Greater Côa Valley

The Greater Côa Valley is a major river corridor stretching roughly 140km. From its source in the Serra das Mesas (Sabugal) to where it meets the Douro (Vila Nova de Foz Côa), this river crosses a plateau region of Beira Interior, at the edge of the Iberian Meseta. It once served as a natural border, and to this day it closely follows this borderland territory, rich in history, nature and landscape.

Its natural landscape has been recovering over recent decades, forming large expanses of oak woodland, natural grassland and ash groves. As a result, wildlife is returning, most notably large herbivores such as red deer and roe deer, and the legendary Iberian wolf. It is, at a European level, one of the areas chosen by Rewilding Europe to showcase a new philosophy of nature conservation and large-landscape management.