18 hectares somewhere between Trás-os-Montes and the Minho
Lugar do Bucheiro isn't a name you'll find on lists of the country's great wildlife parks. Even so, Parque Ambiental do Bucheiro covers a considerable area for a municipality in the interior of Trás-os-Montes, with 18 hectares split between woodland zones of indigenous species, identified fauna and two interpretation centres.
The educational component is what sets this park apart from a casual visit to a roadside zoo. The environmental workshop and interpretation centres make it a destination aimed at school groups, but that doesn't mean you lose time as an individual visitor: the species identification logic gives context to what you're looking at.
Ribeira de Pena sits at the crossroads of the climatic influences that define this stretch of the country, where the Trás-os-Montes granite starts to give way to the denser green of the Minho. That transitional context is reflected in the choice of indigenous species that cover the park, and turns the visit into something tied to the specific territory you're in.
what you'll find
- identified fauna with regional species
- indigenous woodland with signage
- two environmental interpretation centres
- environmental workshop for hands-on activities
- the silence of the Trás-os-Montes interior all around
