Stage 4. Ansiao – Coimbra
Ansiao – Coimbra
46,71 Kms
Finding our beloved arrows again in Ansiao shouldn’t be difficult.
We leave the town crossing a small river through a footbridge or asphalt, whatever you prefer …, then we cross the national road below through an underpass and head towards the football stadium along an asphalt track.
A little bit later we started to roll down a small stretch of land (on the right an asphalt track goes to the same place). 6 kms of asphalt going up to a dirt road (NET) where we descend to the proximity of VENDA DO BRASIL. Before arriving at this place we will find a hard ramp through a eucalyptus forest where we will have to be extremely careful as it is an area with a lot of mud.
We are left with a mid-mountain area, forests, alternation of land with asphalt, ascents, descents and in some sections the dreaded mud.
After crossing this area we left behind the mountain ranges that sheltered ANSIAO and made us sweat both to get there and to leave it, and we started to go down the N342 towards JUNQUEIRA and then head down dirt and asphalt roads towards the town of ALVORGE.
Look at the data that now many of the indicator signs have a yellow arrow in favor of our direction of travel and a blue arrow in the opposite direction. This is because the Fatima road is marked to all the senses within Portugal and just as we had it in our sense until Santarem, now once we have passed the section where the roads intersect (from Ansiao) we see the blue signs of Fatima but in the opposite direction.
Once we leave the mountains and hills that surround ANSIAO and overcome a high, we already enter an open valley. Here we will already be traveling in a clear area with good rolling …, between orchards and small agricultural towns and preferably in descent.
Through this area we will be covered by kilometers and the road will be pleasant in part. We go through different urban centers with a good agricultural and livestock environment. Vineyards, olive trees, orchards and small towns with streams and streams everywhere that undoubtedly give life and sustenance to these crops. This environment and the favorable profile of the descent will allow us to travel through this area with renewed spirits. On the occasions that a server passed through this area, it seemed to me a place with a certain charm …, and with a singular beauty or charm that makes you move to a rural, calm and stress-free world.
The quiet and traffic-free road N-348 will be our benchmark in this area and through it we will approach the town of ALVORGE, which we should not pass a priori unless we need some service.
Thus and through this area we will pass the towns of CASAL, shortly after we arrive at RABAÇAL where we will have to pay special attention … because the road that runs through the town in descent will make us go fast and we will surely pass a detour to the right through one of its streets …, important, I repeat., in RABAÇAL we leave the road that until now we have taken and we must take a detour to the right within the same town.
In any case, if we had made a mistake and continued on that road, we could also take the road again after ZAMBUJAL, because really this right turn that we should take leads us to this town and even if we make mistakes, we will have the opportunity to rectify more go ahead.
By asphalt from the ZAMBUJAL area we will head towards FONTE COBERTA and once we have passed this town by land we will access a very beautiful but dangerous area next to a stream. A beautiful path will appear before us .., narrow and winding, along the banks of a river that depends on the time can be full of white flowers. But this area also hides the danger of presenting stones, tree roots and places where if we are not careful we can hit our bones in the ground. The advice is to travel carefully and if necessary, set foot on the ground to overcome obstacles.
This riverside area and this secluded path will take us to a wide esplanade with a farm and there if we need to stock up we will find a water source.
From this farm begins a hard climb of earth and stones (3 kms uphill) through a beautiful and impressive gorge that will leave us in a wooded area, with the sound of water and an old bridge .., anteroom of the COIMBRIGA area, Roman settlement, archaeological area with a visitor center and museum. Passing the parking area of this tourist landmark, we will now be in the urban part of CONDEIXA A VELHA.
Then we will enter the CONDEIXA A NOVA area along this plateau that we will skirt (we do not pass through its center) but we must pay special attention to traffic and several dangerous road junctions.
From CRUZ DE MORCUÇOS we have a rapid descent on asphalt that will take us under a Roman viaduct, we are directing our bicycles towards a roundabout that will make us go up again now to reach the town of MESURA, short slope again through the already urban area and with these we will arrive at SANTA CLARA where we will surely stop at his monastery to take photos of some impressive panoramic views of the city of COIMBRA.
We will go down its cobbled streets towards the river that we cross over a bustling bridge and on the other side we will already be in the heart of the lower part of COIMBRA. If we are going to sleep in the recommended hotel ( HOTEL OSLO ) we will have to turn left as soon as we pass the bridge and look for the nearby Coimbra train station as the hotel is right next to it.
Reflection on the Stage
After the beating of the previous stage and the accumulated fatigue, we are going to take a little breather and we have proposed a somewhat shorter stage.
With this we want first to give a little rest and second and more important the city where we plan to stop (COIMBRA), it is well worth a good visit. The best of this Portuguese road and the most impressive at a tourist level are its cities.
For this reason we think that arriving at an early hour at the end of the stage and having an entire afternoon to visit and enjoy this beautiful city is the best option.
So today it will only be 47 kms. ;), but not to be trusted .., the terrain continues to be broken and sawtooth. The last final kilometers before reaching COIMBRA are going to be heavy for us.
Accommodation in Coimbra
Bike Workshops in Condeixa a Nova and Coimbra
| JCRBikes R. Dona Maria Elsa Franco Sotto Mayor 19B, 3150-133 Condeixa-a-Nova, Portugal Tel: +351 910 733 399 |  |
| Bikezone Coimbra R. O Conimbricense 663030-194 Coimbra, Portugal Tel: +351 239 721 511 |  |
| SOS Bike Urbanização Quinta da Várzea, lote 14 loja 73040-092 Coimbra, Portugal Tel: +351 919 311 431n> |  |
| CycleSpace R. Augusto Marques Bom Lote 95 lojaB 3030-218 Coimbra, Portugal +351 912 556 745 |  |