The Algarve beckons in February with sunshine and shorts-weather. Time for a paragliding trip to Portugal!
There are traditions you shouldn't break, and so for me there is the annual planning of a flight trip in February to fly in the warm and escape the really cold flying days at home in the Austrian snow. This time my best travel partners Ulli and Tomy Hofbauer made the decision easy for me: Yes, I'm coming to the Algarve - I've had to put up with too many great videos and pictures of them in the past ...
Four other fellow pilots are also coming along. But if it were that simple: The weather forecast is really modest, even Silvia Ventura, our NOVA team pilot, who lives south of Lisbon, said: "There will be no flying weather". Only Tomy was sure: "YES, we'll fly" - I was the only one who trusted his expertise and so the big group became a small and fine expedition group into the unknown. In the end, we got airborne on five days out of a possible six. This intro describes very well the hidden possibilities in the Algarve: But you need a lot of feeling for wind and weather, local knowledge and skills - then, yes, then you will get into the air. My two "guides" really know their stuff after many years on the Portuguese coastline. In the same breath, it can happen that some solo travellers never get to fly at the same time.
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Lisbon remains on the right, the first spot Sines beckons.
Travelling with Tomy and Ulli means flying every day! Lisbon may be nice, but we are there to see the cliffs and sunsets by flying, that's food for us, that's what we need. So we start south to Sines - there is the teeny chance of a flight. We are rewarded with a light breeze from the sea, which is enough to pull up our parachutes, glide to the beach and watch the full moon rise at sunset paired with fantastic light.
In Burgau things really get going:
The first real day of flying starts with plenty of wind at a cliff launch site with thorny terrain and little space to lay out the glider. Fine observation of the leading edge shows the optimal place for the catapult launch on the long cliff line. Nevertheless, the launch is exciting, we enjoy the day under a lightning blue sky with top landings and tremendous impressions. Our slope edge is lined with a hiking trail and later we found out that there are some long-distance hiking trails in Portugal. As an example, the Ecovia cycle and hiking trail runs directly along the coastline. So it is possible to follow the bays quite close to the edge of the slope and always find starting points with the right wind direction.
The thing about wind:
It is worth looking in detail and you will find that there are always bays that allow almost all take-off directions from NW to SE winds except NE-O winds. Sometimes the wind changes direction during the day and you are actually always "spothopping" for the ideal take-off spot. Here, we flyers are almost no different from the common surfer, who can often be found in Portugal in winter: The perfect wave is the goal and that often changes the bay of the perfect wind direction quite quickly. The local flyers are even organised in a signal group to always be in the right place at the right time - if only to soar for 30 minutes. Designated and official launch sites are few and far between.
The motto is to be flexible:
In the morning, we fly a mini slope near Sagres in a southerly direction with a great harbour atmosphere in the background and quirky graffiti-painted houses on the beach. The launch site: the meadow in front of a hotel that is closed in winter. More than 2 gliders at a time have no room at the mini-edge. The wind falls asleep and we switch to the NW side of the Algarve in no time. Our local friend and pilot Jörg is a great support here.
Praia da Cordoama - probably the most famous dream spot.
We cross over, quickly buy some food as we pass, and off we go to the - now in contrast to Sagres - super-high cliff. The car park is at the top, an umbrella is already flying and our hearts beat in joyful time. This spot is the number one sunset spot for tourists and we soon know why: we glide to the northeast, land on the next hill three top and play in the laminar wind until the sun almost sets on the horizon. Like Jonathan the seagull, we fly into the setting sun, climb back up to take-off height in the laminar wind from the lowest level and fly under the observation of many onlookers until it really gets dark. The launch site is perfect and can be flown from several heights - depending on the wind strength.
The wind is dying down; we’ve timed it perfectly for our landing option A and land right next to the surfers on the beach for a beer.
Ponta de Sagres - Flying at the fortress walls.
The fortress of Sagres was first settled in the Stone Age 6,000 years ago and is of great historical importance for the Algarve: the first voyages of discovery by seafarers were planned here. Its location on a headland is very exciting: it can be flown on two wind directions, surfing beaches with good waves line the north, and the fortress wall was built directly against the cliffs. One of my most exciting flights: The wind is not very strong - the wind window according to the forecast is very short and decreasing - according to Jörg you can fly here in the direction of the west only rarely, but when angels travel ... The flight along the castle wall is unique: Under our wings only rough coast - an emergency landing place further north: Where the surfers are. We trade along almost to the end of the headland - not 30 m above the sea and in the background we see the surfers riding great waves - it is abstract and surreal to hover here. Thirty minutes of flying seems like an eternity and turns out to be one of my personal highlights of the trip! The wind dies down, we have perfect timing for our landing option A and land right by the surfers on the beach for a beer.
At the end of the world: The silent sentinel with a warning light - Farol do Cabo de São Vicente
This place is magical: the lighthouse is located at the most south-westerly point in Europe and once served as an important orientation point for sailors at the Cape of St. Vincent. A tourist hotspot, of course, but well worth seeing. The steep coast shows itself in its most beautiful form and the sunset as a contrast to the rough sea is really tremendously beautiful. For bikepackers among us: It is the end point of the Bikepacking European Divide Trail - starting in the very north of Norway at the Russian border with a length of more than 7,600 km.
Our "secret spot"
The Algarve offers bad flying weather with rain at the end of the trip and so we move to the north of Lisbon to a "secret spot" with a sand dune - the cool thing about it: the sand dune lies within an omega-shaped bay with soaring possibilities towards the offshore wind. We soar super-special - the view inland and the Atlantic in the back: Tomy and I make the flight to the very end to the pilgrim church at the exit of the bay. The whooping of our screams of joy was definitely heard all the way to Lisbon 😉
The mighty waves of Nazaré: a must-see
The surf spot par excellence with waves up to 30 m high: We are drawn into these fantastic formations, which are ridden by fanatical surfers. We could watch for days and be inspired by this atmosphere. There is even flying here ...
Who should dare this trip?
It is not a trip for beginners, but for advanced surfers, ideally with dune experience. If in doubt, join a guided tour.
The thing about high and low tide: The Algarve has a difference in height of up to 3 m from low to high tide. It is enormously important to watch the surf line and always have a plan A and B in case you have to land on the beach. Within a short time the landable shoreline can mutate from a wide runway to a small landable strip close to the dangerous surf line. A few years ago there was an accident involving three Austrians a few beaches further north at Praia do Meco: The landing pilot only put the Stabilo into the surf, was pulled into the water and the two helpers who tried to rescue her also drowned. On the other hand, it is also possible that incisions with valleys inland (e.g. Praia da Cordoama) create strong jet effects that produce really high wind speeds. Active observation and caution are the highest priority here. Rather not for beginners and inexperienced pilots travelling alone ...
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Conclusion:
A trip for sun-seekers and soaring freaks, with culinary highlights, secluded beaches and great light for photographers. Definitely the perfect winter escape for us alpine flyers away from the mainstream. All it takes is a little creativity and spontaneity and, in the end, the last bit of weather luck for your best experiences in the south of Portugal.
