The São Leonardo de Galafura viewpoint is one of the most beautiful viewpoints in the Douro. From its height of 640 metres it has a sublime view over the Douro River and the surrounding landscape.
Described in Miguel Torga’s work as “not a panorama that the eyes contemplate: it is an excess of nature”, we can find here a transcription of his work on a tile panel:
“The Doiro sublimated. The prodigy of a landscape that ceases to be by dint of being unmeasured. It is not a panorama that the eyes contemplate: it is an excess of nature. Terraces that are passed from titanic men climbing the slopes, volumes, colours and modulations that no sculptor painted or musician can translate, horizons dilated beyond the plausible thresholds of vision. A virginal universe, as if it had just been born, and already eternal for the harmony, the serenity, the silence that not even the river dares to break, sometimes furtively disappearing behind the mountains, sometimes stupefied deep down reflecting its own amazement. A geological poem. Absolute beauty”.
At the viewpoint there is a chapel where every year, on the penultimate weekend of August, local festivities take place and attract many visitors. You can also find a picnic park, with stone benches and shade where you can enjoy this wonderful landscape as a backdrop. You will also find a geodesic marker here, as this place is the highest in the surrounding area.