SepanyolAndalucíaAlmeríaRambla de Belén36°50’30” N 2°27’20” W 24 April 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C
After a bus ride from Málaga, we're back in Almería. We're staying in the beautiful albergue La Estrella del Camino, enjoying the kindness and hospitality of Nely and her partner Umberto.
SepanyolAndalucíaAlmeríaRambla de Belén36°50’30” N 2°27’20” W
25 April 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ 🌙 20 °C
A beautiful day exploring Almería. We walked up the mineral loader ramp, recently opened to the public. We were lucky to get a few good photos of the views, as a fog settled in after about 15Baca lagi
Pengembara Great views from up there !!! (Pre fog that is). Quite a climb ? I didn’t get up there myself . 😜. Great pics. ❤️
Laurie Reynolds I never heard of a mineral loader ramp, but I remember Elaine giving us some background when we were doing the planning thread. Looks like a great day, AJ!
Pengembara Wow! I am so envious! I had no idea they were planning to allow access to the Cable Ingles. That is now at the top of my list for our next visit. Thanks, Andrew!
SepanyolAndalucíaRioja36°56’45” N 2°27’42” W
26 April 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C
We have been warned that a heat wave was impacting Spain. So we bid farewell to Nely and Umberto early, and started our first day on the Camino Mozárabe. Almería to Rioja, 15.3km. There was a littleBaca lagi
Pengembara I was thinking of the two of you as we plotted our way from one shady spot to the next this morning, and wondering how you were faring in your treeless zone. Even with the shade, we were hot! Early starts are the name of the game for the rest of the week, I think.
Pengembara Early starts are definitely the name of the game, Elaine. We're told that this heat wave will only last until the weekend, and then it will be 'normal' again. Tomorrow will be a short day, as we did last year 😊
Pengembara Back in your stomping ground !! You’ll know the way . I hope temps come down a bit but you are in southern spain. . Enjoy .. buen camino.
SepanyolAndalucíaAlhama de AlmeríaLos ImposiblesRambla de Gérgal36°58’24” N 2°31’54” W
27 April 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
We started the day in the coolness of the morning. We walked 8.5km. An enjoyable walk, where, compared with our walk last September, we saw flowers. An encounter with a flock of sheep was a niceBaca lagi
SepanyolAndalucíaSanta Fe de Mondújar36°57’48” N 2°31’36” W 27 April 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C
We thought we would have a quiet day ...
Last year we had visited the archeological site of Los Millares, a bronze age settlement dating back 4500 years. Very interesting.
When we arrived in Santa FeBaca lagi
Laurie Reynolds
What is that building? It looks kind of like the Parador in Muxia!
Pengembara Laurie, it's the Palacete de Loreto, built in the 18th century for the Marqués de Loreto, Nicolás Felipe Cristóbal del Campo y Rodríguez de Salamanca, who was Virrey del Río de la Plata under the reign of Carlos III. It's now a luxurious casa rural. It has its own private chapel. A bit up market for pilgrims 😄
28 April 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C
A 16.3km enjoyable day marked by a few exciting sharp ups and downs, which we remembered from last year.
The coolness of the morning was quickly replaced by the heat as the sun rose in the sky. WeBaca lagi
Pengembara Wow, Andrew. 16.28 km with more than 500 meters of elevation gain! That’s a big day.
Pengembara A big day indeed, Elaine. Last year we walked to Santa Cruz de Marchena, which made our day 3km shorter. This year, we took our time and were the last ones at the albergue. Our Camino angel Nely had requested that the hospitalera save a lower bunk bed for Rachel 😊
29 April 2023, Sepanyol
If one could follow the Río Nacimiento all the way, this would be a reasonably flat stage. As we can't, our 13.3km stage included a nice climb up from the river.
Last year Nely had advised us not toBaca lagi
Laurie Reynolds Crunch time on the Mozarabe! We’re so lucky that Nely and the amigos take such good care of people. Loving your pictures and posts.
SepanyolAndalucíaAbrucena37°7’58” N 2°47’55” W 30 April 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
Fifth stage, from Nacimiento to Abrucena, 18.5km.
A quiet start, it's Sunday, everyone is sleeping, including the bar owner. She had told us she would be there at 7 am. The owner of the small shop inBaca lagi
Pengembara Smiling at your appreciation of ‘being there !’ Lucky ducks. Great intel about avoiding the road and ignoring the yellow crosses to find a nicer trail. It sounds like the amigos have a few secrets that aren’t apparent unless you meet them personally. Buen camino Andrew and Rachel. 🚶 🚶♂️ 🚶♀️
Pengembara Indeed, but Rachel preferred this to walking on the bitumen road. She actually likes rocky ramblas, as she likens it to foot massage and reflexology 😄
SepanyolAndalucíaHuéneja37°10’36” N 2°56’54” W
1 Mei 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
1st of May is a public holiday in Spain, and as we left Abrucena, everything was quiet.
The Camino comes down rapidly from the town, with initially a good guidance of arrows. We walked through severalBaca lagi
Pengembara It must be joyful in Casa Violeta with the family and voices (I was alone) . Isn’t it unusual both interior art and exterior ? Sounds interesting that Violeta has moved back in .
Pengembara The family isn't very noisy, and I believe they only have a little boy who is probably 6 years old. Their moving in means there's only the room downstairs, with bathroom and kitchen. It's still donativo.
SepanyolAndalucíaLanteiraMarquesado de Zenete37°10’29” N 3°7’9” W 2 Mei 2023, Sepanyol ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C
Seventh stage, Hueneja to Alquife. 20 km on pleasant paths through almond orchards.
A few small climbs, nothing too bad, just enough to do a little cardio.
First stop, Dólar. Unfortunately, nothingBaca lagi
Pengembara Oh, no. Were you able to get food somewhere? We were reduced to squirreling away the bread from our restaurant lunch yesterday so we’d have something to eat for supper since all the grocery stores were closed for May Day.
Pengembara We had nibbles (like a trail mix, sultanas and nuts) to keep us going until we got to Ferreira. Then we had the tostadas. 😊 Tonight, Manuel took us to the shop so we could buy food. Rachel cooked a delicious dinner 😊
Pengembara Rachel .. you cooked a delicious dinner! - an angel & lifesaver too. I really liked albergue Lacho. I guess the pups have grown up now and spread out with others?
Pengembara That is wonderful news! Buen Camino!
Pengembara Gracias Elaine!
Laurie Reynolds Oh, no, I don’t think I’ve ever been following FOUR forum friends at once — Norte, Sierra de Segura, Mozárabe, and Madrid! Truly an embarrassment of riches. So wonderful to see that you are there and ready to go, AJ. Buen camino to you both.
Pengembara Thank you Laurie!