Today I went on a bit of an adventure and tried our hand at some URBEX (Urban Exploration). Its been about a year since I went up the Serra da Gardunha, which is a large mountain range just behind our farm. These beautiful mountains are 20 milometers in length and 10 kilometres wide and are located in the Beira Baixa region of Central Portugal.
Its spring time and the mountain is looking absolutely incredible. All of the flowers are out in full force and the views from up top are spectacular. What I didn’t expect to find were these old abandoned homes and buildings, which were damaged in the great fires of 2017. I found a route in and went for a spot of urban exploration (urbex) to have a look inside these buildings on abandoned land, and uncover their secrets. I also found the Baloiço do Castelo Velho, which is an old wooden swing chair perched up high in the mountain, with far reaching views of the surrounding land and the Marateca dam. I also managed to spot our farm from way up there!
We are Ken & Gina, and we left the UK in 2019 in search of a simpler life, away from our office jobs, and the hustle and bustle of the big city. We sold our house, left the UK, and left the Rat race behind us, to move to Portugal and buy a farm. We found an amazing farm in Castelo Branco, Central Portugal where we have lived for the last two and a half years. We make these videos for our friends and family to keep up with what’s going on in our new lives and as a record to look back on one day so see how far we have come. We are always amazed when we see how many people have been watching, following, and subscribing to our vlogs. Thanks for tuning in 😊
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Ken fantastic video the views were stunning also the plants,looking through the old buildings made it more interesting I wish I was there but my legs are not good anymore but watching was great.
cool discovery1 watch a spanish movie called el orfanato (the orphanage)…that school dorm building you toured reminded me of it. nice to see you dont have to goto far for an adventure
Absolutely beautiful video! Thank you for sharing!! Much love to yas!☺❤ see you next time!
I hope you got a nice selfie of yourself on top of that mountain ! wow the views are fantastic! thank you for taking on this journey AGAIN I remember doing it with you before. I think there were some people there at the swing last time. I hope your tire held up ok for you to get home.Can't wait for your video when you bring your mom there! Have a lovely week. Annmarie in Oregon
It is an amazing video! Thanks Ken! I will watch it again probably! I felt I was there..
That building is the old colónia de férias de média altitude da Serra da gardunha.
Maybe an orphanage? Or maybe a catholic boarding school? The building seems to be an amazingly well build. Either privately own by the church or the government?
The first big room with tiles look like a lunch/eatery room?
Maybe ran by nuns or priests?
Oh my gosh that was awesome
Thank you for sharing 😁
Colégio de são fiel . Ken that was a religious college of boys, some years ago closed and was just working for juvenil offenders . 4 to 5 years ago was a big fire in the gardunha houses and people evacuated but the government make sure people will be safe but not the college what was already abandoned. I was in Lardosa at the time did help some English tourist back to Lisbon cos all gardunha was close and burning. Hope this will be helpful
It lovely to see the Serra da Gardunha in the spring, my wife and I walked up to the swing in February
cool stuff Ken 💪💪⚡️⚡️
Looks like an abandoned village that once was inhabited.
As a subscriber with you since the first 100 or 200 I'm really happy for you to be at almost 30K now, well done 👏
Awsome video Ken!… Amazing views. When you went in Colony" Said Ken go up the stairs!… My hubby said to me!.. to hum are you talking too!… :). Thank you Ken for sharing with us. Take care.
👌👌 stunning views
Oh wow. That orphanage would make an incredible house !
Hey man, I’m sorry I left your channel. Hard times. ❤️
You create wonderful vlogs.
Is it possible you could say “our farm” “ our house” our life”,just a thought. I used to be the same as you until I met my Neil. He, taught me well.
Much love to you all.❤️xxx
From the drone view the building has a cross shape, so it use to be a monastery or something like that … just an opinion
What an amazing landscape! Loved your commentary, the 360 degree views, the stunning rocks, the flora, and the lizard running away! What a great adventure. Thank you for taking us with you. Love your channel. No plans to come to Portugal, as I live in beauty on the North Sea in the East Riding of of Yorkshire, UK. You have captured the beauty of your land with your filming. Love this video!
Another beautiful vid. What you'll do for your viewers❣ Lots of great cameras😃, one-handed filming while biking uphill😃, limited amount of drinking water😬. Those mountain springs looked just the thing to cool off with, thank goodness.
Glad you went back up in the Spring. It became quite cold & wet the time you fished there with Theo. And did you go up one time when it was dry & scorchio? You are All Seasons Gardunha Ken🚴♂️! It really is amazing how the flora has changed with each visit. Thank you for bringing us along.
Very cool adventure Ken. Thanks for mixing it up!!
Excellent video Ken. Learnt a lot about the geography, topography of the region. Thank you.
THANK YOU I enjoyed it so very much… As for drinking water some of the water should be safe to drink especially the water coming form that small pipe or up high on the mountain… But to be safe you need to get a life straw it good for like 5,000 plus liters of water they say. Or some other compact water filter you pack along with you to refill your bottle as you go… PLEASE next time don't leave home with a patch kit and air pump. Just get a pack for your bike and leave your tools, patch kit, and a new inter tub just incase, also a rag in it on your bike all the time. As for the air pump you can get one with mounting brackets to put on your bike so you always have one with you. Always plan for the worst and pray for the best. And you need to have a small home made first aid kit in your backpack you never no when you'll pass by someone in need of a Band-Aid or some paper tape to care for their cut. If your going to help them be sure you got latex gloves. These are small thing I always carried with me on my bike and motorcycle. Never needed them thank GOD in all the 50 some years I peddled or road across the miles, MANNY MANNY MILES. But I was always ready like if I was a good boys scout always ready…
Thanks again for a awesome video. Be blessed my friend in Jesus name… BBE..
So spooky… I wonder if it was an orphanage? Most likely a boarding school though.
Omg what gorgeous scenery and views! And mountain water to cool off in! Loved this video Ken! Hope you get home safe!
Great video Ken! "Colónia de férias de média altitude da Serra da Gardunha" was probably also a SummerResort for children (Vacation Colony) by the Bank Workers' Union around the 1980's…….
Wow Ken Fascinating video!!, Like doing a walkthrough on Fallout 4, love the views❤️
So nice to see these mountains up close. So many of the farms show this in the background. I bet many of the property owners haven't gone up there, even by car. It's quite lovely, and quite open land. I think I would be afraid to live up there with that threat of fire. I hope you all never another one as many did in 2917. Thanks and regards to Gina. Jane, Philadelphia P.S. Have been to Europe over 80 times and never made it to Portugal. So glad I can visit with you through your vlogs.
Loved the bike ride…everything was so beautiful. I would never have nerve to drive it.
😀