The EN 2 runs the length of Portugal, from Chaves to Faro, and is one of the country's best-known roads for a motorcycle trip. This route is its southernmost and twistiest stretch: it leaves São Brás de Alportel, in the Algarve, and climbs into the Serra do Caldeirão via Barranco do Velho and Ameixial to Almodôvar, already in the Alentejo.
The range is low but very rolling, and the road follows it in a chain of bends through cork oaks and rockrose, with few houses. Traffic is light and there are long stretches without villages: a huge contrast with the Algarve coast only a few kilometres away. It crosses the municipalities of São Brás de Alportel, Loulé and Almodôvar.
It is about 69 km and just over an hour and a half without stops, with almost 300 bends. Altitude ranges from about 150 m to almost 600 m. The bends flow but never stop, and the surface can vary: a steady pace works better than trying to go fast.