1ª Ruta de "Los Tragamillas"!

For a year and a half we've been talking about doing a hike in the nearby town of Archidona. Today we finally did it! My friends Nuria, Jesuli and Chichi did the Camino de Santiago last year and came home with the hiking bug; nonetheless, it wasn't until today that we finally got our acts together and our schedules aligned to actually do a hike around here! So it was the three of them, another girl who has done El Camino, Sara (our new renter) and I out on the trail.

The route was a semi-circle of 14km. Luckily we had two cars, otherwise we would have ended up walking the last stretch along the road (not fun!). The first part of the hike was beautiful, winding along a little creek and through canyons of pine and holm oak; but the last few kilometers were kind of boring landscape (more developed/agricultural) and on dirt roads as opposed to trails...not as fun or interesting. It wasn't too bad in terms of difficulty, a really steep ascent in the beginning and a long down hill--killer for my knees--at the end. We took our time and had to ask for directions more than once seeing as how the signage was a little patchy at best, but all-in-all it was a great morning/afternoon out in the sun and fresh air.

Of course nothing in Spain is complete without a cervecita and so when we finished the hike we headed into town for a beer and some food. Archidona has a beautiful central plaza, la Plaza Ochoavades (1804), which is octagonal and the only one of its shape in Spain (if I'm not mistaken). It definitely felt good to sit down, and the cold tinto and a plate of porra were just what I needed to start feeling myself again. ;) Somehow walking tires me out much more than running!

Over beers, Nuria suggested we give our little group a name since we hope to plan more hikes in the future. The only one we came up with was "Los Tragamillas"--the "Miles Swallowers". I pointed out that they don't measure distance in miles here...but somehow "tragakilometros" is just too much of a tongue twister to be a good name! Besides, Jesuli assured me that the name is partially to honor our American participation--Ha! ;)

After our light lunch we moved on in search of coffee and pastries. We were informed that there was no pastelería in Archidona, but after our coffees, on the way back to the cars we walked by a monastery where the nuns bake and sell all kinds of delicious treats. I've been told of this before: you order the sweet you want from one side of a lazy susan and put down your money, then the nun spins it around to deliver the pastry. You don't actually ever see the nuns. Anyway, it was quite an interesting experience and the pastries were DELICIOUS!

Ordering pastries!

This is the little display case showing all the goodies you can buy from the nuns--edible and otherwise.

So we're back in La Roda after a great day of exploration and adventure... As it turns out, the "Tragamillas" gulped down quite a bit more than just miles!! But it was wonderful, and anyway what's the point of burning calories if you can't re-stock?! I look forward to our next hike!