ENGLISH

RIVER ROUTESVARINO O BOA VIAGEM

RIVER ROUTES ON THE TAGUS

Every year between April and October Moita City Council organises boat trips on the Tagus aboard a traditional, varino type vessel “O Boa Viagem” (Good Trip). A series of river routes of cultural, ecologi-cal and tourist interest has been put forward with a view to putting at the disposal of user groups the possibility of getting to know the wide diversity of the Tagus estuary (salt marshes, salt flats and evi-dence of heritage). These different routes may last three hours or a day, depending on the tide times. This is how we would like to invite all those who wish to experience a different day with your family and friends and share moments of relaxation and leisure, taking a river trip aboard the municipal vessel «O Boa Viagem».

O BOA VIAGEM

“O Boa Viagem” is a varino type vessel with a flat bottom, long rudder, a round bow, elongated and curved inwards. Its mast is inclined sternwards where the quadrangular lateen sail unfurls and a staysail on the bow. The year of its construction is not known, we only know that in 1900 it was owned by Emygdio Gonçalves and was registered with the Lisbon Harbour Master under the name of “Marechal Saldanha”. In 1907 it was sold to the shipowner Albano José António Leite who gave it its first name “Albano I”. In around 1962 it underwent major recovery work at the Seixal shipyard of António Gravidão and during these works they increased its tonnage from 50 to 60 tonnes. For years this vessel carried out the transport of cork produced in the factories of Seixal, Alhos Vedros and Moita. Very often it was used for loading and unloading ships, as, in view of the fact it was a flat-bottomed boat, it could receive cargo at locations which were inaccessible to frigates, transferring it from large vessels to land. However, with the progress made by road haulage and the construction of the bridges of Vila Franca de Xira and Lisbon, river activity began to die out and in the mid-1970’s “Albano I” stopped working and, as happened with other vessels, it was left to rot. In 1980 Moita City Council decided to acquire the vessel and see to its re-covery, work which was carried out at the Dock Master José Lopes shipyard in Gaio. On September 11th 1981 the varino was presented at Moita quay for the first time to the locals going by its new name of “O Boa Viagem”, a name which was assigned by the local government in view of the local religious devotion to Nossa Senhora da Boa Viagem.Between 2010 and 2011 “O Boa Viagem” was again submitted to a major intervention which involved the actual structure of the vessel at the Sarilhos Pequenos shipyard under the supervision of Dock Master Jaime Costa. During the course of this recovery ancestral shipbuilding techniques were used in terms of carpentry, calking and traditional paintwork which greatly recalls the processes and techniques used for the construction of former vessels which used to make maritime exploration trips. This re-flects the importance of the varino in terms of heritage both as testimony to a reminder of work connected with transport and as a repository of methods dating back centuries, associated with shipbuilding, making this boat a real floating, living museum, the material expression of a Tagus whose historic identity was built with the movement of these traditional vessels.

DIMENSIONSLength: 20.64 metresBreadth: 5.25 metresDepth: 1.45 metresTonnage: 37.79 tonnesCrew: The varino sailed with a three-strong crew, one skipper and two able seamen.

CROSS-SECTION AND THE LONGITUDINAL VIEW OF THE VARINO

BOAT’S COMPLEMENTThe river trips are carried out with a minimum number of 15 people and a maximum of 47.

BOW STERN

BREADTH DEPTH

OTHER INFORMATION

By dint of its natural characteristics, the estuary of the River Tagus consti-tutes an excellent habitat for the rich, diversified avifauna which finds its place of refuge, feeding, reproduction and nesting there. Throughout the year, but in particular in the Autumn and Winter months, it is possible to observe a vast number of aquatic birds. In actual fact, it was because of its avifauna that the Tagus estuary gained its status as the most important humid area in the country and one of the most important in Europe.Hence, during the course of river trips aboard the varino “O Boa Viagem”, it is highly likely to witness or catch a glimpse of some of the species of avifauna which usually frequent certain spots on the estuary and which we have listed below:

Wading bird, especially in former salt flats;

Avocet in the intertidal silt areas;

Greater flamingo in the former salt flats and intertidal silts;

Little egret in the silts, former salt flats and salt marshes;

Grey heron in the salt marshes and intertidal area;

Dunlin in the silts and intertidal sands;

Black-tailed godwit in the former salt flats and intertidal area;

Cormorant in the estuary islets or sandy points;

Black-headed gull in the silts, sands and former salt flats;

Lesser black-backed gull in the silts, sands and former salt flats;

Herring gull in the silts, sands and former salt flats;

Mallard in former salt flats;

Common moorhen in fresh water reed beds, lakes or ponds;

Coot in fresh water reed beds, lakes or ponds.

RIVER ROUTESTHREE-HOUR

Gaio | Alhos Vedros | Gaio

Gaio | Base Aérea do Montijo | Baixa da Banheira | Gaio

Gaio | Rosário | Esteiro Furado | Gaio

Gaio | Rosário | Montijo | Gaio

Gaio | Rosário | Sarilhos Pequenos | Gaio

RIVER ROUTESDAY-LONG

Gaio | Base Aérea do Montijo | Alcochete | Gaio

Gaio | Base Aérea do Montijo | Vila Franca de Xira | Gaio

Gaio | Parque das Nações | Santa Apolónia | Alcântara | Belém | Gaio

Gaio | Parque das Nações | Santa Apolónia | Alcântara | Porto Brandão Trafaria | Gaio

Gaio | Parque das Nações | Santa Apolónia | Gaio

Gaio | Base Aérea do Montijo | Ponta da Erva | Gaio

Gaio | Santa Apolónia | Terreiro do Paço | Almada | Seixal | Barreiro | Gaio

CONTACTSDEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL AFFAIRS AND CULTURE / CULTURE DIVISION:Rua João da Nova, nº.3 – 2860-469 MoitaTel.: 21/081 70 00 | Fax 21/081 70 19e-mail: div.cultural@mail.cm-moita.pt

TOURISM OFFICE:Rua Dr. Miguel Bombarda nº.2 A – 2860-461 MoitaTel.: 21/280 68 58e-mail: sec.turismo@mail.cm-moita.pt

PUBLISHER: Câmara Municipal de Moita / DASC / Divisão de Cultura

TEXTS AND RESEARCH: Maria Clara Santos

DESIGN: DIRP/CAG: Tânia Luz

PHOTOS: José Presumido e arquivo da CMM

MAPS: Rita Costa

TRANSLATION: Alphatrad Internacional Lda.

PRINTING:

NUMBER OF UNITS: 500

EDITION: SEPTEMBER 2011

LEGAL DEPOSIT:

www.cm-moita.pt