I think I got myself a bit de-hydrated in the mad search for my sticks yesterday, certainly rang out of water well before the end. Anyway re-hydrating on two bottles of beer perhaps was less than ideal. Couldn't sleep and had really bad pains in my feet only cured by a massive dose of ibuprofen. Was really fed up and not at all looking forward to the walk this morning.
Got a taxi to Santes Creus the home of a Cistercian monastery which people make a lot of fuss about around here. Being a Monday it was shut otherwise I would have gone into it and done a detailed survey. Set of on my walk, about 40 kilometres, at about 8.45. Weather cool and cloudy with the threat of rain.
The first couple of hours were through the last bit of the wide valley I was in yesterday. Lots of vines which now have little grapes on them. Good progress since the last time I saw them three weeks ago near El Robellar.
It was then a 600 metre climb out of the valley, up high for the first time in a week. The path was now a mix of open upland country and pine forest.
The first target was the Esglesia de St Jaume, a church without any windows. Will try and establish if this a standard feature.
The other thing I noticed is how close I now am to the GR7, the walk I came up through Spain on until I left it at El Boixar. It was only 14 kilometres away today.
It was then down through fields of barley towards Capellades well at least the place I thought was Capellades when I put my schedule together.
Still don't quite understand the mistake but when I got into this very new and dispersed settlement there was just no sign of a hotel. I asked a very nice Spaniard who seemed to say that I was in the wrong Capellades and the place I needed was some distance away. He gave me the approximate direction but didn't seem to think I should try and walk it. A car came around the corner, he knocked on the window and within seconds, and after profuse thanks and handshaking, I was in the back seat on a 10 kilometre journey to the real Capellades. Fortunately it's in the right direction for tomorrow's walk, to Montserrat.
Got a taxi to Santes Creus the home of a Cistercian monastery which people make a lot of fuss about around here. Being a Monday it was shut otherwise I would have gone into it and done a detailed survey. Set of on my walk, about 40 kilometres, at about 8.45. Weather cool and cloudy with the threat of rain.
 |
| Santa Crues |
The first couple of hours were through the last bit of the wide valley I was in yesterday. Lots of vines which now have little grapes on them. Good progress since the last time I saw them three weeks ago near El Robellar.
It was then a 600 metre climb out of the valley, up high for the first time in a week. The path was now a mix of open upland country and pine forest.
The first target was the Esglesia de St Jaume, a church without any windows. Will try and establish if this a standard feature.
 |
| Esglesia de St Jaume |
The other thing I noticed is how close I now am to the GR7, the walk I came up through Spain on until I left it at El Boixar. It was only 14 kilometres away today.
It was then down through fields of barley towards Capellades well at least the place I thought was Capellades when I put my schedule together.
 |
| Fields of barley |
Still don't quite understand the mistake but when I got into this very new and dispersed settlement there was just no sign of a hotel. I asked a very nice Spaniard who seemed to say that I was in the wrong Capellades and the place I needed was some distance away. He gave me the approximate direction but didn't seem to think I should try and walk it. A car came around the corner, he knocked on the window and within seconds, and after profuse thanks and handshaking, I was in the back seat on a 10 kilometre journey to the real Capellades. Fortunately it's in the right direction for tomorrow's walk, to Montserrat.
Thank God, you let us know that you are really human, John. Indeed, on these exhausting distances you have to cheat a bit at times.
ReplyDeleteBut - how can you become dehydrated in pouring rain? Menno