On February 27th it will again be possible to cross the Águas Livres Aqueduct by bicycle, in the Campolide-Monsanto direction.
On the last Sunday of every month, until June, the Águas Livres Aqueduct will be open to those who want to cycle through it. Between 10 am and 1 pm, just show up with your two-wheeled companion at the Aqueduct entrance in Campolide. There is no need to book in advance, nor to take your wallet out of your pocket - the tour is free.
It was like that on the last Sunday in January, January 30, and should also be so on February 27, March 27, April 24, May 29, and June 26. The route is one-way: from Campolide to MonsantoOn the other side you can continue the ride through the forest park or exit to São Domingos de Benfica, going down to the Radial bike path or the Conde Almoster bike path. A tip: if you're alone and feel disoriented, ask a fellow cyclist who is also doing the route for directions.
The entrance to the Aqueduct is at number 6 on the Calçada da Quintinha.
This Sunday, the adhesion to this initiative - called "Aqueduto Sobre Rodas" - was massive. At the entrance of the Aqueduct in Campolide, the bicycles piled up while their owners took the usual picture next to the yellowish wall. Without haste, the cyclists were entering and starting their crossing.
Built between 1731 and 1799, the Águas Livres Aqueduct is 14 kilometers long in its main branch, starting at Mãe de Água Velha, in Belas, and ending at the reservoir at Mãe de Água das Amoreiras, in Lisbon. If we add the various secondary sections designed to carry water from around 60 springs, the Aqueduct was around 58 km long in the mid-19th century. But the most visible and well-known part (and the one you ride a bike through) of the Águas Livres Aqueduct is the extraordinary archway in the Alcântara valley, composed of 35 arches and 941 meters long.
