Wildfire Emergency Grounds Hunting Trips Across Rural Portugal

Portugal’s hunters, many of them expatriates who joined local associações de caça to feel closer to rural life, woke up this week to a hard truth: the August forest fire alert overrides all licences, calendars and reservations. Rifles must stay in the cabinet, and even a leisurely stroll through the hills can earn you a fine if you cross a fire-restricted track. While officials insist the curb is temporary, the move underscores how climate-driven wildfire seasons are reshaping everyday freedoms in the Portuguese countryside.

Why the rifles stay locked away

Fire agency maps have painted the mainland deep red for days, signalling an “extreme” wildfire threat that prompted the government to declare a nationwide civil-protection alert. Under that status, the Institute for Nature Conservation and Forests (ICNF) automatically blocks any activity involving explosives or sparks, which includes cartridges discharged from a shotgun. The restriction applies to every forest, woodland path, rural lane, hunting reserve and game estate listed in municipal fire-defence plans.

Officials frame the measure less as an assault on sporting tradition and more as a necessary step to avoid new ignitions, stretched emergency crews and evacuations. Despite scattered showers in the north, temperatures in the Alentejo and Algarve have hovered near 40 °C, creating perfect fuel conditions that have already consumed thousands of hectares.

What the ban means for foreigners who love the outdoors

If you bought a country house to enjoy the dove opener or signed up for a guided boar hunt, the immediate impact is straightforward: no shooting, no off-road driving, and no trekking through marked forest parcels until the alert is lifted. Police patrols have been intensified around popular trails such as Rota Vicentina, the Peneda-Gerês park and the cork-oak estates east of Évora. Even carrying an unloaded firearm in a prohibited zone can trigger sanctions, so expat hunters should keep gear locked at home and contact outfitters before travelling. Rural Airbnb hosts are being advised to inform guests about the temporary closure of fire roads and to provide alternative beach or city-based itineraries.

The legal teeth behind the order

The authority for the ban sits in the Civil Protection Framework Law, which empowers Lisbon to curtail access to high-risk areas whenever public safety is threatened. Because the statute bars all entry—except for residents, farm workers and emergency teams—hunting is automatically swept up. Notably, the latest alert makes no mention of exemptions for pre-paid tourist hunts, game-management culls or falconry displays. Failure to comply can result in administrative fines from €125 to more than €1 100 for individuals, and up to €22 400 for commercial operators, according to articles 134-137 of the Hunting Decree-Law. Repeat offenders risk weapon seizures and a temporary suspension of their Portuguese hunting licence.

Data from the GNR’s environmental unit show that during last year’s Operação Artémis 140 criminal cases and 432 administrative offences were opened between August and February, many tied to shooting in the wrong place or season. The force warns that surveillance drones will again back up ground patrols this month.

Ripple effects on rural economies

The shutdown lands hardest on tourist hunting zones in the north-east—Miranda do Douro, Vimioso and Arcos de Valdevez—already scarred by megafires. To cushion the blow, the Environment Ministry has waived 2025 concession fees for estates scorched by more than 1 000 ha of fire damage, a relief worth several thousand euros per licence. Outfitters elsewhere, particularly in the Alentejo where British and Dutch bird-shooters flock every September, fear clients will cancel outright if the alert drags on. Some are pivoting to wine tastings, mushroom foraging (when safe) and clay-pigeon clinics on irrigated farmland to keep revenue flowing.

When could the season reopen?

Technically, Portugal’s general hunting season was due to begin on 17 August. The Ministry of Internal Administration says the alert will be re-evaluated daily using satellite heat maps, wind forecasts and soil-moisture readings. If conditions improve, authorities could downgrade the alert to “contingency” or lift it altogether, allowing regional governors to green-light hunting on 24 hours’ notice. Even then, expect additional constraints on open-fire cooking, heavy machinery and fireworks to remain until late summer storms return.

Staying safe—and legal—until the hills reopen

For now, foreign residents should check ICNF updates, avoid driving on unsigned dirt tracks, and report any smoke to the 112 emergency line. Insurance policies tied to hunting trips typically exclude payouts for penalties incurred during an official ban, so postponement is the safest financial play. And remember: in Portugal, ignorance of a civil-protection order is not a defence—a rule now etched into the dry bark of every hillside pine.