Summer's almost over

Paul & Ritchie, all set for takeoff!

So it’s almost September. The mass of fiesta’s which dominate the social calendar in Spain during August are coming to an end. The highlights for us were the fantastic night of music in the main square in Totana, the very amusing (if a little in poor taste) Michael Jackson tribute at the Carivete fiesta, showing my cousin some local colour at the San Roque fiesta, being included in our neighbours family celebrations on Dia de Santa Domingo along with our friends who were staying that week (a fabulous gesture) and finally the booming fireworks at the close of the Aledo fiesta. It’s not quite all over yet though, we still have the Fiesta de la Huerta coming up in early September, always a good selection of music for people to make there own “shapes” to on the now extended terrace/dance floor in front of the attractive ermita (small community church).
Other events that we enjoyed, in what has been a marvelous summer, were being told by some friends visiting that we were the highlight of their holiday having visited for two nights from (in their words) “the ghetto” (an urbanization they had rented an apartment on in the north of the Costa Blanca) and  this was despite the fact our dog chewed a pair of their crocs! Beating Jo with a giant cotton bud in the pool whilst balancing on a crocodile. A very civilized dinner at the Monesterio de Santa Eulalia - Thanks Bill & Sally. Ritchie’s face when he got back from a flight in Paul’s micro light - priceless.
Now it is almost cool enough to get those walking boots back out of the cupboard and dust them off. Paul has already been up in the Sierra Espuna and Sierra de Tercia looking out for new routes and getting in shape for the new walking season.
We plan to be in the Sierra Espuna on the 9th September for the passing of “La Vuelta” , the cycling tour of Spain. On this day, stage 11 starts in Murcia and makes its way to Caravaca de la Cruz traveling through the Sierra Espuna. Hopefully the magnificent spectacle of the peleton flashing by will be able to be enjoyed whilst taking a coffee or maybe a “menu del dia” at the bar “Los Donceles” in the regional park. (more information on la Vuelta can be found at www.lavuelta.com)
I’m hoping this blog is giving you a flavour of life here in Spain and inspiring you to book that walking holiday and come and join us for a week or two!! You can find out more information on our excellent value walking holidays at www.vistaverdetrails.com

The Guns of Navarrone

The Guns of navarrone

This week we walked to the east of the town of Mazzaron, following the coast toward Cartegena and into the Sierra Muela. It’s a beautiful area, each time we have been there with the exception of this last trip, we have barely seen a sole either walking or at the fabulous guns. Let me start with the guns. you don’t have to be a walker to get there. You could take the car, the road is quite windy and single carriage in places, but due to the lack of other vehicles we have never found access a problem.
For over 500 years the defence of Cartegena has been a preoccupation for the Spanish Military. The city holds many links to the Spanish Naval fleet and as the Headquarters, warships have become part and parcel of the sights seen in it’s vast natural habour (these days also shared by cruise ships). The habour is flanked by five hills which through time have been used for the defence of the town and habour.
The Guns that you can see today were supplied by a British company “Vickers” in 1925. The new shore batteries were equipuipped with guns of 38.1cm and 15.24cm caliber giving ranges of 35Km and 21Km respectively. Also anti-aircraft guns (also from Vickers) of 10.5cm were deployed with an operational ceiling of 7.000 metres. They were allegedly used in the film “the guns of naverrone” . I’ve not seen it myself, so I’m only repeating what I’ve been told!
Enough technical stuff, basically they are a sight to be seen, despite the mindless graffiti that the Spanish still seem to be suffering from and the lack of any real attempt at conservation, they are just marvelous. Inside the watch towers, you can still see the silhouettes of British warships painted to aid identification of hostile forces ( now it should be lad & layettes in short skirts & baseball caps!).
The castle like structure that surrounds the Guns is almost fairytale like, it was built to imitate a medieval castle hence the name “Los Castollitos”.
Away from the guns the scenery is truly spectacular. Walking although strenuous at times due to the height loss/gain is not difficult as the paths are well defined. We were walking with a group organized by the
Mazzaron Tourist office, something they do each August. (Last year over 4000 people took part in one of their many guided walks during the month). This walk, as most are due to the heat in summer was an evening walk. It followed a lovely trail through two valleys, towards the Cala Cerrada, an isolated cove, which can only be reached by foot or by boat. Due to the time of year it was quite busy when our party arrived and definitely more busy when we all arrived, but not as busy as Bournemouth beach on a hot day in August.
On arrival at the cove, many donned their swimmies (some had even brought flippers and snorkels ) and took the opportunity to cool down, others just relaxed on the pebble beach and took some light refreshment. All very relaxing.
The climb back up to the Castillitos was a little more strenuous, but the group was on good form and joking and chatting were order of the day. We arrived back at the car at about 9:30pm, just as the light was fading. Definitely a great way to spend an evening, of course most of the Spanish participants then returned to their accommodations to change and go for dinner before the nights entertainment really started…………..the Brits amongst the group, well like us they probably returned home to bed!

