Fonte Benémola

Fonte Benémola is a protected site of around four hundred hectares in the Barrocal, the limestone hill country behind the Algarve coast, and its point is water. Springs feed the Ribeira da Menalva so that it runs when almost everything else in the inland Algarve is dry, and the result is a green corridor of willow, ash, oleander and reeds threading through otherwise hot scrub and carob. A marked loop of about four and a half kilometres follows the stream, crossing it on stepping stones, past old water mills, weirs and terraces built to use the flow, with orchids and other limestone flora in spring and a good bird and amphibian list. It is cool and shaded where the rest of the region is not, which is why it is walked at times of year when the coast paths are unbearable. Querença nearby is a small hill village with a church and a couple of restaurants.

The landscape

• The permanent stream - spring-fed water running in a landscape that is otherwise dry.
• The green corridor - willow, ash and oleander through limestone scrub.
• The old mills - water-driven structures, weirs and terraces along the stream.
• The spring flora - orchids and limestone plants from about February to May.

When to go

February to May for flowers and comfortable temperatures. Two to three hours for the loop. Summer is hot even here.

What to expect

Stepping-stone crossings become impassable after heavy rain. The trail is rocky and uneven. Parking is a handful of roadside spaces. Facilities are in Querença, not at the site.

Nearby

Querença is the nearest village; Rocha da Pena is west in the same Barrocal country.

Key facts