The weather forecast had been rather grim, and the rain certainly came down as we made our way from Javea by minibus to Calles, but by the time we arrived it had become a light drizzle. After a short break in a local bar for coffee and time to don our boots, we started the walk, led by our professional guide, Dmitry.
The drizzle soon stopped and the walk was very pleasant and as we neared the mountain, we had to wend our way up until we reached the walkway carved through the rock, originally built as a waterway.
The views were spectacular as we walked through the rock on a wooden boardwalk, and even more so when we came to the point where we crossed the Roman Aqueduct Peña Cortada. Declared an Asset of Cultural Interest, this colossal work of hydraulic engineering was built by the Romans in the 1st century AD and the aqueduct remains one of the most important in the country. The trail then led down again into the valley and we followed it until we reached the little town of Chelva.
Lunch at the Restaurante Rincon de Los Pacos was a very sociable affair, with members seated at 2 round tables, adjacent to each other, allowing for easy conversation. Dmitry then led us through the different historic areas in the town, and we made our way through narrow streets, passing by the districts previously inhabited by Moors, Jews and Christians.
The sun came out and we made our way down to the river, for a shorter walk along the bank and back to our minibus.
Our very friendly minibus driver, Julien, then drove us safely back to Javea. An interesting and very enjoyable day all round!
A big thank you to all of our photographers; only a small selection of the lovely pictures could be included here (Wendy, Jacqui, David, Karen & David, Angela).
Our next Getaway Guided Walk will take place on Friday 12th April – further information about it will be published in this week’s Javea U3A Newsletter, or contact the group leader, Angela, via:
getaway.guided.walks@u3ajavea.com (please copy and paste into your mail provider)
