Andalucia 2008
Day Four: 11th October
Weather: A strange red mist from a Sahara sand storm, warm in the valley
Route: Relaxing in Riogordo
The gale blowing up from Africa yesterday dumped lots of red Sahara sand on the newly whitewashed walls and terraces of the Fountainhead Hotel in Riogordo. So when we drove up from Malaga we couldn’t see very far, it was almost like smog. High above the sky was a crystal clear blue but lower down there was a distinctly reddish hue to the air. It was still nice and warm, and a pleasure to take a nice stroll around the area. I walked down the valley and up to Riogordo and back again in about 3 hours, so I must have done about 7 miles or so. I walked up through the zen garden and out of the hotel grounds to follow the farm track down to the bottom of the valley.
Exiting the hotel through the courtyard garden
Dry olive groves
Looking down to the valley below
The gradient was quite gentle and the track wound down to the valley floor in a series of easy bends. It was very quiet apart from the barking dogs whose noise carried up the slopes from the river. The land around here is terraced and gives mainly olive and almond crops, although in the river valley it is much more lush and supports citrus trees, a variety of vegetables and salad crops. The ground beneath the trees is grazed by the local goat herds and although I couldn’t see them, I could here the tinkle of their bells as they moved around looking for something to eat. It is fairly arid at this time of year after the long hot summer, but apparently there is a profusion of flowers in springtime. I passed by various farmsteads and smallholdings, some in better shape than the others, but all quiet – it must have been siesta time when I was walking.
Down in the valley towards Riogordo
Dry and dusty with a strong wind blowing
But a bit more verdant down by the river
The avocados, oranges and limes looked delicious and probably tasted good as well, but I resisted the temptation to pick one off – mainly due to the dogs I heard barking earlier on. The tomatoes looked like they grew like weeds, but the season was drawing to a close and there was a distinct nip in the air in the mornings, compared to down on the coast. The river didn’t flow very fast or deeply, but it did flow and judging by how verdant the valley floor was there must be a fair amount taken out for irrigation of the citrus groves. Close by the river there were some tall bamboo like grasses growing rampant in amongst the trees. The blue-grey leaves of the Eucalyptus trees were rustling away in the howling wind, and it was a bit spooky to hear the wind blowing so strongly through the steep sided valley and the tall Eucalyptus trees were swaying heavily. Everywhere was dusty and it was thirsty work walking along this quiet valley.
The best scarecrow I’ve seen for a while
The rubbish tip up to the right side
As I came towards the outskirts of Riogordo I passed by the new sewage works all freshly painted and not smelling of anything in particular – which was a good sign. A little further up the road there was a rotating paddle that discharged toilet paper with a dull plop into a skip – not so nice, so I moved swiftly on into the town itself. The rubbish tip appeared high up the hill to my right, with streamers of plastic blowing in the wind, and I was glad to be into the town soon enough. All of the houses here are whitewashed and there didn’t appear to be any historical buildings to look at. Riogordo is just a rural Spanish village with a few shops and bars, so I bought a coke and moved on back towards the hotel. There were some lovely trees with ripe red berries lining the road side but I don’t know what they were, but they hid a view of the tip.
These trees looked like willows with deep red berries on
Looking back down the road to Riogordo
The tall tree on the far hill was my destination
I stayed on the road to Benamargosa for a km and then turned back up the dirt track towards the Fountainhead. A short way up the track I forked off to the right and walked up through the almond groves, with the trees looking like they had been burnt black – I don’t think they were, they just look like that. I walked past an old ruin that was in a lovely position with a great view – a good project for someone in the future – although at the present rate it’s probably only worth 10p. I zigzagged uphill following an orange coloured butterfly which wouldn’t stay still for a photograph, and headed for a lone tree on the crest of the hill.
The track that leads up and over to the hotel
Looking down on Riogordo
The old ruin amongst the almond groves
Looking across to the hotel
A very strange sunset
From here it was a short stroll along the track back to the hotel. The sun was in the sky but it looked more like the moon and was obscured in a red fug. I stood next to the plunge pool and watched the house martins flying around, and the shepherd tending his goat herd – but me plunging? No chance it was too cold for me, although I dipped the old pins in to cool down a little. The mist persisted through the next couple of days and didn’t clear until we had a tremendous thunderstorm on our way to the Alhambra in Granada. But I’ve included a picture here as this was the view from the terrace – so very, very peaceful. The reward for the little walk came later on as we sampled the delights of the restaurant….delicious.
The view makes you sit back and relax