Day 6: Raposeira – Cabo São Vincente

I made it!! Last day, arriving at Cabo São Vicente, my personal destination. The emotions are overwhelming; I struggle to process everything, but I tell myself that maybe it’s not even necessary. It’s the last morning I get up, have breakfast with avocado and cherry tomatoes on slices of bread, pack my backpack trying to organize things logically, say goodbye to the terrace while drinking an instant coffee, and then it’s time to go.

It’s 7:30, and I retrace the 2 km that separate me from Vila do Bispo. The atmosphere is calm; there’s a sense in the air of being at the edge of the world. I leave Vila do Bispo behind and enter gentle roads winding through wheat fields and farmhouses. The sun is already high but not scorching, and the wind moves the wheat in a golden dance that soothes the soul, making you feel alive, grateful, embraced by a special silence full of emotion. The path is magical and solitary; the wheat fields gradually give way to smaller herbaceous plants, and on the horizon, the ocean slowly reappears.

Yes, we really are at the end of the world.

I stop for a snack on the cliff edge. Cabo São Vicente has been visible in the distance for a while now, you can see it from about 10 km away, getting closer and closer. I try to carve out a few moments for myself before reaching the lighthouse, to fully realize the journey and the emotions it has given me.

It was the perfect choice because from there on, I start encountering more and more people. Arriving at Cabo São Vicente immediately thrusts me back into civilization, which I had left behind during the days of walking. After six days of untouched nature, trekkers, and small quiet villages, the sudden contact with civilization is nothing short of striking.

I move to a quieter spot, drink a coffee sitting on the edge of the ocean, and write some notes about the journey, contemplating the horizon: from there on, there is only America.

The journey is over. It has been an incredible experience, one that helped me grow personally, allowed me to see myself in a new way, outside my comfort zone. The silences, the slow steps, leave room to understand yourself, to talk to yourself beyond the usual patterns. A profound journey.