About Penedo Furado
Penedo Furado (or Cascata do Penedo Furado) consists of a pair of waterfalls near the headwaters of the Albufeira do Castelo do Bode reservoir in the geographical center of Portugal.
The two notable waterfalls here were modest in size (each probably about 10m in cumulative height), and there might be even more hidden further upstream and downstream of the main touristed area.
In addition to its waterfalls, this place attracts families from around the country with its river beach (praia fluvial).
This was where the Ribeira de Codes creek has been man-modified to ensure the water at the river beach is both calm and shallow.
It’s even watched over by a life guard during the Summer season (as it was during our mid-June 2024 visit) to ensure this place remains a fun place for the whole family.
The family-friendliness of this place is further played up as there was a gentle boardwalk and trail (i.e. the Passadiços do Penedo Furado) connecting the praia fluvial to the cascatas.
As if that wasn’t enough, there were also panoramic views to be had of both the gorge and the reservoir as well as a chance to check out some ancient fossils at the bicha pintada (or “painted tail”).
Indeed, the slab of rock here is said to be 480 million years old.
Even though this place can be quite popular, it appears to be well off the beaten path of most tourist itineraries (at least nowhere near as crazy as Porto, Sintra, the Algarve, nor Lisboa).
There are also statues donated by nearby villagers perched atop some outcrops overlooking the gorge.
They were situated in such a way as to remind me of the famous Jesus the Redeemer statues in both Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and across the April 25th Bridge in Lisbon.
Experiencing Penedo Furado – lookouts and the Praia Fluvial
While there are many ways to experience the Penedo Furado attractions, we’ll just focus on how we managed to experience this place.
We started off by stopping at one of two overlooks during the drive down to the car park for Penedo Furado (see directions below).
Even though we could have walked down to the main trails along the creeks down below from the lookouts, we just briefly stopped and then continued driving so we wouldn’t have to worry about the elevation gain/loss.
The lookout we stopped for was the Miradouro Fragas do Rabadão, which had a swing as well as views of both the Ribeira do Milreu and the Ribeira de Codes (both of which feed into the Albufeira do Castelo do Bode reservoir).
The Miradouro do Penedo Furado was a little further south from the one we stopped for.
This lookout offered a more southerly view of the Ribeira de Codes while near the bottom of its descent into the gorge was the Bicha Pintada (site of a 480 million-year-old fossil).
Once we got to the car park for Penedo Furado, there were picnic areas, campgrounds, the aforementioned river beach, toilets, and even a snack bar.
Experiencing Penedo Furado – Walking the Grande Rota do Zêzere
From this developed area, we then followed the boardwalk (passadiços) leading downstream along the Ribeira de Codes on the Grande Rota do Zêzere.
But before even getting started in earnest on this walk, just downstream of the dam holding up the creek for the swimming area, there was the end of the steps that came down from the Miradouro do Penedo Furado.
And just a short flight of steps up this trail was a spur path leading to a roped off area with an interpretive sign for the Bicha Pintada (or painted tail), which housed an ancient fossil on its veined slab of rock.
Continuing on the Grande Rota do Zêzere along the creek, it would continue for about 700m as it went past a footbridge (where the path to the left was for the Grande Rota da Prata e do Ouro) and ultimately got to another footbridge.
This second footbridge crossed the Ribeira do Milreu just downstream of the first waterfall of the Penedo Furado.
This one fell in two separate tiers underneath some bridge and steeply ascending trail leading back up to the Miradouro das Fragas de Rabadão.
According to a sign here, this first waterfall, which I’m estimating to be where the Ribeira do Milreu dropped a modest 5m or so, was called the Fonte Cristalina.
Continuing up the steps above the Fonte Cristalina, the trail then continued up past some rock shelters or sheds with a detour that led up to the backside of one of the statues overlooking the gorge.
I had to be real careful on the steep scramble to get up to the statue because the footing was unsure, and I did wonder if I was even supposed to scramble up to the statue in the first place.
In any case, continuing along the elevated boardwalk, I only had to go about another 100m or so before reaching a spur trail descending to a lookout for the secluded Bica Negra Waterfall.
This waterfall seemed to have a bit more height than the Fonte Cristalina Waterfall, and I’m guessing that it’s where the Ribeira do Pisão dropped roughly 10m.
Indeed, this waterfall was more satisfying to look at compared to Fonte Cristalina, but it was essentially my turnaround point for the brief hike from the Praia Fluvial do Penedo Furado.
While there was another statue perched even higher above the continuation of the trail (where one path went up to the Miradouro das Fragas de Rabadão), I decided not to continue climbing to pursue them.
Thus, when all was said and done, I wound up walking about 1.6km round-trip, and we wound up spending a little under 90 minutes away from the car.
Authorities
The Penedo Furado Waterfall is located near the town and municipality of Vila de Rei of the Castelo Branco District (also straddling the Santarém District) in the Centro Region of Portugal. It is managed by the Municipality of Vila de Rei. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, you can try visiting the Center of Portugal website.
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