On Track - a Gricer's Tales
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Portugal 16.6.05-21.6.05

My wife had been wanting to go to Portugal for quite a while and eventually persuaded me, with the help of some very good fares from LGW to Porto, to go for a few days’ sightseeing (neither of us has the slightest desire to lie on beaches or play golf!). Thus far, I have only visited two countries without travelling on any railed transport (Canada, and a half hour visit to Mexico, if you’re interested) and I saw no reason to add to this list. Although travelling by car I did manage to divert to the metre gauge!
Thursday 16.6.05

Not strictly a gricing trip but with some worthwhile objectives! Courtesy of our daughter, arrival at Gatwick in good time for a BA A320 to Porto. Scheduled to go at 1340 it did just that, then spent over 30 minutes queuing to take off. Despite this, arrival at the very modern (and being extended) OPO was only 10 late at 1605. Objective 1 was the Rio Tâmega line from Livraçao to Amarante. Car hire is remote and we had to wait for a minibus from Budget to collect us. All credit to http://www.carjet.co.uk/ though, who provided a good deal on a gutless but air conditioned VW Golf. Off through the horrific Porto rush hour, bewildering motorway toll system and appalling signposting (or lack thereof). Despite all of this we found Livraçao station by sheer luck and with about 5 minutes to spare for the 1802 to Amarante, a single unit of the 1995 dated genus LRV2000. Aircon not really up to the job [wasn’t expecting any, so it was still a bonus] but a splendid ride nonetheless up the much dammed (as is the Douro) Tâmega to Amarante. Despite being too far from Porto for commuting, patronage was reasonable with some alighting at intermediate stops. The 4 minute turn round at Amarante just allowed time for a phot, but little else.
Picture
Metre gauge LRV 2000 at Livraçao forming 18:02 to Amarante 16.6.05
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Metre gauge LRV 2000 at Amarante forming 18:34 to Livraçao 16.6.05
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CP diesel 1415 arriving at Livraçao with 19:08 to Porto 16.6.05
Friday 17.6.05

No track today after last night’s horrendous drive from Livraçao to Viseu. On after a look round Viseu to the astonishing fortified border town of Elvas with its 15th century ‘multi-storey’ aqueduct, and then to the former Roman settlement of Évora.

Saturday 18.6.05

A morning visiting a nearby stone circle at Guadelupe (actually 4 km down a dirt road) then back for an afternoon’s sightseeing (‘mediaeval’ single storey aqueduct, university church, Roman temple, cathedral, Chapel of Bones – a grotesque ossuary) in Évora. Finally dinner and a visit to the St John’s Fair opposite the Ibis, clearly (one of) the event(s) of the year.

Sunday 19.6.05

0730 departure for the long motorway thrash to Porto, and another afternoon sightseeing (riverside, bridges, the house of Henry The Navigator, and a glass of port on the quayside at Gaia). Track content too, with the scary Funicular dos Guindais, reopened in 2004. This is fully modernised and consists (from the top) of a short run through tunnel followed by a terrifying drop down to the Don Luis bridge. Good value. With most things shut on a Saturday night, dinner in a grotty shopping centre grill.
Picture
The passing loop and start of the incline on the Funicular dos Guindais in Porto, 19.6.05. The Dom Luis 1 bridge is in the background with the top deck under reconstruction.
Monday 20.6.05

Our one serious gricing day today, with an 0500 start for the 0530 departure to Mirandela. Delayed by my stupidity in leaving the directions behind we eventually got away at 0550 for the 0826 departure. After a few excitements we reached the motorway caff 10 km from Mirandela at 0745 and all looked rosy. After filling up, queuing to pay, queuing again to pre-pay for breakfast (Italian procedure – stupid), having our ham sarnies made to order instead of ex stock from the display, and consuming same, things weren’t so rosy. Arriving in Mirandela around 0815 we managed to drive straight to the station, not see a level crossing as we went over it, and not see the station 100m to the left. So we turned right and went to ask a completely (and entirely reasonably) bemused lady in a shop where the station was! We made the train though, and ‘enjoyed’ a 90 minute trip to Tua in one of two LRV2000’s occupied by around 100 primary school children.

At Tua, after photting a stuffed Mallet with a distinctly British look about it, and two resident cats (really, one ginger, one black) we retired to the pub over the road, as you do. Beer was the usual brown fizz (but hey, who’s complaining? It was hot and the beer wasn’t) and coffee was not to be had because of a power cut. A certain irony there, with the Douro valley being a hydroelectric stronghold.

