Post It from Camping Altomira, Navajas, Castellón, Spain. Monday 19th October, 2015.
We left Los Alcazares on the Saturday morning as the 30th anniversary of the military flying base started their weekend long open days and flying displays. Apparently the British RAF was not in attendance and the reception staff asked me why! We had endured a lot of military flying during that week there and the heavy bomber jets early in a morning were very noisy. On the plus side we saw quite a lot of different aircraft at close range as they flew directly overhead to land close by! We also left with some fantastic presents from our Spanish friends and had met up with lots of friends during the week. It may well be another 3 years before we return I am afraid as there are too many new places to visit.
We had wanted to visit this site for a while as we believed it to be in a beautiful area with opportunities for cycling and walking into the village of Navajas where there were some interesting Villas. I presume they would be similar to those we had seen along the promenade at Benicassim a couple of years ago and fancied seeing them.
Then Chas and Cath wrote their ‘Postcard’ story from a stay earlier this year and from the information and photographs we decided to make sure we visited here on our way home for a couple of nights. I won’t duplicate the information here but if you want to read more about Navajas then please look HERE at their story.
I had read reviews which suggested that there were very few pitches able to accommodate an 8m motorhome and access was also difficult on this terraced site. So I asked my Spanish friend to telephone and ascertain what the actual situation was as, I knew I may struggle with my Spanish over the telephone for such a conversation, and he made a reservation for us.
The site is small and has quite a few bungalows with a very small number of resident Spanish tourers at this time of year and is set on a hillside with glorious views. You can see the view from the back of our pitch which was quite high up within the site.
The pitch we had been allocated was very easy to access but very narrow so there was not a lot of room between us and our neighbours. One being another British caravan and the other another couple from Yorkshire who now live in Brittany. They were very pleasant and helpful with information for our short stay as they knew the area well and were long stay visitors. They even had a cat with them would you believe! The site was well stocked with British campers travelling north and south as it is adjacent the motorway from Valencia to Zaragoza.
As a campsite it was fine, the staff were extremely pleasant and ready to assist with any questions and the facilities whilst a little dated and basic were fine. The cafeteria was good and the food excellent regardless of whether you ate there or in the adjoining restaurant. I was surprised at the extensive choice on the menu and decided to eat local dishes which were cooked to perfection. The local red wine was not as good as the food however but my discovery of a liquor called Frangelico made up for it.
After arriving we went off for a walk around Navajas which was clearly visible from the elevation of the campsite. It was surrounded by trees and you could see the blue white and gold dome of the church. We explored the streets and found the very old tree in the Plaza del Olmo and found these very beautiful villas. I only saw one actually dated at 1895 but I am sure they were all of a similar age. When looking at such large properties I always wonder what type of people had them built and who lives in them now. They were incredibly lavish and I am sure were equally so inside. The photo is one I particularly liked the look of.
Sunday started with the commonly heard sound of gun shots in rural areas as hunting is a very popular sport in Spain and as we were in the real countryside it was to be expected. Later that morning we took a ride along the Via Verde de Ojos Negros which runs alongside the campsite and even met up with one of the shooters out with his gun dog. It was formerly an old rail line and I am pretty sure it was used for mining trains collecting materials from the quarries. It was well maintained really and was mainly of tarmac. Many cyclists were using the route and a smaller number of pedestrians were using this section which was part of the Camino del Cid.
We rode the 8km north first to the town of Jerica passing the Patano del Regajo reservoir along the way. The views from the route were excellent and gave you a good picture of the heavily forested landscape of these small mountain ranges known as the Sierra de Espadan at around 1100m.
At the end of the track we could see the full town of Jerica with its imposing tower dominating the skyline. It also has the only remaining Moorish Tower in the Valencian community. We took the road into the heart of the town where we found very narrow roads spiralling up to the tower with tall narrow houses to match. It was a very pleasant small town and after our walk we enjoyed sitting in the main plaza with the locals where Sharon enjoyed tostadas with coffee and I had a very fine plate full of small picante chorizo sausages washed down with a bottle of San Miguel.
The weather was good, dry and sunny and probably around 22ºC so we decided to ride back along the Via Verde and past the campsite to the smaller town of Altura, about 12km away. Near the town itself the track changed from tarmac to a rough sandstone for a short distance and we also met up with people on horseback. The town was almost all shut for the Sunday afternoon so we only stopped for a quick Tinto de Verana in the Plaza Mayor before heading back to catch the last of the day’s sun at the campsite.
It was a very enjoyable if brief stay and I think we shall probably come back again and take advantage of more cycling further afield on the Via Verde and the easy access to Valencia city by train from Navajas.
The weather has made a change of plans for us now and we shall head for Zaragoza today then on to Pau for a couple of nights before Bordeaux so you may get a story from Pau.
Regards, Roy