In the North-East of Portugal, between the Alto Minho and thrush-ush-Montes, mountain ranges of Serra-di-Pineda and Serra-di-gerês form only in Portugal conservation area which is classified as national Park.

Gerês national Park, or the Park, referred to simply as gerês, attracts visitors with its spectacular scenery and diverse flora and fauna. In the Park there are medieval castles (in Castro Laboreiro and Lindoso), it will be interesting also to look at the ruins of the monastery of the XII century in Pitois-dash-Jones and learn a lot about ancient values and traditions. You should visit the Museum under the open sky in Vilarinho-Furnas, a village which was flooded during the construction of the dam in 1971.

It is believed that the first human settlements near the mountain range of Serra-di-gerês appeared about 6 thousand years BC, evidenced by the discovery of dolmens and other megalithic tombs. Through the Northern part of the country ran the Roman road that connected the Roman city of Astorga and Bracara Augusta; she fragmentarily preserved to our days. The settlement of Serra-di-gerês began in the XII century, and in the XVI century, with the advent of such crops as maize, beans and potatoes that were imported from America, settlements began to grow more intense.

The national Park was established in may 1971. The total area of the Park – 702, 9 sq km, of which 194, 38 square miles are privately owned, 52, 75 sq km belong to the state, and the remaining 455 sq km opened to tourists visiting the Park. The Park has the shape of a giant amphitheater and is surrounded by mountain ranges that form the barrier between the plains to the West and the plateau in the East. Granite rocks of the mountains was formed about 310 million years ago. In the Park there is an oak forest, among which there are rare species of these trees, the riparian forest. Grow Portuguese laurels, strawberry trees, birch. Among the forest people there are brown bears, mountain goats and many other species of animals.