Two 1400s came and went before our 1055 departure. Alas the primary school party returned with us and after an hour of the journey back to Mirandela were understandably getting a bit bored and fractious. Nonetheless it’s a fine line though more interesting in the lower part where the Tua and the railway occupy a narrow and very rocky gorge, with surprisingly little serious engineering. There are a small number of tunnels near Tua, to the delight of the kids.

Back at the apparently invisible Mirandela station (!) we dived into a horribly, albeit temporarily, hot car for a sprint to Vila Real via the local farmacia which perhaps surprisingly, sold H’s hay fever remedy. At V.R. we ‘lucked in’ again, finding the station easily with time for a beer and another sarnie in an obliging caff across the road. The Man was very proud that a Portuguese driver (Tiago Monteiro, Jordan) got a podium place at the US GP – he didn’t mention that McLaren, Williams, BAR, Minardi, Toyota, Red Bull and Renault weren’t there! [All the Michelin shod teams were withdrawn due to a safety scare following Ralf Schumacher’s accident].

The Corgo valley line from Vila Real to Peso do Régua proved to be the most spectacular. For the majority of the journey it’s perched about half way up the side of a deep valley – deeper though wider than that of the Tua. Cost was obviously a factor in the engineering and the line deviates several times into minor side valleys with a ‘U’ turn to get back, rather than a viaduct at the end of the valley. Thoroughly enjoyable! Corgo station, and Régua depot, are located where the Corgo meets the Douro. Corgo station is on the narrow gauge immediately before the depot which is between the narrow and broad gauge lines. The two lines run together across a viaduct over the Rio Corgo, with narrow gauge rails between the broad gauge ones (4 rails rather than 3).

Entering Régua station the broad gauge passenger lines go right (north) but sidings go left, with the metre gauge terminating in bays between the two.

Régua has a relatively posh buffet from which beer was obtained in the 18 minute turnround. This completed the gricing part of the trip and we had a reasonably gentle drive back from Vila Real before getting lost in Porto. Again. Evening food and drink was at the Republica da Cerveja which, frankly, I wouldn’t be bothered with. The ‘Artisan’ beer was indistinguishable from any other fizzy lager except by its price.
Picture
LRV2000 on arrival at Tua as 08:26 from Mirandela, 20.6.05
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View up the Tua valley from the 10:55 Tua-Mirandela, 20.6.05
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1414 arriving at Tua with a Regua train, 20.6.05
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Vila Real station with 15:10 from Regua just arrived, 20.6.05
Tuesday 21.6.05

