Monday 10th - Sunday 16th October 2016.
Monday. We are leaving Campsite Los Batanes today and moving north west to a campsite we have visited on a couple of previous occasions Camping Kiko Park Rural. Despite being just a couple of miles from the motorway the site is one of the most rural we have been to, accessed down a long steep hill, it is close to a large reservoir that on this visit was very low indeed. If you take a turn around the site after dark and look out there are virtually no dwelling lights to be seen in any direction. Thats probably not surprising as what would have been a village is now the campsite; the reception is housed in what would have been the village church, showers in old cottages etc,.
Tuesday. Off and away bright and early, I warmed up the car well before we went up the hill and went up with the gearbox in manual mode so as to have better control on the steep bendy bits - hardly knew it was a hill, very pleased.
Our destination was CAMPING JAVEA, we had been told by a transient Brit lady that she had left that particular site the previous day (Monday) and that it had been less than half full. In a pigs ear!! when we arrived it was full to bursting. We did manage to find a couple of pitches, just. As it is Rosemary and Frank’s first visit to the area we had intended to stay some days to explore but????
Wednesday. Rain is persisting down so we went for a drive first to CAP de SANT ANTONI but could see nothing but clouds so we toddled off to CUMBRE DEL SOL and found that on the south side the sun shone strongly staying like that till we went back to the north of Cumbre del Sol where although it didn't rain again it was cloudy, dull and cold. Still Frank cheered us all up by BBQing a whole leg of lamb. It was delicious.
Thursday. Having decided that Camping Javea was too crowded and claustrophobic we are moving on today to a site none of us have visited before in an area none of us have been to before. CAMPING LAS PALMERAS at BANOS DE FORTUNA, a few kilometres north of Murcia. It is a strange dessert like area with little going for it but hot springs. Walking through town was a surreal experience as the majority of people appeared to be walking around wearing fluffy white hotel dressing gowns and flip flops and seemed to be making their way to or back from the hot springs.
Friday. Drove into the hills today, we had planned a circular route but finished up in a quarry with no where to go but back. Still it got us home in time for lunch in the site restaurant, we opted for the €10.00 “menu del dia” (menu of the day) which turned out to be four/five course - bread & Aioli, salad, paella, grouper (Sue had Sole, Rosemary & Frank had casserole) and dessert. Wine was served with the meal and coffee afterwards, every course was excellent and as stated earlier all for a paltry €10.00 a head.
Unfortunately although the site is fine the (English) owner is rude and unpleasant and although states his intention to charge us for the electricity we use he refuses to tell us on what basis those charges will be made and so we will leave tomorrow.
We turned off every electric item off except the fridge and computers the only other use being the occasional drop of water in the kettle for tea or washing up, in 36 hours we were charged for 8kw of electricity. Frank turned off ALL power except the TV and was charged for using 10 kw. Bent as a nine bob note, or for the younger readers bent as a 45pence note. We would not go back if our lives depended upon it.
Saturday. Our third move of the week today, pretty strong even for uswe have moved just 160 km further west to CAMPING SIERRA MARIA a site high in the hills above Vélez-Rubio a small town around half way between Murcia and Granada.
Sunday. We went for a walk today to the Sendero-Norte-de-la-Dehesa it starts at a picnic centre where we found it was probably not the best day to do the walk as it was being used for a motorcycle race, a running race and a mountain bike race. The first two having been completed we just had to avoid the bikes. Despite the path being wide and easy to follow, having had dozens of motorcyclists and runners pounding it since early morning and mountain bikers racing up it as we walked we managed to get lost and finished by simply walking straight up the side of the hill assuming (correctly it turned out) that eventually we would rediscover the path and be able to continue to the Mirador de la Dehesa. The path down from the mirador was easy and gentle and after less than an hour we were back at the car having, according to my “fitbit”, taken 10,657 steps and climbed the equivalent of 30 flights of stairs.