Almond Blooms and Ships in the air

Almond tree blooms in Desierto de las Palmas, Castellon, Spain

Dear Citizens of the World,

Recently, I have neglected one of my favourite hobbies . For some reason, having Galloping Spanish Blightus (pneumonia) reduced my hikes in the mountains to.... zero. Not good for my health - especialy my mental health.

Getting a GPS gave me an extra reason to restart my weekend sorties in the mountains of Spain. Now it is possible for me to download tracks from Wikiloc.com and do just about any hike imaginable - as long as my legs will take me. It is quick and easy. Then you can upload your routes, comments and pictures for all to see and use. Here you can find my most recent sortie in Castellon Spain in the Desierto de las Palmas Natural Park.


We did 12km and 600m of climbing in this fun hike. The pinkish red rocks, steep terrain, monestaries, hermitages, ruins, views of the coast and mountains were even better with the almond tree blooms. The white and pink flowers don't last long on the trees and they are always a treat.


The province of Valencia in Spain is well know for their citrus fruits. These fields also had fantastic oranges... many going to waste. The sweet smell filled the air. You could taste them just by walking near the orange grove.

One of many types of cactus plants along the trail...

Other parts of the trail go through a narrow canyon with a few less-inviting plants.


The Bartolo Peak rises 700 meters above the coast, quite steeply. The view from above causes an optical illusion. The sea seems to rise as a wall to the thick gray clouds above that hide the horizon. A patch of light illuminates the ship, making it look like it is navigating towards the clouds, not the sea.

I have embedded a link to the route we did below:

I hope to see you on the trail soon!






The United Statesian

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