The Côa River () is a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainag ...

of the Douro River, in central and northeastern

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, In recognized minority languages of Portugal: :* mwl, República Pertuesa is a country located on the Iberian Peninsula, in Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Macaronesian ...

. It is one of the few Portuguese rivers that flows south to north. It flows through the municipalities of

Sabugal Sabugal () is a city and a municipality in the District of Guarda, Portugal. A border municipality with Spain, the population of the municipality in 2011 was 12,544, in an area of 822.70 km2. The city proper, located along the Côa river, ha ...

, Almeida, Pinhel, Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo and Vila Nova de Foz Côa, all located in the Guarda District. Over of land in the Greater Côa Valley have been set aside for rewilding and conservation as

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectiv ...

areas. Thousands of ancient carvings in stone were discovered in the Côa Valley in the 1980s and 1990s. These are of particular interest due to the high concentration of

Paleolithic art The art of the Upper Paleolithic represents the oldest form of prehistoric art. Figurative art is present in Europe and Southeast Asia, beginning between about 40,000 to 35,000 years ago. Non-figurative cave paintings, consisting of hand ...

, and because these carvings are found outside of caves, on rocks in plain sight: Jean Clottes, a prominent French prehistorian, had confirmed that "is the biggest open air site of paleolithic art in Europe, if not in the world". Subsequent researches have led to a consensus that the images there belong to two groups: highly visible pecked Gravettian figures and smaller, less visible Magdalenian engravings. The drawings attracted worldwide attention when plans to build a hydroelectric dam across the Côa Valley threatened to submerge them. Although hydroelectric development was already well underway, outcry from locals, the scientific community and the media led to dam construction being halted in 1995 after a change in the national government following elections. A significant proportion of the drawings in the Canada do Inferno area were already underwater by that time. The Côa Valley Archaeological Park, opened in 1996, was declared a protected

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

world heritage site in 1998. The Côa river was also the site of the Côa Battle during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spai ...

. There are several castles along Terras de Riba-Côa, such as the Castle of Sabugal and the Castle of Pinhel.

References

Rivers of Portugal Geography of Guarda District {{protected-area-stub