Just before the end of
the promenade you pass a small bronze
statue
of a naked lady looking out to sea!
Here the promenade
starts
to bear right following a line of 5 palm trees and you take
the
stone steps up to your L to rejoin the coastal path as
indicated
by the finger post SP Torre Valentina. (Inntravel walking
notes
for the Catalan Coast)
In just a few days
we will be off on our next trip to Spain – specifically Barcelona and a 7-day
independent walking trip along the Costa Brava.
When we tell
people we are going to walk in Spain, they immediately say “oh, you’re doing
the Camino, right?”
We inevitably
reply, “No, not the Camino, but an organized walking trip on our own along the
Catalan Coast north of Barcelona."
This draws some
blank looks as if to say is there any other kind of walk in Spain? “The Camino” has become a hugely
popular thing to do in the last decade. Many friends of ours who have done
it recently wear their experience like a badge of honor for those who are physically
fit, particularly at our age. It’s
also what many people associate Spain with – the Camino de Santiago.
I looked up the
Camino recently and learned that in 2015 there were 262,500 pilgrims who walked
the Camino de Santiago, or the Ways of St. James, as it is called in
English. Of course the majority would
have been people following the ancient walkways that lead to Santiago de
Compostela in northwest Spain where the remains of St. James, are buried. The Camino can start in France,
Portugal or Spain. Those whom we
know who have “done the Camino”, have been tourists and walked the 200 to 300 miles (depending
on where you start) for sport - not for the spiritual journey. After all, it takes a certain
discipline and training to prepare for it. There are even groups in Asheville who meet regularly to
talk about their Camino experiences and/or to learn about it so they can go. Our local REI store offers classes in
how to prepare for this walk.
We never were
lured by “The Camino” but have become hooked on taking independent walking
trips now when we go abroad. This
will be our third one in a year. (We did the Vineyards of northern Portugal, and
the foothills of the Atlas Mountains in Morocco in 2015). The reason might be the thought that “we’d
better do it while we can”. We are adamant that we aren’t ready to sit on a bus
or get too comfy on a cruise just yet. Even though we aren’t about to hike 200
to 300 miles, we do feel a certain commitment to prepare for a 7-day walking
trip with a 10- 12 mile average walk a day. The preparation gets us up and
exercising and is a big incentive to stay fit. Beyond that it is a most unique opportunity to fully
experience a very small and particular part of a country by walking through it.
Getting ready for the 7 - day walk
We are now regular
travelers with Inntravel – The Slow Holiday people (Inntravel.com). We love this UK based travel agency
which most of our American friends don’t know about. Inntravel seems to have perfected the “walk at your own pace
without a guide” type of holidays.
Our seaside hotels are booked, our luggage will be transferred from
place to place as we walk, our meals including three course dinners are all
arranged. We have just received in the mail a small notebook with a black padded
cover that says Inntravel along with detailed geographic maps of the area we
will be walking. Inside is a
wealth of information, important telephone numbers, basic lists of words in
Catalan, background information as to where we are going. But most important
are the detailed walking notes for each day. We joke that not only are we exercising our bodies but our
brains will get a workout. There is concentration involved in following
detailed directions. The directions in the little
black notebook get us to where we are supposed to end up each day. There is no guide and no group of
fellow hikers – just the two of us relying on each other and our interpretation
of the directions. “Art, do you
think this is 500 meters after the second left?” Or, “Kristina, do you think these stone steps lead back up
to the main promenade?” I am hopeful that on this walking trip I
can use my Spanish even though we will be in Cataluña where Catalan is spoken.
Sitting at home in
Asheville pouring over our walking notes can be daunting because they don’t
always make a lot of sense. From our past experiences we know that
once we are there starting out on Day 1 it will fall into place. Here is an overview of our first day
coming up next week!
Day
1: S”Agaro to La Fosca – 15.2 Km/4 hrs. 30 mins; total ascent: 227 m., total
descent: 213 m.
Overview: From Platja d’Aro to Sant Antoni de
Calonge you follow for the most part the coastal path “El Cami de Ronda”. This path was used to combat the
contrabad trade in cigarettes and alcohol, as the numerous little creeks were
favored places for smugglers.
There are two long, more built up sections that follow seafront
promenades. It is also the longest
day of the week but mostly flat with just a couple of rocky sections and a few
steps to negotiate. You often find
yourself crossing small beaches, picking up the path again at the far end of
each bay or cover, sometimes with steps leading upwards. From time to time you pass through
little tunnels cut into the rock.
Practically the whole route is following the GR92 on your map with just
a couple of deviations….for the most part you are on a manmade path or paved
promenade with a good surface…..”
Our suitcases out and we are crossing things off the “to do list” each day. I have a hiking wardrobe, which has
taken some thought and a few trips to get together. It doesn’t
seem like hiking should be an expensive sport but after many excursions to REI to
purchase yet one more seemingly necessary item, we can say otherwise. A new adventure awaits. And, if you are
wondering what if something happens along the way, it pours rain, or we are too
tired to walk, there is no one to stop us from simply taking a taxi to where we
need to be next!
