Praia da Bordeira is well-known for its winds and waves and that’s why it is so popular with wind and surf sports enthusiasts. So much so that not many actually go into the little village itself really, especially since the main road that goes into the village is rather new and people have not grown yet accustomed to it. The road is however, wide and planted with rows of palms and flowerbeds.

The small church cannot be missed and it is said that it has been standing since before the major earthquake that shook the entire region centuries ago. The inside of the church is quite stunning featuring a heavily carved and gilded wooden centre piece, the church being dedicated to the patron, our Lady of Incarnation.

The village of Bordeira is located in a basin that is surrounded by green countryside that is protected by the government.

As opposed to most other small villages in the region, which are whitewashed, Bordeira has many buildings that are painted with vibrant colours which accent the building’s features. The many small and stone cobbled roads are planted with orange and lemon trees thus giving the place a very traditional village feel, some of the houses sitting staggered high above one another.

The village is quite small so there’s just a café/bar and another restaurant used by the locals, as well as a shop. The village is a thriving little community with not many ruins because even what was once the communal bake oven/house has been converted into living accommodation.

Getting to Bordeira can be made that much easier with some Algarve car hire services.

Divers from the Divers Cape centre in Sagres managed to trace the remains of a wreck that they believe to be the 17^th century boat of Pedro Diaz. They also say that this wreck was varying gold when it was shipwrecked in the port of Baleeira, in 1608.

The divers were assisted by Spanish archaeologists who came with a bunch of specialist equipment, and together they were able to confirm the presence of large ancient oak fragment and metal bolts on the sea floor, thus supporting the idea that there are indeed the remains of Pedro Diaz’s craft.

It should be noted that the discovery correlates with archives that offer details related to the sinking of boats, Spanish or otherwise, over many centuries in or near Baleeira.

The boat’s name is unknown, but it is known to have been carrying gold and other precious metals as contraband.

Over the years, different gold objects washed ashore on the beach in the area near Baleeira, for instance in 1617, three gold bars were found, and then in 1625 another piece of gold was discovered.

The remains lie in sand at a depth of twelve meters, and it is feasible that other gold relics might be buried there, possibly further down.

The discovery has been reported to the proper authorities and the divers are awaiting confirmation of the identity of the find.

Obviously this isn’t the type of thing that you’ll be engaging in while on your trip to the region, but it does help to better accentuate that with the help of some Algarve car hire services, you can dive all around the coast at your will.