52 Weeks, 52 Half Marathons - Stage 29
Magoito cliffs by the Mariana Trench
Friday, August 2, 06:10 AM
The good weather from the Summer, arriving late, puts additional pressure on my run activities. Between the extra hydration needs and my acquired avoid-the-sun vampire state, I need to accommodate time for family activities - the matrix gets harder to invert. I had another Friday run, harder to avoid traffic, and also because I do have to go to work afterwards.
This time, we are going to the coast, north of Sintra, exploring amazing cliffs by the Atlantic. It’s about a half hour drive from home which means a 5 AM wakeup time. Those are hard, specially since I never go to bed early.
Dawn by Praia das Maçãs
We are starting by Praia das Maçãs, Apples Beach. There’s free easy parking right by the ocean. The weather in this area is usually cool, windy, and normally the fog from Sintra extends up to here. Not today.
I don’t know these trails so I was a little more careful than usual planning the route. My master plan was to glide along the cliff coast for around 10km, venture inland for some hills and to visit a friend. After a cautious analysis on Google Earth I got suspicious of the Komoot/gpx.studio optimistic plans. Some of the trails seemed to be in private property. I lowered my expectations and set out multiple plan Bs, just in case.
Empty streets with the scent of the ocean breeze
This was the reason that we start on a parallel road to the trails, close enough to peek at the cliff line, and to try and figure out our right of way. We start with an invigorating, fresh-air, smooth, easy climb for about a mile on our way to the town of Azenhas do Mar. The sidewalk is neither wide nor even, so we take ownership of the empty road.
Lazy sunrise with the moon still up
The June truly early sunrises are behind us. I miss them. The moon is still out there with a well defined hairline while the sky is mixing a spectacular desert sand dye with an ocean blue tint. Quite a view. There is very little wind blowing at a temperature that is beyond perfect.
Arriving at Azenhas do Mar
Arriving at Azenhas do Mar, there is a short bike lane welcoming us to the spectacle that is about to unfold. The peculiar town of Azenhas do Mar with waking up to the golden skies is breathtaking. We are able to enjoy the breathtaking view as we follow the apnea-diving road down to sea level - unfortunately slightly dangerous because the bike lane ends and there’s virtually no road shoulder. The photo tells the story.
Dawn apnea at Azenhas do Mar
Running and diving have inverse impulse laws. Arriving at the bottom of Azenhas do Mar requires quite an impulse to come back up as we face the first climb of the day. I did not know then but it would end up being a 2.5km ascent that requires extra fin propelling to pull away from the bottom of Azenhas. My sense of smell is at its peak early in the morning and the sea breeze is blasting at full power - nice.
Winding our way
Breathing the scent of the ocean, we swim swiftly through the winding open road with a lazy sunrise following us. I had an advance warning for a hard climb along the way. I had no idea that it would be so spectacular, and hard. It’s one of those moments when you can clearly see your future, there’s no escape. At the end of our pleasant 2.5 km the road seems to unfold like a long seaweed strip dropped on the sand.
The Mariana Trench
No math class today, the Dirac gave way to the Mariana Trench! Don’t even bother measuring the descent and ascent gradients. The landscape is gorgeous. The road has no shoulder but also has no cars. It’s wide and open so we can identify any dangerous moving creature that might threaten us during our expedition - as long as we come in this early.
The climb seems to keep stretching as we follow
It’s a tricky climb, probably because of the nitrox mixture, just as in the photo, it looks like an easy climb, and I pushed through it, but it wears you out rather quickly.
As we manage to get our head out of the water, we are greeted by three nice windmills strategically planted there to push additional air into our lungs. We are still early in the 6th km of our run. Time to enjoy the view to the next town where I would visit my cousin.
Windmills to the rescue
For the next 3km, we will be roaming through several small towns. Everyone is still asleep or probably gone on vacation. What should be an easy stretch of my run, with me eagerly desiring to get back to the shoreline, took a turn for the worse.
Out of nowhere, with no warning at all, I have sudden strong pinching pain in my right calf. Like if a spider fish had latched onto my leg, to the point where I had to stop. I thought I would not be able to run. I massaged the leg for less than minute, bit my lip, and plowed along. Man, did it hurt!
I was not expecting that. My next kms would be really hard and painful. I was stubborn because I did not want to interrupt my run, but in the back of my mind, I was wary that I would be digging a deeper hole in my injury.
I talked to myself, out loud, for several minutes - the town fool.
No miracle water running on this fountain
The road goes through several agricultural lands that paint a different landscape than what we are used to. It’s nice and beautiful, and it talks to me - in one of my many hats, I also work on developing software for precision agriculture.
Don’t step on the vegetables
I had high hopes for the northern tip of our run. The turning point where we would set our bearing to the cliff line, was by the beach of Samarra, and the satellite imagery was promising. I started to get suspicious by the looks of the abandoned road that kept descending to the beach. We also start to get fenced in on both sides. Not looking good. The cliff trail on the other side of these properties.
My fear was justified. It’s a dead end. No beach view, no cliff trail access and an ugly road to climb back… with an injured calf biting me.
Suspicious road
The sun is already up and lights up beautiful agricultural landscapes. I had marked several other possible trail entries that identified on satellite maps. Followed the first opening, it looked interesting. Half way through I am greeted by a tiny little stray dog that is somehow scared and starts running in front of me. I keep following him and start to imagine that he could be fetching the cavalry, a pack of larger stray dogs looking to have fun at my expenses. Eventually we get to the entrance of an abandoned private property wide open to the trail.
