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My Escapes Portugal Another Lovely Trip to Portugal! Costa da Caparica Staying at Costa da Caparica Enjoying [...]

Enjoying the Sun at the Beach

September 11, 2014
[...]

Promoted as Europe's longest sandy beach, Caparica is a rather quiet retreat area with clean sand and an interesting landscape.
I spent two days here, in addition to those approximately 3 hours on my first day in Portugal.

Costa da Caparica's sandy beach has a length of roughly 24 km, but part of this is covered by rocks (used for the sake of breaking the waves) - such places are found in front of the town.

Because time I had Caparica for myself for a longer time, I wanted to spend most of that time at the beach (Praia da Caparica)...

There were less people out and most of them were Portuguese (I assume most of them arrived from Lisbon), there were only a few foreign tourists.


Praia da Caparica

A wide-open quiet part of Praia da Caparica with shallow waters

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What I loved the most was the quietness and the clean sand.

Waves can suddenly turn up, some of which frequently reached more than a meter in size. The Atlantic Ocean can turn wild and waves can slap you when swimming, proceed with caution.


Vast sandy beach

Vast sandy beach a very long walk south from the town...

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Surfing and kite surfing is popular at Costa da Caparica, but the water in June is still freezing cold. August is supposed to be a better month.

Occasionally, one can see fishing boats - many of which have particular designs.
See the vehicles I spotted while wandering in Caparica.


Low tide at Caparica Beach

Low tide...

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Even in late June, strong cold winds can appear suddenly. I felt like the weather was significantly colder and a bit more rough than at Spain's Costa Blanca. The latter enjoys a lot more sunlight and clouds are rarer.

Costa da Caparica hotel prices were average - but I'd note that Benidorm was a lot cheaper (also more impressive, but had terribly crowded beaches).


High tide at Caparica Beach

High tide...

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The sunlight wasn't as strong as I would had expected it to be. Last year's Costa Blanca trip also exposed me to stronger sunlight.
Here, the Sun's rays were somewhat milder, but still burned me down.

I went far away, across wet and dry sand, climbed several dunes... Well over 5 km (that's more than 3.1 miles) and the same length back.


Water desert-like beach

Sand pad with shallow waters. Watery Sahara!

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If walking far would be too much of an effort for you and you have doubts, then don't do it. There's nothing very special about the beach 5 km further.

A few old run-down beach houses, cabins are scenic in the deep sand. Most of them were totally deserted and some surrounded by huge sand dunes.
Several small restaurants, bars are found along the coast, built between sand dunes.


Old buildings

Run-down old houses on the beach. Some are surrounded by immense sand dunes.

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If you're luckier than I was, and the little train that operates along the coast will be operational, then reaching longer distances will be a lot easier.

Too bad, during my trip there I only saw the train pass by once. Later, when I needed it the most - it was undergoing repair work...


Caparica train

The small train broke down...

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Speaking of sand dunes, the Praia da Caparica has many of them and some are huge. Some areas resembled a desert.

The flat sandy pads at the beach cover vast areas in some parts and only shallow water flows above them - to find these places, you'll have to walk south of the town and it can take hours to get there.


Sand dunes

Like a desert...

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The water washes out a number of shells and occasionally other sea creatures like medusas. It's not advised to touch them, because some species are poisonous.

Something tiny and reddish-brown (just about 1-2 mm in size) stung my foot so bad, it hurt more than a needle. It was obviously not a piece of a shell, as the pain was very strong and it last for about 1-2 hours.


Caparica pier

One of several piers near the town. Sometimes high tides rise and hit the pier.

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I'm no marine biologist to know what it was - but I suppose it was some sort of a small insect. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to explain the pain. Salt water entering the wound certainly wasn't the cause, because it even alleviated the pain a bit.

Speaking of what the water washes out... check out the fossil I've found and also a few shells.





Escape Hunter

About the Author:

Escape Hunter, the young solo traveler in his early 30's explores the World driven by curiosity, thirst for adventure, deep passion for beauty, love for freedom and diversity.
With a nuanced, even humorous approach to travel, an obsession for art and design, Escape Hunter prefers to travel slowly, in order to learn and "soak up" the local atmosphere...



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