Pulo do Lobo, Alentejo, Portugal

5inman1 5:00 PM Jul 12, 2018

Great scenery!
Before you even consider visiting this place you have to know that there is an access from the West, and one from the East. For the first one, coming from Mértola, you head in the direction of Beja and on the National Park follow the signs. I did not take this route but it seems that you have to cross some private land and cattle gates, and that towards the end the road becomes quite steep and good cars (4WD) might be advised. From there, you get much closer to the waterfalls than from the Eastern side, as there is some kind of viewing platform close to the falls and no hiking is involved. Coming from the East you follow N265 towards Serpa and turn left where the sign tells you to. It's still a drive from there, but even the last stretch on unpaved road is ok for normal cars, just don't drive down the last stretch to the information board- from where you have a fabulous view of the scenery. If you want to get close to the falls you will have to hike down a very steep trail and work yourself through some rugged rock landscape. Be VERY careful! These are metamorphic green schists (not quartzites as some have noted) from the Devonian period, and their bedding is close to vertical, which might well be the reason why the Guadiana found it difficult to erode them and resort to a water fall along some cracks in the rocks. The name of course implies that a wild animal, such as a wolf, could leap across the waterfall, which in the summer, when the discharge is low, should not be a problem for them. This may have allowed some species to reach the other side of the Guadiana. All in all a very scenic place and if you're lucky you might see a lot of wildlife. But you're usually on your own, so take good care!

5PedroRBC 5:00 PM Apr 17, 2017

Waterfalls in Guadiana River, Alentejo
I was coming from Mértola and Minas de São Domingos were I've spent the morning and took the national road N265 in direction towards Serpa. Some kilometers after Minas de São Domingos you''ll have a sign ''Pulo do Lobo''on your right indicating to turn on the left. The roead becomes narrower and the last 2 kilometers are on gravel so you have to slow down. Then you'll find a parking place and you'll see the valley down there, the meanders of the Guadiana River and the Pulo do Lobo waterfalls! Really impressive and unusual landscape for Alentejo region as the rivers normally have no cliffs and run close to the river banks! If your intention is to get closer to the waterfalls then you must take the road connecting Mértola to Beja (IC27) and turning to the right after passing Mértola's urban area towards the Guadiana Natural Park.