Walk Sunday 5 May 2018 Reloj del Sol, Granada

By -




To celebrate the start of summer, well at least a day when we didn’t get wet, we went to the Reloj del Sol, the big Sundial above the Alhambra Palace. The drive up to the carpark is a bit rough in places but with care it is passable.
 By the time we all arrived for the start of the walk there were 25 of us, all eager to enjoy the day out.
 The carpark is the highest point of the walk, so if you want to go anywhere you have to lose some height. This means you have to go up at the end of the walk. For good measure we went as low as you can, down to the rio Darro. One of the advantages of all the rain is that now everything is green, even hills where normally nothing grows are now full of colour. Another advantage is that the rivers are full.
When it came to crossing the river we had two choices, we could take a short cut and cross the river on a bridge, or stick with our original route and hope we could wade across the Darro. A democratic vote was taken and of the 3 people who voted a clear majority were in favor of the wet crossing. Normally a hop, skip and a jump will see you across the river, this week that would land you in the deepest bit. There was no choice but to take the boots off and wade across. Well, unless your name was Antonia. I don’t know what she had promised Fernando but he carried her across on his back, I will be having words with him. This is a equality group, everyone should have got their feet wet.  
After stopping for lunch in a delightful spot we headed off on our return path along the acequia Real. Once you have climbed up the old acequia path you have a great level track for the next two kms. The only problem is the carpark is 125 metres above you and the path is steep and rough in places. If any encouragement was needed for a rapid final ascent it started to thunder and  was looking very dark. Fortunately it passed over us and we did not get wet, which makes a change.
Now there is only one official way down from the carpark, the road which we had driven up . For some unknown reason Mark thought it would be easier driving down the footpath, unfortunately Cherry, not knowing any better, decided to follow him. I have put her straight on this matter, don’t ever follow Mark, his onboard GPS doesn't work.

A great walk with fabulous views.

We walked 14.6 km and climbed 404 metres

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

BBQ 5 June 2016

By -
Image
This week we did not have a walk, just a BBQ in Dilar. My personal assistant, Antonia and myself have spent weeks organising this BBQ, we thought we had nailed it down to the finest detail but it still ended in chaos. This is the first time we have had a BBQ in a restaurant, the idea was a good one as we had visited this bar February whilst walking in the area and the tapas was amazing. What we had not taken into account was that the chaotic service we received on our first visit was just a sample of what they could achieve when we went for a meal.  The venue was superb with loads of shade from the trees and a garden like setting. It is close enough to the river to keep the temperature down, it must have been the most refreshing place in Granada. The atmosphere was good, with a lot of families there.  With no one in overall control, and most of the staff appearing to be on work experience, it was a recipe for disaster.   In spite of everything we had a good aftern
Read more

4 May 2014 Boca de la Pesca

By -
Image
This week we had a very easy walk planned to Boca de la Pesca. It was Mike’s 70th birthday and he wanted something befitting an old git, we also needed something with wheelchair access, well you never know, he is 70 now. This must be one of the most stunning short walks ever. From the moment you step out of your car, you are enveloped in beautiful countryside. To the East you have the snow covered peaks of the Sierra Nevada, South Picacho Alto and Puntales del Tigre, to the West there is  Pico Lucero and to the North, Granada and the Sierra Arrana. All our favorite spots on view, it’s enough to make an old man weep. The weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky, warm enough for T-shirts and shorts, but not too hot to cause any problems. It was only a short walk so we took our time as we climbed up to the peak and look out tower on Boca de la Pesca.  It was too early to stop for something to eat so we made our way back down the hill and headed off  on a little track th
Read more

Walk Sunday 2 December 2018 Sierra Manar

By -
Image
This week we went walking in the Sierra Manar, the range of hills behind Dilar.  The walk had been postponed from a few weeks back when it was raining every day, it’s not a walk to do when the ground is wet and muddy. The weather forecast for this Sunday was for sunshine and temperatures of 21 degrees, perfect walking conditions.  The walk starts from the Ermita Nueva and heads up a gentle slope through Olive trees.  After 1 km the path follows the tree line on what at first looks like a level track. It soon becomes apparent that it’s not level at all, but a series of switchbacks with steep ups and downs.  There were only 9 in the group, and we all walked together, chatting and enjoying the warm sunshine. Nobody thought to check that we all turned onto a path into the forest. It was only when we emerged on the other side we noticed our group had dropped to 7, Elsa and Martine were missing.  At first, we weren't worried, we thought they would soon rejoin us. After
Read more