslandRides]

Thanks! I was actually bitten on the foot by a fox one night while camping in Spain on my way to Portugal, which made me quite paranoid about dogs (and wolves) for the rest of the trip, especially since I could often hear barking when camping and I’d heard stories about wild dogs. However, I only saw a couple of wild dogs during the 3-week trip and I don’t think I saw any in Portugal.

[@Dahni555]

@@IslandRides Wow what are the chances of that! Oh thats good news that it's not dog crazy there. My pet hate when cycle touring cheers!

[@alexmorgan3435]

1. You didn’t mention the psychopathic Portuguese drivers. 2. Did you actually ride the EV1? In Portugal it is very rough unrideable in places or thick sand or punishing cobbled roads. There are lots of better places to ride a bike.

[@IslandRides]

I didn’t have any problems with drivers luckily and only rode a very small section of the EV1.

[@user-hq2lx2gf4m]

May you need same ice cream in fact i give you 🎉🎉 or abaut that

[@IslandRides]

Haha, thanks!