September, sunshine & showers

So Summer is over! in the last two weeks it’s been noticeably cooler………..thank you, much more pleasant for walking! But along with the cooler weather came rain, and boy did it RAIN! In the Murcia region figures of between 35 and 80 litres of water per sm fell in an hour. At the Leahy’s hacienda, we had our fair share. In all the time we have lived here and Paul says in all the places he’s visited (and he’s been to a few) we have never seen rain like it. It caused some havoc with the newly laid camino (the council re-laid it mid August). The Rambla below our house which is dry was for an hour or two at least a raging torrent. Mud and water were the order of the week.
Walking was suspended for only the shortest of time allowing a break to enjoy some of the other treats Murcia can offer. A days shopping at La Noria artisan shopping centre, a good mix of old and new, a days pampering at the Spa, or maybe a visit to the roman baths in Alhama de Murcia followed by a leisurely menu del dia. .
Then, as is in Spain, no sooner was the rain over and the blue sky returned and the sun shone with temperatures returning to a very comfortable 25°+. The effect of the rain was to make the whole place seem more lush, the trees seem to have sucked in the water and are standing taller, greener and lest wilt like, if you get my drift. All this makes the walks in the Espuna seem different………….flowers look more vibrant and wildlife appears energised.
A lovely walk we took recently, started from the ‘Casa Forestal Morti’ along the Camino del Algarrobas’ (trail of the carob trees) we climbed steadily and easily through the trees on a lovely walking surface. The
walk wends it’s way up a wide forest camino right on the edge of the Espuna Regional Park, with stunning views. Eventually we cleared the trees and the vista’s opened up to the head of the wide valley and the abandoned hamlet of Algarrobo. After taking time out at Algarrobo to enjoy the views back down the valley the path crosses the ’Collado de las Chaparras opening up the views down into the historically important Guadelentin Valley, much fought over by the Christians and Muslims. Beyond the Guadalentin the vista stretches to Mazzarron and the Mediterranean Sea .
The excellent path winds it’s way around the hills until reaching the Collado de la Zarza (pass of the brambles) fortunately nowadays cleared and easily navigable. From here starts the descent and gives new and equally impressive views out over the lands behind the medieval village of Aledo towards the Sierra de Pedro Ponce (pronounced ‘Pontheh’ fortunately for Pedro) We finished our descent along a leafy valley with views of the old monastery before arriving back at the casa forestal. An excellent day.
For more information on other things to do if you get caught in the rain in Spain visit our website at www.visterverdetrails.com/otherstuff

La Vuelta

This week La Vuelta (cycle tour of Spain) came to the sierra espuna. What a spectacle!
This section Murcia to Caravaca de la Cruz is the half way point of the race. The riders set off from  Murcia city, en route to climb the Collado Bermejo which, with its 17 kilometers and 5.3% average gradient, is the most important mountain pass in the whole of the Murcia Region. The region has hosted La Vuelta on 25 previous occasions, but this is only the second time Caravaca de la Cruz has staged the finish.
We set of an hour before they were due to arrive to make for what we thought would be a good place to watch, a resturante…….bit of cake and a drink while we wait! Great idea……you’d think, only this is Spain and in very Spanish style, on a day when more people than normal, surely,  would be in the national park to see the riders thunder by, the resturante was, yes you guessed it CLOSED! Still, it did not dampen our spirits and we hiked on up the mountain road a little further to get a better view.
I’ve never been to a cycle race before, so was amazed to see just how many cars and people it took to support the 200 or so riders. As we waited we must have seen at least 20 Guarda Civil (police) vehicles pass, all with at least 3 officers in (most had 4!) . Another dozen or so Civil motorbikes. One ambulance and 10 or so race sponsor/official cars……and all this before the riders had passed.
Then they came first were 2 breakaway groups, the second of these was just 2 cyclists who were chatting to each other like they were on a Sunday afternoon club ride! Then came the peleton some 2/3 minutes behind. They passed like a snake trying to escape after you’ve lifted a rock he was hiding under. They were being chased by another mass of cars and motorbikes. Police, ambulances, team cars. Before you knew it, it was all over for Murcia for another year at least.
As we made our way back down the mountain road to the car we kept our eyes open for souvenir water bottles which may have been discarded……….but no luck there. Later in the after noon we watched the stage finish on the TV, the 2 breakaways had been caught by the peleton and the stage was finally won by Tyler Farrar (team Garmin) in 5: 11:10.
For more info on La vuelta visit www.lavuelta.com or check out my view of the peleton at   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKEFoDJec8o