Cabo Espichel sits south-west of Sesimbra — technically outside the Setúbal municipality, but an easy day-trip from the city. PR2 SSB is an 8 km loop around the cape platform, waymarked by Sesimbra Council, with steady coastal exposure and three rare landmarks in short succession: the 18th-century Santuário de Nossa Senhora do Cabo Espichel (baroque), the Ermida da Memória, and the 1790 lighthouse — one of Portugal's oldest still in operation.
The real rarity here: Pedra da Mua, right on the trail, carries Upper Jurassic dinosaur footprints — theropod and sauropod tracks visible to the naked eye on the vertical cliff face, one of very few in-situ sites accessible on foot in Europe.
+139 m cumulative gain, 3h10 at walking pace, mixed terrain (forest road and narrow path). Waymarked; overlaps the Grande Rota da Arrábida (GR11-E9) in the opening stretch. The return cuts inland — less view, more shelter from wind.
Last reviewed: 2026-04