Beech Route

The Zêzere glacial valley is one of the places that best explains Serra da Estrela: a wide U-shaped valley, dropping from the plateau towards Manteigas, cut by ice when the range still held a true glacier.

At Covão d'Ametade, around 1 350 m, the valley floor opens into birch and water. Higher up, Torre stands at 1 993 m — the highest point in mainland Portugal, and the star on the logo.

There is no fixed hour to be here. The day bends to the weather and to whoever is in it. This note sits in the journal so the place is not just a name on a list.

If you come in Serra cheese season, say so — it fits the day when it makes sense, with the people who make it in the village, not a gift-shop version.