Finally, mother nature decided to bring some sun to us this weekend. It was windy by the sea, so we decided to spend Sunday afternoon in the mountains. The wind there was milder so the walk there was much nicer. The time spent there was also special because of one important detail - we had some visitors from Italy, so again a mini Hive meet-up happened. Now for the third time already with the same hivers :))
Actually, that meeting was half unplanned, as I understood they would come the next weekend, but Sunday morning I received a message: we are there at noon! That was a nice surprise. After a fabulous lunch, we went with the space shuttle ( ok, with the van, but a very cool one) to the mountains.
My boys were enjoying the driving while our visitor and I were chilling with @bdog and @holydog.
She is the smiling dog, always with us, doesn't matter if we walk, sit, or eat, she is always with us, the closest she can be!
But also, she likes to be with her best friend, sharing the same pillow with him. They have two, one for each of them, but usually, they share one :))
We arrived at our destination, the artificial lake Guadalest. Lately, it was raining so much that the lake is full. It is a water reservoir from where several towns are getting the tap water, our town too. After some days (weeks) of heavy rains, the barrage gates of this dam had to be open because of the pressure. The excess water had to be released as there was a danger of the dam breaking. It made some other problems with the rivers, so some areas were flooded and our tap water was not suitable for use for several days.
The views from the dam are nice. Looking in the direction of the south we can see (far away, but still visible) the sea and the other direction shows us the lake. That turquoise colour of it, so specific and different from the other lakes is my favourite one. The water is so cold always, it gets water from several sources, small mountain rivers bringing fresh and cold water. Even during the summer, it is cold, I like to swim sometimes here, but it is a really refreshing experience. Although @amico.sports said it was not cold at all, so he tried the lake this weekend. I skipped it, of course, :D My boots were giving me a nice, warm feeling.
So this is what the dam looks like from the shore of the lake. This is a very tall dam, but the lake is full now. That is good, after a dry period. We set off on our walk and walked away from the dam.
@holy.dog is always the first to go and explore. We call him Oliver - the pathfinder :)) He is a free spirit but never gets lost. From time to time, he checks back if we are going. But we walked at our pace, enjoying nature, the talk and a pipe of peace we shared.
At one moment our friend, Amico showed me one piece of graffiti: MAPIIANO. It is almost like MIPIANO, but with a little variation. It was cool to see it. Maybe if I would have some marker or felt pen, I would write my hive username there :))
An abandoned stone house is what I spotted almost at the end of our path. I climbed there but nothing special could not be seen. Just that stone small house, with tools for tillage. In summer, I bet this is a great spot to spend some days, off-grid. The closest villages are 30 minutes away.
As I mentioned, a lot of recent rain means a lot of water supply and small streams everywhere. At one point the path was covered with water and an improvised bridge was made. I didn't want to try to cross it, but we met on the other side a group of funny people. We were joking and talking, about who is the first to pass, who is braver. The pipe of peace was offered to them too if they cross the water but they refused it. When they successfully crossed it, we took the way back to the dam where we parked the van and for some time we joined their group and spontaneous stories were shared. Really amazing how people can interact without knowing each other before.
After the walk around the lake, the village of Guadalest was the next destination. But, the battery of my camera died. I was sure I checked at home, and it showed full, but I suppose it is because it was not so warm. When it is cold the battery runs out faster. So, I have just one photo from the entrance to the village, which is built on the rocks some centuries ago. Anyway, we took just a short looking around there, as one part of the group of people was freezing. A sunny but cold day, spent in an unexpected way, not an everyday walk it was. Thank you for joining this mini hive meetup walk with us!