Not a gricing day regrettably – but a bit of sightseeing in Porto before going up to Vila do Conde. Much cracked up by the Rough Guide but (surprisingly for them) it was a bit of a disappointment. We made the best of it however, before heading back to the airport and returning a hire car which was, totally against the odds, entirely undamaged. 1400km had been covered by road. The flight back to LGW (scheduled departure 1640) pushed back at 1630 and was airborne at 1642. At the time of writing we’re approaching LGW with a 15 minute early arrival on the cards. (Later) It wasn’t quite that early but was exactly right for meeting our son-in-law in the pick up/set down area, whence back to their home.
The next trip was supposed to be for a railtour in Belgium and France. It didn't quite turn out as planned...
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  • Home
  • The Tales
    • The Tales - Index
    • How it all began
    • 1991-1999 >
      • 1991
      • 1992
      • 1993 >
        • April 1993 - Belgium & Luxembourg
        • September 1993 - Germany & Poland
        • September 1993 - Belgium
        • November 1993 - Belgium
      • 1994 >
        • January 1994 - Belgium & Netherlands
        • January 1994 - USA
        • April 1994 - Luxembourg
        • May 1994 - Belgium
        • September 1994 - Belgium
        • October 1994 - Luxembourg, Germany, France
      • 1995 >
        • March 1995 - Belgium
        • April 1995 - Poland
        • May 1995 - The Netherlands
        • August 1995 - Belgium
        • October 1995 - Belgium
        • November 1995 - Belgium
      • 1996 >
        • April 1996 - Germany
        • May 1996 - Belgium and the Netherlands
        • July-August 1996 - Belgium
        • August 1996 - Anniversary tour
        • August 1996 - Belgium
        • September 1996 - Netherlands and Belgium
      • 1997 >
        • May 1997 - Belgium
        • May 1997 - Netherlands and Germany
        • July 1997 - Belgium and Germany
        • July 1997 - Germany
        • October 1997 - France
      • 1998 >
        • January 1998 - Germany
        • February 1998 - Belgium
        • April 1998 - Belgium and Germany
        • April 1998 - Netherlands, Belgium & Germany
        • August 1998 - Germany, Poland, Czech Republic
        • December 1998 - Germany
      • 1999 >
        • January 1999 - Germany
        • February 1999 - Belgium
        • April 1999 - Germany, Czech Republic, Poland
        • June 1999 - Belgium, Germany
        • July 1999 - Germany
        • December 1999 - Germany
    • 2000-2009 >
      • 2000 >
        • February 2000 - Germany
        • March 2000 - Germany
        • April 2000 - France
        • April 2000 - Germany
        • May 2000 - Germany
        • August 2000 - Germany, Czech Republic
        • September 2000 - Belgium
        • September 2000 - Belgium and Germany
      • 2001 >
        • January 2001 - Germany
        • February 2001 - Northern Ireland
        • March 2001 - Germany
        • April 2001 - Germany
        • May 2001 - Germany, Denmark and Sweden
        • May 2001 - Netherlands and Germany
        • October 2001 - Germany
        • December 2001 - Germany
      • 2002 >
        • February 2002 - Germany
        • March 2002 - Germany
        • April 2002 - Germany
        • August 2002 - Czech Republic
        • September 2002 - Netherlands
        • October 2002 - Germany
        • November 2002 - Germany (1)
        • November 2002 - Germany (2)
      • 2003 >
        • January 2003 - Germany
        • April 2003 - France
        • May 2003 - Germany
        • June 2003 - Czech Republic and Slovakia
        • October 2003 - Czech Republic
        • December 2003 - Germany
      • 2004 >
        • March 2004 - Germany
        • April 2004 - Various countries
        • May 2004 - Czech Republic, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary
        • August 2004 - Germany, Switzerland, Austria
        • October 2004 - Germany
      • 2005 >
        • April 2005 - Germany, Czech Republic
        • June 2005 - Portugal
        • August 2005 - Belgium and Germany
        • October 2005 - Germany and Czech Republic
      • 2006 >
        • January 2006 - Germany
        • March 2006 - Germany
        • May 2006 - Ireland
        • July 2006 - Germany
        • August 2006 - Germany
        • September 2006 - Czech Republic and Slovakia
      • 2007 >
        • February 2007 - Czech Republic
        • May 2007 - Czech Republic
        • June 2007 - Germany and France
        • October 2007 - Czech Republic and borders
        • October-November 2007 - Czech Republic
      • 2008 >
        • April 2008 - Czech Republic
        • April 2008 - Germany
        • July 2008 - Czech Republic, Poland
        • August 2008 - Austria (1)
        • August 2008 - Austria (2)
        • December 2008 - Czech Republic
        • December 2008 - Austria
      • 2009 >
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        • November 2009 - Austria
    • 2010-2019 >
      • 2010 >
        • April 2010 - Germany
        • July 2010 - Germany, Belgium, Netherlands
        • July 2010 - Austria
      • 2011 >
        • April 2011 - Austria
        • June 2011 - Germany and 6 others
        • October 2011 - Germany
      • 2012 >
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        • October 2012 - Germany
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        • August 2013 - Germany
      • 2014 >
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        • July 2014 - Germany
      • 2015 >
        • April 2015 - Germany, Czech Republic
        • June 2015 - Slovakia, Czech Republic
      • 2016 >
        • March 2016 - Slovakia
        • April 2016 - Slovakia
        • June 2016 - Netherlands plus 5
        • November 2016 - Germany, Poland
      • 2017 >
        • March 2017 - Germany, Poland
        • July 2017 - Czech Republic and Poland
        • July 2017 - Poland and Slovakia
      • 2018 >
        • August 2018 - the best laid plans of mice and men
      • 2019 >
        • July 2019 - Interrail part 1
        • August 2019 - Interrail part 2
    • 2020-present >
      • 2022 >
        • June 2022 - Interrail
        • September 2022 - Belgium
      • 2024 >
        • June 2024 - France, Belgium, Luxembourg
  • Contact