Baena to Zuheros – 8 miles Today’s walk was short with glorious scenery! Zuheros is in the Subbeticas Nature Preserve and it’s well worth the visit. We stayed a second night in Zuheros and went to a bat cave. Photos forbidden so no record but a good hike and great guide. We stayed an extra day in Zuheros and visited the bat caves. We just saw two bats but as…
Castro Del Rio to Baena – 14.3 miles For much of the day we followed the Guadajoz River. Baena, like many of the towns we are passing through, has many layers of civilizations from Neolithic to Iberian to Roman to Visigoth to Moor to present day. There is a wonderful archeological museum showing finds from each era. If you’d like to learn more about olive processing look here.
Today we visited several archeological sites, the Calahorra Tower and the Alcazar. There are so many layers of civilizations; Roman, Visigothic (Germanic tribes invading then converting to early Christianity), Arabic and the Berber Muslim Caliphate, Jews then Christians and now modern Cordoba. At one point Cordoba was the largest, most educated city in Western Europe. The huge population was possible with agriculture using the mechanical lifting of water from the…
Cordoba to Ategua – 16 miles Leaving Cordoba we crossed the Guadalquivir River by walking across the fortified Roman Bridge. The site was closed unless you called ahead to make arrangements for a visit but we did see some of the remains from below. We camped nearby in an olive grove and watched stars the Romans saw. I dreamt of ring wraiths and history.
Walking through the narrow streets there are doors with worn handles. The sound of doves, the smell of marzipan and the ancient architecture transport me to a different time.
It’s been chilly in Seattle the last few weeks with temperatures in the mid-twenties. Cold days mean glorious morning light so I’ve been bundling up and heading out.
