Fishing & Boating on the River Minho

The picture above looking up river was taken in January when the River Minho is high; where you see a beige bank in the distance on the other side of the river is where the last set of rapids are found; there is some white water past us to the west but aside a safe navigation channel. Below is a picture taken from the top floor of our villa of that white water section when the river was lower. What looks like an island in the river below is often flooded; many fisherman use this point to fish the waters at the end of the rapids. The wall jutting into the river further on was once used to hold salmon nets across the river; we have a similar one coming from our land.

Our villa / quinta is located just west of this last hard to navigate section of the River Minho / Rio Mino. As such quite a few boats come up from Moncao and Salvaterra's public slipways to fish here, plus many fishermen walk down via the public footpath to a point directly in front of our villa to fish there around May, when the Savel (Shad) runs upstream to breed. A few salmon also still make the river trip, though not in any great number; trout can be caught year round here. Local fishermen use spinning lures and a permit costs a few Euros. Where they fish from the bank is actually quite a nice picnic spot and they sometimes bring their family with them, although the other side of the river is the place for that. Every year the Spanish authorities drop several lorry loads of sand onto the bank in a clearing so that families can come down to the river and swim and relax; it is called a "Praia Fluvial" (river beach). There are some trees / places to either moor or pull up a boat, so it is an easy matter to take a small boat from our private slipway over there. I think we have the only private slipway in the area; only we can physically use it as the public footpath is not wide enough for other people to bring their boats down.

This is a view west, looking down river. Just around the bend in the river is Moncao on your left and Salvaterra on your right. During the summer months many children come, especially in school groups to kayak and sail in small Hobbie type sailboats. The river police on both sides regularly keep an eye out for jet skis which technically are legal (if they are licensed which most are not) but are not practical because of a speed limit along this stretch; with the swimmers, kayakers, fishing boats and small sailing boats, jet ski owners tend to avoid the area anyway. The land here on the riverbank is technically ours, but we have no rights over it (it is public access). Our slipway is suitable for a small sail boat, inflatable or conventional fiberglass fishing boat. Under Portuguese law in order to get a boat license, you first need to get a swimming certificate; this can be done at the local public swimming pool in Moncao. Both sides of the river tend to be quite calm and safe but the river is often fast moving and very dangerous in the middle.

Above, local children take canoeing / kayaking classes.