Orienteering

On Sunday we went orienteering from the Mirador Restaurant at Gebas.  We had the first real rain that morning but it stopped in time for the competition.

The route to the start

View from the restaurant

Monday we had an easy day and Tuesday we did our Hidden Valley walk in the morning and then took the motorhome up to the campsite at El Berro to meet up with friends out here for the winter.

Return route, Morron Redondo in the background

Yesterday we cycled from the campsite to circumnavigate the Badlands of Gebas.  We rode 40 km with 630 metres of climb.  

We cooked lunch when we returned and shared it with Angela and Paco from the campsite.

At the mirador (viewpoint)

The Embalse de Algeciras in the "Badlands"

New Walk

Today we set off to do a walk along part of a new trail opened up by the local mountain bikers.  We left our car at the Casa Forestal Morti (Forest House).  We walked up the Camino de los Algorrobos until just after the park gate.  Here you can go to the right and head down to the dry riverbed.  Following a fence you eventually come to the end of a mountain bike route.  This climbs up to eventually join the path from Los Paredes Negras and the Camino de los Algorrobos once again.

Today we were joined by an escort.  A small dog who joined us earlier this year came with us again.  Last year we were worried that she would get lost but today we had no such worries.

Our Escort joins us

Morron Redondo

Ruins on Camino de los Algorrobos

Our escort is still with us

Escort leaves - spot the dog!

Yesterday's and today's rides

Today we were going down to Mazarron to meet some friends and have lunch so we had another short ride.  We did our easiest short circular ride, 25km with only 135 metres of climb.  This ride takes us through the farmland between Totana and Alhama and returns along the trasvase.

Looking back towards Totana

Looking towards Alhama

On the trasvase near the mountain bike
route known as "Rompe Bici" Broken Bike!

At the bottom of Camino de Abuznel from
the bridge over the trasvase

Had to go to Alhama yesterday morning so only had a short ride when I returned.  We rode up to Aledo using minor country roads and back on one of our normal routes.

Aledo from the Totana road

Mountain Biking

Today, for a change, we rode our mountain bikes on a route from home up to the forested area of Sierra Espuña known as Las Alquerias.

At the mirador (viewpoint) looking towards
La Santa

From the mirador looking towards Garita

On Camino Campix in Las Alquerias

Day Off

Yesterday we did another 50km cycle ride this time to Camping Sierra Espuña and back so today we had a day off.

We drove up to La Santa to go for a short stroll with the camera.  Some photos taken on our route.

The church at La Santa (busy on Sunday morning)

Looking towards Morron Espuña and
Pedro Lopez

Today's walk

After yesterday's bike ride we decided a day off the saddle would be a good idea.  We took the car up into Sierra Espuña and parked just past the gate to El Paleto.  We walked back to the gate and headed uphill.  Our intended route was to go up to the fire lookout "Garita".  The first picture show the fire tower at the top of the hill.  The small white mark right of centre.  Taken from the trail 30 minutes walk away.

We continued to climb through the trees with good views back towards the coast. Eventually we arrived at the fire tower.

The next photo is the view to the main mountains of Sierra Espuña taken from the fire tower.

Biking

Since we bought our new bikes we have started to ride some of the small, quiet roads around our part of Murcia.   We had a 40 km ride out to Alhama de Murcia and to the Embalse de Algeciras and back along the trasvase.  We had an easy ride along the trasvase in the direction of Lorca for 15 km and then came back on the same route.

Couple of photos on the trasvase.

A few days later we did a ride up to Aledo, from there we took the road in the direction of Lorca to a T junction where returned right in the direction of Zarzadilla de Totana, the right again back towards Aledo and Totana.  About 50 km on minor roads. 

Along the road to Zarzadilla we saw many vultures but they were too high and far away to get a photo.

Biking to Collado Bermejo

We recently bought some new bikes whilst in England.  These are cyclocross bikes to enable us to have a new activity.  At 60 and 63 we feel we need new activities to keep us going!!!

Today we decided to ride a circular route from our house, along the trasvase (canal) and up into Sierra Espuña to Collado Bermejo and back down.  We have done this in the past on mountain bikes and were interested to see how different it would be.  It was still hard work but about 35 minutes quicker on these new bikes.

Coffee break at Fuente del Hilo

View from Collado Bermejo back down towards Fuente del Hilo

At last my own tablet to blog from

For the last few! months I have not been able to write on this blog because of computer problems.  I have now got my own tablet and have learnt how to put photos on from my 'phone.  Hopefully I will be making more efforts to add to this blog.