Summer is definitely here, the average temp over the last couple of weeks has been 30 degrees and rising. This coming week we are forecast to hit 39 degrees. So not a whole lot of walking fun for those of you fresh out of the wind and rain in the UK. A dip in the pool and the occasional trip to the fridge is about the most strenuous thing most people who are not (and are!) used to in these temperatures can manage. This means that we tend to take July and August off where the walking is concerned. We have however been looking at some new routes and visiting some local restaurants all in the name of research you understand.
We were lucky enough to see the wild boar at one restaurant we visited in the Sierra Espuna, although a little stage managed, the owners put out food for the boars to encourage them down to the area next to the terrace, they certainly were a spectacle. A group of eight or more, babies included (ahhhhh), spent at least fifteen minutes feasting on grain put out for them.
We also visited the town of Aledo, this walled medieval town has been declared a site of historical- artistic interest. Located on a hill, it features a moorish tower known as La Calahorra, which dates back to the 11th century. The tower has recently been restored and turned into a visitor center. Visitors can view the exhibits and climb the stairs to the top of the tower, here you'll find stunning views of the surrounding countryside and the reason the site was chosen for a fortress.....fabulous! and all free to see. Other attractions include La Picota, a medieval construction where executions took place and the Baroque stlye church of Santa Maria dating from the 18th century.
Next week we should be walking, taking in cabo Tinoso, which is the home of some very impressive gun emplacements, used in the Spanish Civil war and the set of the guns of navarrone!!!
Son until next time, Hasta Luego!

To walk with poles or not?

We have walked with all kinds of people over various terrain, with Poles, Scots, Americans……………..oh the old jokes - still the old jokes!

Seriously walking with poles, yes or no?

Well Poles seem to have become very popular in recent years and certainly here in the Sierra Espuna we see many people of all nationalities with them so what is the attraction?

Well on the upside they can ease the pressure on your knees - it’s been said by up to a third! - this is especially good news when descending hills at the end of a full days walking. They work by transferring some of your body weight from your legs to your arms this means that the effort of walking is now carried by your whole body, not just your legs (good news for that all over workout).

Poles are particularly useful if you are carrying a heavy load as they help to redistribute the extra weight as well as your body weight, this also aids balance, not just good for heavy loads, but also if you are on steep descents, parts of a path that you have the perception of being a little exposed or muddy sections (or as happened to us earlier this month when the path is a riverbed………what a nightmare that was!)

Poles however may not be all good news. The disadvantage of that weight distribution will be tired arms and shoulders at the end of the day making that well deserved pint of beer a little harder to get to the mouth. Wrists too, can suffer as a result of the pressure from poling down. In undergrowth or on not so well defined paths, the poles can become entangled, making more work to release them.

The poles themselves, are usually in sections, meaning they can be extended or decreased in size. This gives great flexibility for up/down hill and varying terrain. Longer is better for downhill sections extend so that you can reach forward a couple of feet below you to take some of the strain off your knees and legs. The section system also means they are easy to pack in your suitcase for your walking holiday or pop in your day sack if you decide your arms are getting tired! They are available from most good walking stores at various price points, so on balance I think I’d say……….

why not give it a try - I certainly wish I’d had them on the attached photo section of one of our trails!

It was our nieces’ birthday this week, so Happy Birthday Ali. Also this week many towns and villages celebrate the fiesta of San Juan a celebration that dates back to pre-Christian times and marks the arrival of the summer solstice. An excuse (not that the Spanish need one) to build fires, set off fireworks and Party until dawn.
This week we took a trip down to Mazzaron, about 30km away on the coast. With the benefit of the sea breeze, walking the coastline was a very pleasant excursion. We had the company of a local guide who was able to tell us much of the history of the area we were walking. We started at the “Enchanted city of Bolnuevo” or “Gredas de Bolnuevo” the strange sandstone shapes have been formed over a period of time, which is believed to have begun some 4 million years ago. We made out way along the coast past Mazzarons nudist beaches, out to sea was the “Ilsa de Cueva Lobos” a small island named after the sea wolf (fish) which were once plentiful in the waters around this coast, unfortunately they are now a sight rarely seen here.
We continued our walk along, part “road” ( I wouldn’t bring my car down much of it!), part coast path until we reached a quite little cove noted for several reasons……..a small port was built here to collect and transfer rock to the nearby town of Cartegena, the remains of which can still be seen, along with several large rectangular rocks which were left behind and on the beach is a deposit of concrete, pretty ugly really, but it is there to preserve some prehistoric bones of a dinosaur, half of which have been excavated and are now displayed in the archeological museum in Murcia. The remainder await the funds to be able to retrieve them so both halves can be reunited. To date they have been waiting five years or so, so lets hope they can join the other half soon.
After a pleasant rest watching the fishermen cast there lines we continued along our route through an area which has now been designated a national park by the Spanish government………great news as it means no building can take place. Historically the area was farm land with several owners farming various crops from tomatoes to lemons, but unfortunately for them the water supplies they had dried up making farming the land an impossible task and the last working farm ceased to operate around 12 years ago. Now the area is left to nature and it’s former pump station and farm building slowly and sadly crumble away. The only residents now the wildlife and in some parts Northern European tourists of a certain age in there campers on that retirement dream trip they dreamed of all those years (how do they find out about these unofficial stop offs?)
Finally after several hours walking, we return via the last part of the coastal “road” pausing briefly to cool of our hot feet by paddling in the clear waters…..nice….before making out way the café overlooking the beach for a well deserved ice cold drink (some had coffee, how mad is that!)

