PORTUGAL

Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country located mostly on the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the western most sovereign state of mainland Europe, being bordered to the west and south by the Atlantic Ocean and to the north and east by Spain. Its territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira, both autonomous regions with their own regional governments.

Portugal is the oldest nation state on the Iberian Peninsula and one of the oldest in Europe and the world, its territory having been continuously settled, invaded and fought over since prehistoric times. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal established the first global empire, becoming one of the world's major economic, political and military powers. The handover of Macau to China in 1999 marked the end of what can be considered the longest-lived colonial empire.

Portugal has left a profound cultural, architectural and linguistic influence across the globe, with a legacy of around 250 million Portuguese speakers, and many Portuguese-based creoles. It is a developed country with an advanced economy and high living standards. A member of the United Nations and the European Union, Portugal was also one of the founding members of NATO, the eurozone, the OECD, and the Community of Portuguese Language Countries.

LETTERBOX: 

The cache contains a stamp. This is not Swag, please leave it in the cache for use in letterboxing.

NOTE: THE PORTUGAL CACHE IS NOT AT THE POSTED COORDINATES

To find PORTUGAL,  follow these letterbox directions starting at the posted coordinates:

1. Drive east to the stop sign at a tee intersection

2. Stop for a moment and ponder that everyone knows (okay a bunch of people know) that Christiano’s Ronaldo is considered Portugal’s greatest soccer (football) player. Who is another great player from Portugal? (These guys must be good - they only have one name!). If it’s Xavi - turn left and if it’s Eusébro - turn right

3. Continue until you reach a Stop sign and proceed when the cross road is clear.

4. Continue on the road until you spot orange and blue (Oilers!) posts on both sides of the road

5. Park safely and ponder again. Both the world’s oldest bookstore and the world’s oldest cork tree are both in Portugal, but which is older? If its the cork tree go to the posts on your left but if its the bookstore go to the posts on your right

6. Have fun looking for the cache!

This cache has been placed for CARW2020

1. This CARW2020 cache will be published about 6pm on Thursday, February 20, 2020.
2. This cache has been placed for the CARW event with the intention that it not be located prior to 9:00 a.m. Saturday February 22, 2020. The caches for the CARW event are released early so that the geocaching community has an opportunity to plan their routes and strategies prior to the event start.
3. Should you hunt and find this cache before the event start, it will not count for the event, and FTF points are only valid as of 9AM February 22nd.