Baleal is a small island located 4 kilometres north of Peniche, in the western region of Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 , separated from the mainland by a tombola

Tombola

Tombola may refer to:* A type of raffle popular in Britain, Croatia, Italy, Turkey and Austria* Tómbola, an entertainment news TV show on TeleFutura* Operation Tombola, a WWII Allied operation in ItalySee also...

. At the extremity of the island you can find the inaccessible ilhota das Pombas and the ilhéu de Fora.
Baleal has a past related to whaling

Whaling

Whaling is the hunting of whales mainly for meat and oil. Its earliest forms date to at least 3000 BC. Various coastal communities have long histories of sustenance whaling and harvesting beached whales...

. This small island was the site of cutting and carving of whales on their migratory route to the northern seas.

Located in the region of Peniche, Baleal has become a major vacation spot with a potential for water sports almost unmatched in Europe. The coastal shape, namely the bay and northern strip of coast associated with Baleal create unique conditions in Europe for the practice of surfing and body boarding.