DAY 22 - ALMADÉN DE LA PLATA to EL REAL DE LA JARA - Tuesday 14 May 2024

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As we only had a short way to go today, we enjoyed our second breakfast in a bar before leaving town.

We passed a bullring, then followed a wide dirt track into the countryside. Today we had fields of oak trees with an undercarpet of wildflowers. At the start of the walk, we saw sheep and Iberian pigs grazing. Later we saw goats and horses. A group of cyclists came the other way, a lone cyclist shouted a 'buen camino' and a day walker came over for a chat. He had to be back in Seville later that afternoon - four days walking for us, so he must have had a quicker option! 

After we checked into our accommodation we had a great 'pilgrim menu': 3 courses and a drink for 10 euros each. We compared experiences with a couple of Brits who were cycling in the other direction. We took some more photos and headed back to our hotel for a rest. 

In the evening we wandered up to the medieval castle for some great views. 

Almost a rest day! 

Typical of today's landscape - wildflowers and holm oaks
Today's breakfast was fairly typical - café con leche,  toast with olive oil, ham  and tomato
The Via de la Plata so far has been extremely well signposted. Here, an information board on the way out from Almadén de la Plata lets us know what to expect from today's stage. 
Setting out at the start of another day's walk
Following the yellow arrows on the Via de la Plata
The path took us through farmland grazed by sheep and Iberian pigs
Scenes from today's walk. There were many gates to negotiate - no problem for walkers, but a bit of an obstacle for cyclists
Goats and horses
More scenes from today's walk
Yet more scenes from today's walk
Flowers
Some of the warning signs adorning the gates we had to get through today
Entering El Real de la Jara 
El Real de la Jara. The crowns on top of the street lamps indicate that the town enjoys royal favour. We had noticed the same feature in El Puerto de Santa Maria a couple of weeks ago. 
Relaxing in Real de la Jara at the end of the day's walk
We strolled up to the town's castle in the late afternoon
Horses
Birds
Day 22 - Map

Day:                               22
Distance:                      15.0 km
Walking time:               3 hrs 27 mins
Elevation gain:             433 metres
Cumulative distance:  388.93 km

Comments

  1. Murray and Sandra17 May 2024 at 21:14

    My thought on the birds: Azure-winged Magpie, Crested Lark (or maybe Thekla’s Lark, although the bright wide eyebrow should be diagnostic I can’t work this out, Common Chaffinch, Woodchat Shrike, white stork

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aussie Slow Travellers18 May 2024 at 07:37

      Awesome, thanks!

      Delete
  2. The Howies18 May 2024 at 07:08

    The wildflowers just get better and better. The photographers are doing a great job, some very creative shots I see.

    ReplyDelete

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