We thought September would be cooler in southern Portugal. I was delighted to find it was still warm enough to lie by the pool. There is a really long beach and the sand is very soft. The photos below are at the farthest point from the harbour.
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| There were some interesting rock formations on the beach. | This beach is near the Alvor Praia hotel, our sister hotel. |
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I was there collecting rock samples- just tiny ones as the locals do not want their beach being taken to UK. |
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There were many interesting structural road cuttings on the A22 motorway but we could not stop. Those above are on the road from Silves to Monchique in the mountains behind Alvor. The dip is 40 degrees and the mudstones are baked and brittle. |
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This is a closer view |
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Our next stop. Here I could see either a vein or a discordant intrusion cutting across the beds. We liked the up market bus shelter, there was a new bus sign. |
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| Rock face on the way up the the summit the sample was lying below the face, I believe it had broken off when the nearby bar owner build a retaining wall. Why transport rocks for your stone wall when it is all around you? | |
| I have been informed that this is an intermediate volcanic rock. It has really large crystals, formed at depth (phenacrysts) | |
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| At the car park near the summit, there are lots of outcrops levelled off with stones. This is a pumice sort of rock with lots of air holes. Visibility was not very good this day or we could have seen the coast from our position at 900m. The summit is at 902m but the army have aerial sites up there so it is not accessible. | |
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| This shelly rock is in the cornerstones of the fortress in Lagos. I think is was built in the 14th century. | |
| Click this link to see some lovely bedding formations. I took these from a small motor boat in rough seas. | Or here to see our holiday snaps. |
Last updated September 2007
