Barca de Alba , (officially and Portuguese Barca d'Alva ) is a Portuguese village belonging to freguesía of Escalhão in concelho of Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo north of the district of Guarda. It is within the International Douro Natural Park , at the confluence of the River Agueda with the River Duero . These mark the natural border between Spain and Portugal . On the other side there is the Natural Park of Arribes del Duero .
It is a village with few inhabitants that was for a century the point where joined the railways that connected Salamanca to Porto . An iron bridge over the river Agueda allowed the railroad between the two countries and linking the station with the one of La Fregeneda in Salamanca . In 1988 rail service ended in the Portuguese side. It had been canceled in 1985 on the Spanish side. Currently, the train of Porto reaches only station Pocinho , who was the railway junction from which they left the narrow gauge lines in northern Portugal .