There are several explanations for the origin of the name «Douro». A legend says that it was customary to see small, shiny pebbles roll, which turned out to be made of gold. Some say that the name is due to the muddy color of the river waters, a consequence of the large amounts of debris that the floods dragged down the slopes and that because they were a bright yellow gave it a gold color. But there are still those who defend that this name derives from the Latin "Durius", in other words, "Duro", due to the hardness of its tortuous contours of high and rocky escarpments.

 

The Douro River rises in the Serra de Urbión, in northern Spain, at an altitude of 2000 meters. It is the second largest river in Portugal with a total length of 927 km; in Portuguese territory, this river is only 210 km long and is navigable throughout this route, thanks to the five dams that are nowadays also an attraction due to its unevenness. The Carrapatelo Dam has a water level difference of 35 meters, one of the biggest differences in Europe.

 

It was this river, in very narrow and dangerous times, that brought prosperity to the region, since it was through it that the precious nectar, Port Wine, was transported. In past centuries this river represented a challenge and a danger for those who sailed on it. It was filled with very strong chains and submerged stones. At that time, only a small wooden boat - the Rabelo - was able to navigate these waters and transport the wine from the Douro Valley to the mouth, on whose banks the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia are located.

The Douro River is an international river that rises at the peaks of the Urbion mountain range, in the province of Soria, Spain, at an altitude of 2,080 meters and travels approximately 850 km to its Foz, in the city of Porto. It is the third largest river in the Iberian Peninsula, having an extension in Portuguese territory of about 210 km.

 

Nowadays, it is a very calm river, completely navigable. But in the past, the Douro River was extremely violent. The strong flows, the protruding rocks, the tight curves, and the high slope of the river made it very dangerous and practically untamed.

 

The first attempts to unblock the navigability of the river began as early as the middle of the 16th century. However, it was only in 1791, with the elimination of the Cachão da Valeira, that the upper Douro was opened to river navigation.

 

The Cachão da Valeira was an insurmountable natural obstacle that made navigation on the Douro River extremely difficult. It was a granitic formation that caused a kind of dam on the riverbed, from which the water fell from a height of about 15 m. The boats went up the river from Foz do Douro, in Porto, only to the tight gorge of Cachão da Valeira, which prevented them from sailing upstream.

 

At the end of the 18th century, Queen D. Maria I had this rock demolished. In this sense, hundreds of dynamite explosions were carried out below the waterline, which allowed to widen the riverbed.

 

But the demolition of Cachão da Valeira was not enough to calm the fury of the waters of the Douro. The river was still angry. As we pass through this area, we remember two of the most famous figures in the history of Douro and Port Wine: D. Antónia Adelaide Ferreira and Barão de Forrester.

 

On May 12, 1831, both left in a rabelo boat from Quinta do Vesúvio, by D. Antónia Adelaide Ferreira, towards Régua. However, when passing the Cachão da Valeira, the small rabelo boat was wrecked. Legend has it that Ferreirinha was saved due to her bulky skirts, which allowed her to float and reach the river bank safely. The Baron of Forrester, on the other hand, drowned due to the weight of the belt with money he carried with him.

 

Only in the 20th century, with the hydroelectric use of the Douro, was it possible to regularize the course of the river. With the construction of dams, from the 1960s, large reservoirs of calm waters were created, which came to encourage recreational navigation and sport fishing. It can then be said that the river was tamed definitively.

 

Thus, five dams were built along the course of the Douro River in Portuguese territory. With these constructions, you can ensure a smooth and safe navigation.