Along
the coast between Setúbal and Sesimbra, the Serra da Arrabida
stretches up. These chalky hills have the only surviving example of
primitive Mediterranean vegetation. Tucked away in the heart of Arrábida's
Natural Park, the formation goes back 180 million years. The soil
and mild climatic features, considered the best in Portugal, have
produced a lush vegetation rich in species.
The Arrábida Natural Park was formed in 1976 and covers an
area of 10,800 hectares. Setúbal, Palmela, Azeitão,
Sesimbra and the sea make up its boundaries. The countryside is hilly
and we can find the Serra dos Gaiteiros, S. Luís, S. Francisco,
Louro, Risco along with the highest hills, the Serra da Arrábida
which stands at 499 metres high. This ends abruptly and cuts into
the sea, providing a scene
of picturesque beauty with the lush green vegetation and the chalk
white face of the cliffs, such beauty which inspired poets like Sebastião
da Gama.
On the coast, between the sandy beaches and clear water, up above,
breeding grounds for birds of prey abound and one can also find a
typical maritime flora which extends as far as the Serra do Risco,
the highest coastal point of continental Portugal (300 metres above
sea-level). In Creiro, around the Pedra da Anicha, an island traced
above the sea leads us to the only zoological reserve of the Natural
Park, named so because of the value of underwater plant species found
there.
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