Don’t go in, it’s a trap, the pack is waiting to ambush you - those were my thoughts, laugh if you will.
Either the pack or a grumpy owner. I turned back and moved to plan C.
Beautiful crop watering
I kept following the road, peeking into my alternative entry points until I just gave up. All of them might have worked but I would be risking trespassing private properties. I conformed to just sail to the Magoito beach. It’s a pleasant run, through some really nice neighborhoods that emanate vacation vibes. It’s easy to forget that it’s still Friday and I have a long day of work ahead .
Descending to Magoito beach
Arriving at Magoito beach we have a splendid view of the cliffs that are waiting for us. The beach is also amazing with the rocks showing up with the low tide. The ocean here is usually only for the brave and fit, as is the hill on the other side of valley that we will have to climb.
Magoito Beach
They have built a splendid zigzag wooden walkway for an easy descent to the beach. This route offers spectacular views of the valley and is rather satisfying to hear your feet stomping on the wood. My leg is cooperating on flat and descending terrain. The climbs are tough. A collateral problem from running with an injury is that by protecting the weak limb, you end up stressing other parts of your body inadvertently and might end up collecting additional injuries. Lessons from an old dog, I was sharp alert on my mechanics. I only wanted to have to deal with one problem.
The hill waiting for us on the other side
My cousin secretly followed me around and ended up snapping some photos. I was wearing my hydration backpack only for the second time and not too happy about it. I need the extra water but I dislike the sipping system. I ended up getting two 250 ml flexible flasks to go with it and they are much better to drink from. With the backpack, it’s hard to judge how much liquid you have consumed. I am seriously considering carrying 8 flasks in the backpack instead of the reservoir.
I was caught on camera
The walkway was a nice change to “rest” before the sacrifice of the next ascent. The zigzag ends too quickly, and we arrive right at the entry to the beach. The sand is looking quite inviting but we are on a mission to conquer the Magoito cliffs.
Extraordinary view
It’s another difficult climb with my limping leg. It’s a wide dirt road with a great view to the ocean, the valley and the beach. We plow through for the reward of admiring the Magoito beach, now from the south. What’s coming next is nothing short of spectacular.
Another look at the Magoito Beach
We will finally be following the single track trail along the cliff top. The vegetation is stunning trimmed by the ocean winds. The sight of a geodetic marker on top of a hill sets the tone for a hilly terrain. The view is so good that you will hardly notice the climbs.
No resting ahead
The trail runs very close the cliff edge, if I was on my bike I would be a little nervous. If you are afraid of heights, this trail might not be for you. It’s perfectly safe to run and walk. The mix of colors from the cliffs, the sky and the ocean never cease to marvel me. If I could only fly like a Marvel character - Silver Surfer would be adequate.
I hope you are not afraid of heights
You don’t have to be Iron Man class to run on this trail. Even with a “Spider”-bit calf the beauty of the landscape makes you flow through the trail with the strength of the Hulk. It really is a Marvel.
The trail is narrow and sometimes requires some rock climbing steps. There are alternative routes to a few more daring passages. By now I have realized that my run is again going to be longer than a Half Marathon. That lip-biting is bound to go purple.
Beautiful views
There is a similar trail to the north of Praia da Samarra (our failed expedition), I will have definitely have to try it out (4h30 AM wake up time…).
The ocean is infinite and empty before our eyes, the trail is empty, the sky is empty. We rein a large kingdom. It’s the 19th km and we have 4 more to cover.
The vastness of the Atlantic
Down and below there are a number of beaches that are so remote that I am sure that they remain empty even during the peak summer days. I will have to come back for a walk on this trail and sip the views.
What an amazing feeling to run here - Sintra grade.
Please look down! I picked the left trail ahead
Cliff hanger
Lonely beaches
I finally crossed someone. A solitary fishing boat is trudging agains the waves, probably returning from a long night of fishing. Like an airliner crossing the Atlantic, the little boat seems to stand still in the ocean infinity.
Gone fishing
We keep moving steadily through the snaking trail which will eventually lead to the parking lot of Praia da Aguda. From there, we take a wide dirt road, not as nice, but still following the cliff ridge with the ocean view.
We are getting back to the town of Azenhas do Mar and according to Komoot it should be possible to continue along the cliff instead of the road that we took earlier.
Drive carefully
To get to the other side of Azenhas do Mar we do have to follow the main road and I was in luck to be able to catch another nice photo of Azenhas do Mar, by chance almost at the same location as the one that I had taken earlier.
I am at the stage in my run where no climb is a problem. I had forgotten about this one in Azenhas do Mar. During my runs, there are three stages of climbing difficulty. The first stage is the euphoric stage, bring them on.
The second stage is the suffering stage, I already have been battered by a few runs and maybe I have had enough.
The third stage is the all-you-can-eat stage. I am now in infinite suffering capacity so I can just devour any climb that comes along. This is normally when injuries happen, that’s my fuse.
Azenhas do Mar take II
The final mile is a triumphant descent along the road where we started, and for some reason, I decide to pick up the pace and run way too fast for the injury that I had sustained - I am incorrigible.
I was hoping to use a ridge trail but it seemed that it ran through private properties.
I got the finish line by the parking lot and I still have a lip and a leg.
Even with all the mishaps this run was a Marvel Beast!
Enjoy your runs!
-APF
Route and profile as recorded by Strava
PS: My calf was, of course, nagging me for the remaining of Friday and Saturday. I massaged it with anti-inflammatory.
On Sunday, I prescribed it the MTB treatment. It is not fully healed but at least I did not turn into the wooden-leg pirate.
