Day 3: Odeceixe – Aljezur – Arrifana

Alarm at 5:20 a.m. I force myself to eat breakfast to make sure I have enough energy: sandwiches with avocado and green pepper cheese. Today is the toughest day: 40 km, combining two stages. I still have the option to cut the route and do only 32 km, but that would mean walking along the main road. I’ll decide later.

I set off at 6:20 a.m. and immediately realize how magical it is: the world is still asleep, and I’m there, enjoying the walk, my footsteps. It’s the first time I put on my long-sleeved shirt; the air is still cool. The route passes through the fields around Odeceixe, and I get to watch the sunrise in complete silence as the fields turn golden. What a sight!

In less than an hour I’m back at Praia de Odeceixe. From here the trail returns to the coast. After a stretch along the ocean, it turns inland and begins a mentally challenging section, with long dirt country roads that, after the ocean landscapes, feel like they have little to say. When I reach Rogil, I stop at a truly lovely café that radiates an incredible sense of calm. I enjoy a coffee, realizing I’ve completed only a quarter of the day’s distance.

The next section feels endless, at least 3 or 4 km of a perfectly straight dirt road with no end in sight. I arrive in Aljezur around 11:45 a.m. I’m just over halfway through the route and I’ve already covered 23 km: not bad at all! Here I take a one-hour break, eat my sandwiches, and have a coffee and a juice at the bar. My feet are pretty worn out; I’ve had blisters on my right foot since the day before. But in moments like this, having a goal helps you push through the discomfort, and you somehow find both the physical and mental strength to keep going.

I set off again toward Arrifana, following the main road for quite a while and rejoining the trail a few kilometers later. I reach the junction where I could have shortened the route, but I decide to go for the full 40 km and stick to the original trail. Today I’ve seen very few people. After a seemingly endless stretch of asphalt and after helping a German woman who had gotten lost, I see the ocean again!!! After so many kilometers inland, seeing the ocean feels like a rush of reassurance, joy, and freedom bursting into my soul. I head down to Monte Clérigo beach and rest there while eating my second sandwich.

From here, the trail returns spectacularly to the coastline, just like in the first two stages. The hardest part begins: I’m at 34 km, with only 6 km to go, but I enter a forest where my energy drops to zero. The heat is humid and suffocating, and there’s no one around. I keep drinking, eat a protein bar, drink again. After 3–4 km I come out of the forest, and just a few meters later I start to see the houses of Arrifana. I’m almost there! The final steps are up a steep climb that, at that point, makes no difference anymore. I reach the hostel after 10 hours of walking and exactly 40 km.

Inner peace. Completely drained of energy, yet it feels as if I’m filled with everything I need. I soak my feet in the hostel’s pool, sipping a Coke, in a state of exhaustion-induced bliss I don’t think I’ve ever experienced before. And yet, I feel happy.

I decide I’ve earned a hamburger, so I go get one about 100 meters from the hostel, then eat it while watching the sunset. It was one of the best burgers I’ve ever had. I head back to the hostel and call it a day. I’m exhausted, but the adrenaline and emotion are even stronger, and I struggle to fall asleep.