Barão São João

Walk nº 5: Barão São João (=BSJ) 11h30 - 14h00 (7 km/ 5 miles)

See our Events Page on Facebook on which days we´ll walk here.

Description

This hilly walk starts with a climb to the Mata Nacional (Algarve´s largest forest). After enjoying the views from the plains we will descend gently back to the village. Most of the walk is shaded, so it also will be a pleasant walk on warmer days.

Meeting point

Start and finish of this walk is at the church in the centre of this charming and picturesque village.
In case you would come by car from the East-Algarve, follow the motorway A22 to the very end of it. Here at the roundabout, take the first exit to Bensafrim and drive through this village. After the village the road bends to the left towards Lagos; here you turn right to “Barão S. João”. Always follow this road (N535) to BSJ.
At the entrance of Barão São João, the church is on your left. There is a coffee shop 30 meters further on your right. See this map.

Terrain

We´ll take it easy on the first part of this forest walk as the first full kilometre is uphill. This part is shaded by pine trees and is following a local resident asphalt road. Once we get on the top, we are rewarded with open views to both the Serra de Monchique and to the south and to the west coast. The descend back to the village is winding gently through the “Mata Nacional” on single and double tracks and mostly shaded in by the forest.
This is an ideal walk for hot summer days, just bring enough water and a snack.
Required Fitness Level is 2/3, Terrain Level is C, see it explained here.

€5 pp - what´s included?

The best thing is: the cost is only € 5 per person per walk.
Included is our company´s liability insurance, a First-Aid-certified walking guide and you are hosted by Outdoor-Tours, a Portuguese licensed outdoor adventure company.

Transport

Getting to/from Barão São João

There is a daily bus leaving Lagos Bus Terminal (map) at 10h40 and arriving in Barão São João at 11h02. Check here the Eva-Bus times.
For the return journey by bus you can take the bus coming from Barão São Miguel which departs there at 14h10 and should be in Barão São João about 10 minutes later. See Eva-Bus times here.

Getting to/from Lagos

There is a train leaving from Albufeira - Ferreiras at 07h48, Silves at 08h18 and Portimão at 08h32.
It will arrive in Lagos at 08h51, which is the end station.
There are daily trains from Lagos returning towards Faro at 17h01, 18h15 and at 19h19.
Check here the CP Train Times (PDF).

There is also daily a bus leaving Portimão at 09h00, arriving in Lagos at 09h40 in the Bus Terminal. This bus is operated by Frotazul. Portimão doesn´t have a Bus Terminal, but you can buy your ticket in the shop at the Largo do Dique (map) and ask from where the bus departs (probably near the Chinese Restaurant here).
The return journey from Lagos to Portimão can be done by Eva Bus or Frotazul.

Waiting time in Lagos can easily be spend with a stroll around or a coffee nearby. See on this map how close the Train station (= A) and the Bus Terminal (= B) are to the city centre and the Marina de Lagos. Once over the foot bridge, you can just cross the Avenida dos Descobrimentos instead following the map..

Participation

Check out our Events Page on Facebook for the dates that we will walk in Barão São João. There is no need to book. Just show up 15 minutes before the start of the walk.
In the rare event that the weather forces us to cancel or postpone the walk, we will communicate through our Events Page on Facebook. ”Like” our Page and you will be updated automatically in the future.

Read some extra notes about: what to bring - safety & social - fitness & terrain level
Buy an extra service from us: book a private transfer - hire of walking poles - buy travel insurance