After our trips to different places in Spain, we’d come back to our welcome home in Torre Blanca. Each time, as we approached warmer weather, the locale seemed to be getting more and more resort-like. By the time we were getting ready to leave Spain in mid April, it was brimming with sun and sunbathers. We could smell the coconut-scented suntan oil wafting up to our 10th floor balcony. Walking along the sea promenade was still a great pleasure for me, as was winding our way into Los Boliches to the small café I liked so much, its owners becoming more like friends.
The sea is so prominent here that it’s good to remember there are some fine areas to explore in the surrounding high (and much cooler) hills. El Refugio (Jualan) is a nature reserve not far from Marbella that we’ve enjoyed visiting several times.
Located not far from the beaches, it nevertheless is a climate away… and is aptly named a refuge. Situated in the woods at sufficient altitude from the sea to be several degrees cooler and, with its forested grounds, it serves as a haven for the sun-drenched and beach-besotted. We visited several times: once in early March it was bracingly cool with strong winds but sun shining. We had it nearly to ourselves. But just a few weeks later in March it was very sunny and the long walks and hikes were often frequented by families.
After walking about a mile on a well-travelled path, you come to “the end”, as seen in the photo. Actually, it’s just one of the buena vistas to look out and down from. Yes, indeed, I’m happy to have been able to take my first (mini) hike in so long!
I had to use walking sticks, still unable to trust my footing or balance. But rest assured: most people can easily manage the less arduous trails around El Refugio. There are also some more challenging hikes for the enthusiast. And the trails tend to be well-marked here… in contrast, say, to hiking in France.
 |
| El Refugio trails
French hiking guidebooks are notorious for telling you how long a trail should take you (if you are a marathoner!) but neglect to say how many kilometers it measures. I’m remembering how many times I’d get lost on hikes taken in southern France, trusting to my little French book written for randonneurs. The book would typically have some toss-off directions in French, telling you, say, to veer right of “some stone vestiges of what was perhaps an old Roman encampment.” First off, how does a foreigner who’s not an archaeologist have the faintest clue of what “some stone vestiges” are supposed to look like? Secondly, the trail is filled with all sorts of stones and, having followed earlier such instructions, I’m usually hopelessly off the trail by now, imagining bread crumbs strewn along the path to guide me home again. Nevertheless, I’m still here to tell you about it.
|
Looking up to the hills near the buena vista spot is a fine bronze statue of a mountain goat that takes you by surprise.
I, who tend to name nearly everything, named her Millicita, a homage to a famous little mountain goat on Saturna Island who was born in 2000, named Millie by a friend of mine who reared her and introduced her back into her tribe of cliffwalkers on that mystical little island. That goat, despite all the differences in climate and culture, of course, reminded me of home at Saturna. But I’m not homesick. I'm just thinking of how lucky I am.
 |
| JS Photo |
Today’s Thought
Most new discoveries are suddenly-seen things that were always there.
Susanne K. Langer
Today's Painting
Today's Painting
 |
To COMMENT from the homepage: Click on Title of Post to get to its own page. Comment box appears below post. Subscribe for updates on art, travels, and adventures in creative life. You can also find me at my Facebook Page and Website for my art and news of upcoming shows/sales.
No comments:
Post a Comment