Well that’s another week flown by, I can’t even tell you how quickly the weeks go it must be an age thing hey? Summer seems to have arrived in the Spanish minds, gone are the coats and jumpers they have clung onto since October and out are the shorts and t-shirts, we expats have been in shorts since February, but the Spanish blood obviously takes a little longer to warm up!
Totana has been full of cars with loud speakers plugging the various parties for the European elections and signs adorn the roads wherever you go. Saturday was a day of reflection before the election so some peace (of the election kind) returned yesterday as no electioneering is permitted.
Forthcoming events locally include the San Javier Jazz festival. This is an internationally renowned event which takes place from June 27th until 25th July for more info the web address is www.jazz.sanjavier.es. I see Steve Winwood is on the bill. Ahh that brings back memories, of an American road trip with two friends when I was much younger, every radio station we tuned into in our oldsmobile - there was Steve Winwood, it seemed !

El Bosque to Augilon (the fang like end)

So anyway, what have we been up to this week………….we tried out a new route “La Umbria del Bosque” a circular route of 16.6km with some spectacular rock overhead for much of the route. It all started very pleasantly, after an initial climb through forest the walk was light and airy and meandered through high ground and the plateau between Morron de la Cabra (meaning ? Nose/snout of the Goat?) and the awesome rock walls of Umbria del Bosque. The track we walked was a wide open camino (bizarrely we passed a stretch that had a ‘men at work’ road sign, no evidence of men at work though! Well it was the weekend). Leaving the plateau we made our way back down to the valley to turn back towards the start point. The path then took a distinct turn for the worse. We were entering a riverbed for the final 4km………..not something that would generally concern in Spain in June, but we were warned it could be muddy! Well, it was interesting!!!!!!! Not a path I would advise people to follow, we did have to wade through pools on several occasions and fight with vegetation, including bamboo, several excursions from the riverbed to find an alternate route were abandoned but we made it, some two hours later we emerged from the riverbed and made our way home for much deserved coffee, cake and a relaxing swim in the pool. A route we will be doing again the scenery was both fantastic and impressive, but an alternative path back to the start will be an early amendment to future excursions on this route!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, it’s almost June already, can’t believe it! The temperature has certainly risen this month, especially in the evening and at night……..no more duvet required! The pool temperature is also a very enjoyable at 25 -26 making the after walk dip very pleasant indeed.
Last week we walked a route called El cano del Soriana. The route passes through an area steeped in history, including La Bastida an ancient settlement. (more of that later)
The walk follows the cano (watercourse), scrambling up the “siphon” gives some great views of the area of Lebor Blanquizarea and Antiguarejo, where previously more evidence of ancient settlements have been found. We also passed lots of evidence of wild boar, but did not come across any - not sure if that’s a good thing or not, depends how far away they are I guess! The walk also includes the impressive aqueduct on the Rambla de Lebor, this carries water which comes via canal from the north of Spain all the way down to the south. The canal passes through the towns of Alhama de Murcia, Totana and Lorca so you may hear more of it in future walks and excursions.
It was a great walk, but long trousers are a must……still got some scratches today! It was made even more enjoyable as there was lots of shade from the trees and a pleasant breeze.

La Bastida
During the Bronze Age Argaric culture was developing in the southeast of the peninsula. Settlements were being established whose villages were situated on hills with good defences, water courses or water sources for their use. All these conditions were fulfilled to perfection in the Bastide town, located above a ravine on the Rambla de lebor. discovered in the 1900’s, this is said to be the first Argaric site. According to archaeologist Magdelana Garcia. The village had between 600 and 1000 inhabitants between the years 1675 and 1000 BC, occupying an area of about 30,000 meters. They worked the land and kept livestock to live, but also engaged in metallurgy and ceramics (ceramics is still the traditional industry in Totana, therefore could it be argued that this traditional industry is at least 3500 years old) Excavations carried out so far have uncovered burials and dwellings and it has been estimated that, so far, only one tenth of the area occupied by the town has been excavated. Works were indeed being undertaken this week as we passed by.