Carcavelos Gois

Aigra Nova
Aigra Velha
Alagoa
Albergaria
Alegria
Alvém
Bordeiro
Carcavelos
Carvalhal Miúdo
Casal Bordeiro
Carvão
Casal dos Moinhos
Casalinho de Baixo
Casalinho de Cima
Casal Loureiro
Caselhos
Cerdeira
Cerejeira
Chã e Favaqueira
Cimo de Alvém
Civado
Comareira
Conhais
Cortecega
Esporão
Folgosa
Frontão
Ladeiras
Liboreiro
Luzendas
Outeiro
Manjão
Nogueiro
Pena
Piães
Pião
Pontão do Seladinho
Ponte do Sótão
Portela
Portela de Góis
Póvoa de Cerdeira
Póvoa de Góis
Povorais
Quinta do Carvão
Regateira
Ribeira Cimeira
Ribeira Fundeira
Samoura
São Martinho
Vale Boa
Vale de Maceira
Vale Godinho
Vale Moreiro
Vale Torto
Vale Travasso

Gois

The village of Carcavelos is approximately 1.5 km from the medieval bridge in Góis. Turning left at the bridge as you exit the town, the road follows perfectly the twists and bends of the river Ceira as it cuts its way through the steep valley. Above the road you can see the remains of old gold and tungsten mines, last worked around 1950. The last bend of the road reveals the beautiful village of Carcavelos, and from this point you can also ee the waterfall, that is in fact man-made, and was built to harness the river’s energy to provide power for a mill, now ruined. To the side of the waterfall there is a passageway, that leads to another mill upstream. The village itself is set round a cobbled square, with a collection of houses, all of them different in style and size.
The narrow lane that leads on through the village drops steeply down a path to the river and waterfall, where the splashing water and deep pool attracts many visitors from June to September. On the 15th of August every year the people of Carcavelos participate in an “almoço de convívio” (communal lunch) organized by the Comissão de Melhoramentos dos Amigos de Carcavelos attended by 150 or so people.
Around the village are pieces of cultivated land with peach and orange trees, in rich fertile soil. But half a century ago the cultivated area was much greater, with flat terraces extending down the steep valley side.

About 500m from Carcavelos, up the river Ceira, is situated the Monte Redondo hydroelectric power station .It was built in the 1920’s to supply electricity to the paper factory at Ponte do Sótão and was originally installed with two hydroelectric turbines manufactured in Germany, allegedly marked with a swastika! The original access to the building was along a narrow path that runs along the north side of the Ceira, and a suspension bridge. The engineers chose the site because the river makes a broad loop and falls steeply, allowing them to tunnel through the narrowest part of the loop, and damming the river. They also knew that the river Ceira alters greatly according to the season, so they created a weir to allow excess water down the original course of the Ceira, and a second weir above the power station where it emerges from the tunnel. This maintained a constant pressure at the turbines. Today the power station still produces electricity and is responsible for slight changes in water level over the weir in Góis.
You can see the hydroelectric station by following a well-maintained dirt road from above Carcavelos. There is a monument along the way in honour of the firefighter António José Alves dos Anjos, who died in 1994.

The road stops above the power station where there is a modern incline railway that is used to transport equipment down to the power station. There is also a steep path with many steps leading down to the entrance. It is not possible to enter the power station, as it is still in operation, but it is possible to view it from the riverside. Incidentally, at this point the river Ceira is so narrow, it can be stepped over, before the river is swelled by the emerging waters.

Updated 20 June, 2008