Day 4 of Hiking in the Alpujurra in Spain

3rd November

A lazy day today. There were 3 options. An 18 km walk with ascent / descent of 1400m. 14 kms with 500m ascent / descent or 12 kms with 550m ascent / descent.
The feet told us to choose the latter and even then, they protested and the 12kms became 10.

Our east facing room, allowed us to witness the muted, but beautiful sunrise over the Alpujurra.

Setting off we took time to admire the features of the hotel's entrance.........

and the beam over the base of the 60 step entry, from the cobbled road.

Pots of geraniums, herbs and other plants were regularly spotted on the patios of these white homes without gardens, as were large bunches of chillies hanging to dry.

Our comprehension of the hiking notes went astray very quickly. An incorrect left turn here, took us down a steep alleyway. Not long after our quads received a rapid warm up, as we hiked back up. For the locals, this is just daily exercise.

Climbing back up.

Eventually we found the path out of town and again we passed many fields of end of season vegetables, waiting to be harvested.

The trail wound its way up and over the base of the ridges, bordering the River Trevelez. 

Today was the only day of the hike, where autumn colours dominated the vistas. I was captivated, as the following photos will testify too.

Beyond the peak on the right, is Spain's highest, mainland mountain - Mulhacen, 3,482m. It was to become snow capped 2 nights later.

The further up the valley we went the trail became damp and muddy.

I managed to find beauty in this very large puddle.

Our lunch and turning round point. Wonderful to relax to the sounds of the gurgling Trevelez.

Some will know of my love for lady birds. My fantastic zoom, on my point and shoot Sony HX50V, confirmed that there was a ladybird crawling on the leaves of a bush about a metre away. On downloading my photos, I discovered that I had also captured a preying mantis.

After a very pleasant break sitting beside the stream, we retraced our steps back to the base of Trevelez.

The lower part of town had several shops selling local weaving, cheeses, hams and other assorted crafts. This was a nice spot to people watch as we drank the local beer with tapas.

As we climbed back up the 'hill' to the top of town, we passed more than half a dozen ham smokehouses. Obviously the life blood of the village, but where are all the pigs? We  were informed that the pigs are mass produced down on the plains, but each village / smokehouse has its own secret recipe for the perfect ham. Looking at the prices, [96 eu is approx $140 Aus]  it is no wonder the ham is served so thinly, using the 'stand' below and an extremely sharp knife. We were also told that a ham under 80eu, wouldn't be of the best quality.

Right throughout Spain, we admired their imposing wooden doors. This is another industry for the locals, along with the production of floor tiles.

A delightful water fountain for weary travellers.

How beautiful is Trevelez clothed in white?[postcard]

Taking the route of the least incline, we made it back to our hotel to enjoy a hot 'cuppa' on our patio.

I hope you have enjoyed the relaxed pace and autumn colours of the day. The weather forecast for the following day was not good.  We tentatively made alternative plans if the day dawned as gloomy as predicted.

I would love to read your comment.

Day 3 of Walking in the Alpjurra in Spain

2nd November

Portugos to Trevelez
15.5 km, 750m ascent, 530m descent - 5 1/4 hours

Our notes told us to walk back up to the The Portugos church and then follow a path a short distance across country, to where it would meet the tarmac road to Busquistar. Having climbed the hill to the church the previous evening, we immediately set off along the tarmac from our hotel's doorstep. This became an excellent decision some 20 mins later, when we spotted a sign to the La Fuente Agria Waterfall. We had read about its red colour, but had been unable to establish exactly where it was. So glad we found it, even if it meant many more, steep steps down to its base.

This area is the source of natural mineral waters of high iron content, hence the red colour. We read that the waters are particularly beneficial to people with anaemia, but only if imbibed directly from the fountain.

Back on the road, it was a pleasant walk to the village of Busquistar. The road entered above the village, but at this point, we took a left turn and the day's real climbing began.

 Distance view

   

   Roof top view

As we hiked  uphill, passed fields of corn, fruit and olive trees, we were amused when our notes told us to find a wooden bridge over a stream. 

The stream was a wide irrigation channel, a legacy of the Moors who lived here in the 700's.

Soon after the crossing, the trail entered Holm Oak woods, carpeted with fallen autumn leaves, making it a tad difficult to spot the trail markers low to the ground.

Our ascent continued.

Several k's of open, flatter ground, brought relief for a short while, with lovely vistas both above and below to the valley.

Spot the trail marker.

Then, it was another steep drop down into another of the dry creek beds we had to cross, before entering a reforested pine area.

The forest's dry floor was softened by this lovely, bushy wildflower.

Cortijo La Rosa - a landmark in our notes. We saw no one. In fact we saw no-one all day.

Our next post of reference was a GR-7 post [1727m].
At that point, we were to leave the road, going R down a narrow, steep, zigzag track. The notes said to continue on downhill to a 4 way junction [1569m]to a makeshift bridge [tree trunks] cross it, continue on the narrow path below the landslide and be careful on the loose slippery rock. Continue up the steep hill!

Well our road was lovely and wide. The map indicated it continued to Trevelez. The steep track was barely discernible and neither of our knees felt comfortable with a steep drop. The decision was made to stay on the road and when possible get back on trail.

The view from where the decision was made.

Close up!

Well, thankfully we were able to continue on the road, but I don't know what cars do at this point.

This was the view back down to where the horse and farmer were, taken shortly after the creek scramble.

The road zigzagged higher and higher. We stopped at several trail markers, but we just couldn't relate any of them to our notes or map. We weren't disappointed to be hiking on a flat surface, as we were both suffering from tired feet.

All alone.

Well over an hour later, our destination Trevelez, hove into sight. It was to be another 3/4 hour until we could remove our boots.

Back on trail and descending.

Looking back to the high point we had descended from. The lovely autumn shades made me forget my tiredness. So refreshing to see green.

The only building in the village, not white.

Note the water channel collecting the precious H2O. Wash house also on the left.

How did they build these homes on top of one another on these steep inclines? How often are they painted? How are they painted?

Halloween is not quite over for this little one. Surprisingly to us, Halloween celebrations were numerous.

At this point we were well and truely ready for a cold refreshment at our hotel. The sign said 100m to Hotel La Fragua. Our pace quickened, but alas, believe it or not, we were caught in a traffic jam and didn't move on for 10 to 15 mins. There was much laughter each time we took a step forward, only to have to take it back.

Finally the packs were downed and we entered the hotel. It was 2pm and the locals were gathering for lunch and siesta. Such a lovely atmosphere to step into, but the bad news was, that this was the restaurant La Fragua  and we still had another 100m AND 60 steps to our room. 

The story has a happy ending. Our room was large. It had a bath to soak in, 2 large cosy lounge chairs, a jug, cups, coffee, a wide patio and a wonderful view to appreciate the scale of the mountains. 

Dinner was the earliest yet, at 7.30pm. Perfect menu for the hungry hikers.

Basket of rolls

Amazing salad - freshly grown local tomato, cucumber, kiwi fruit, walnuts, sultanas, sweet corn, onion, asparagus, carrot, beetroot, and cheese strands.

Tasty vegetable broth of finely chopped mixed vegetables.

A whole trout with assorted vegetables and the best boiled potatoes.

A creamy banana and chocolate mousse.

As you can imagine, it didn't take us long to fall into a deep, satisfied sleep on our return to our room.

I would love to read your comment.