Today reminded us that there is a gap between what InnTravel say in their directions and what we think they mean. Yesterday it was the ‘mostly flat’ description. Today it’s ‘a steady climb through woodland’. We strongly contest both! Our instructions promised a short, 5-6mile walk that would take 3 hours. Ha!
The family run hotel, in La Fosca, had been lovely, and very quiet, except for a cat chorus about 5am. My goodness, were they loud! We heard Jacky forcefully shut their balcony door and were deeply disappointed not to hear Ken throwing water over the fighting cats to silence them.
Fortified by breakfast we were off by 10 am. La Fosca appears to be rather unspoiled compared to its noisy neighbour, Palamos. In fact, back in 2016, our blog described Palamos as unpleasant which seems a little harsh. The area has a rich fishing heritage and, at the back of La Fosca beach, we came across some old boathouses with arched wooden doors.. These barracas are highly prized by local families, handed down through generations they are rarely sold.
Our route took us up our first steps of the day, out past Castell de Sant Esteve de Mar, built on Roman remains and the founding building in Palamos in the 13th Century
After a short walk through pine woods, Cala S’Alguer came into view. A very tiny, pretty cluster of fishermen’s huts with history dating back to 16th century. These huts are now protected as a Cultural Heritage Site and illustrate what the Costa Brava looked like before tourism arrived.
Next, we headed inland through cultivated fields before taking a forest track into the Espai d’Interes Natural de Castell – Cap Roig. Considering we are not mountaineering and this route is the lowest level walking classification there is, it was a long, tiring climb on stony, uneven tracks. Pine trees, cork oaks, olives and flowering cistus were a minor distraction from the effort.
As we descended, we skirted around the boundary of the Cap Roig Botanic Gardens. We have visited these fantastic gardens a couple of times before and they are well worth repeat visits. The only trouble is it involved yet another uphill walk, the gardens are on steep terraces and the vending machine doesn’t sell tea. There wasn’t a murmur of complaint, this is a really rather special place.
Coincidentally, we bumped into an English couple walking the opposite route to us. Apparently, the hotel we are due to stay in at Aigua Blava serves the best cup of tea in Spain. Something to look forward to.
Luckily our hotel was less than an hour from Cap Roig and, although we have walked a far shorter distance than yesterday, our feet and legs have had enough for today. We are here for two nights with a sea view balcony. Are you taking bets as to whether or not we will do the suggested, optional walk tomorrow? 9 miles to a town that is pretty much closed Mondays?
Our holiday includes evening meals at this hotel and we feel rather lucky. Our three course meal was delicious and, as night fell, this was our view across the town.
braysabroad 