But before I tell you the sheep tale, do you remember the venue of vultures? Well they were not the only birding delight on our 12km hike in the Foupana and Odeleite river valleys. You may recall our walk began in the hills immediately above Foz de Odeleite, an area where we regularly see birdlife.
Whilst there was nothing particularly rare or unusual, it was for us a wonderful day’s birding for our very first walk of the season. Simply click on the galleries for the names of the birds.
The sheep tale I hear you cry. Towards the end of the walk we saw our first signs of human life. A shepherd returning to his flock beside the Odeleite.
Sundown was only an hour or so away, and it was soon evident they were going to be moved for the night. He had no dogs, but within a few minutes they were moving exactly where he wanted them. Quite extraordinary.
At first we thought they were being moved to the highly visible barn, and that some of the sheep were heading the wrong way. They though knew exactly where they were going as it was the buildings higher up the hill where they were going to bed down for the night. Are Portuguese sheep better behaved than English or Welsh as they always seem to have dogs when they are on the move? Or do Portuguese shepherds have an extra special set of skills?
By the way if you are interested in walking this area yourself, then do visit my map of walks. I will be adding more walks over the forthcoming weeks and months, and so it is a useful resource for those wishing to explore the Algarve on foot.