Tourist Small Villages of Ermida and Germil

Embraced by the sky and land, the villages of Ermida and Germil, nestled in the Amarela Mountain, maintain the rural clusters of typical mountain settlements, with dwellings in stone and very concentrated, several of which recovered. In Ermida there is the Museological Nucleus that protects the heritage of a community way of life, with a collection that includes two millenary sculptures, considered national treasures: the Pedra dos Namorados (“Couple’s Rock”) and the Ermida Menhir Statue. At the entrance of the town, following a stone-paved road, one comes to Bilhares, a grazing and cultivation summer pasture, whose popular architecture is reflected in the granite masonry constructions. The rectangular constructions and the gable roofs reusing ancient roman cushioned worked stones, give the place a great patrimonial value. The small village of Germil also preserves this almost unscathed popular architecture. It is worth exploring these ancient paths that cross the Amarela Mountain and find marks of a territory occupation that has remained in balance with nature. Rehabilitated and functioning water mills will be seen, a restored wolf “fojo” (trapping hole for wolfs), bear “silhas” still in use (stone wall protections for bee hives against bears), water courses, terraced fields and amongst the houses discover common threshing floors, granaries and the sun clocks.