Edge of the world: discovering the wild side of the Algarve
The very tip of Portugal is a haven for dolphins, whales, walkers – and savvy tourists keen to discover an under-the-radar stretch of the coast
‘I’m not sure about this,” says the American woman, jammed into the jockey seat in front of me, as the rim of the boat, carrying 20 of us out into the Atlantic Ocean, slams down against the swell. “I think I’m a bit scared.”
She’s not the only one. A dolphin-spotting trip had seemed a wonderfully relaxing way to spend a morning out on the shimmering seas around Sagres, the Algarve’s westernmost town, believed for centuries to be the very edge of the world. Mar Ilimitado’s pre-trip briefing promised bottlenose dolphins, possibly minke whales and even hammerhead sharks, in conditions that were “unseasonably calm” for early autumn.
