Upstairs we followed the exciting walking route, via the “Mediterranean Steps”. A nice route with many descents, climbs, stairs and a tunnel and eventually up via Apes Den. The monkeys are warned and that is serious: make sure that the monkeys do not see plastic bags, because they expected food to be inside. They are very cheeky and take the bags quickly and aggressively from your hand or bag.
After Gibraltar we drove to Tarifa. On the beach it was very nice to watch the kite surfers.
From El Puerto de Santa Maria we took the boat to Cadiz. Nice trip of more than half an hour on a catamaran. Crossing costs 1.55 euros. Bicycles are allowed free of charge (6 per crossing). You don’t really need the bikes in Cadiz.
Then we drove to Coripe. We wanted to cycle a “Via Verde”. This is a cycling and walking path where previously a railway line lay. There is a via verde from Olvera to Puerto Serrano. Coripe is about the middle. From the old station of Coripe we cycled towards Olvera. It is fun to cycle. Some parts are very nicely laid out with paved bicycle paths. The route goes through many tunnels (sometimes muddy) and over a few viaducts. The views are beautiful. Unfortunately we have not reached Olvera. The last tunnel for Olvera was difficult to access because the entrance had collapsed and part of the tunnel was impassable due to a thick layer of mud. The bikes sank into it and so did we ourselves. Still a bit disappointed we cycled back to Coripe.
We spent the night in a very nice motorhome near Algodonales. With water, so that we could rinse the bikes and ourselves nicely clean.
The next day we went to Ronda. A beautiful town with a gap in the middle. Worth the effort. We spent the night at El Chorro at camping Parque Ardales. At home we were unable to obtain tickets for the Caminito del Rey via the internet. At the campsite we are told that about 60 tickets are still sold at the box office every day. The cash register opens at 9am.
At half past eight we are in line, in front of us about 35 people. And after an hour of waiting we have tickets! It’s a nice walk. Really recommended.
After the walk back to the campsite to pack up and enjoy the Spanish sun. At the end of the day we met Frank and Jessica in the parking lot of a large Mercado. The week in Spain is over. Thank you Frank and Jessica. We had a nice holiday!
MMTI, May 2018
