On top of the mountain…
Only some time ago I started walking for fun and for exercise. I walked around the Embalse of Guadalest a few times which is a hike around 10-13km, depending on where you start and end. On Sundays I walked home from the Rastro in La Nucia which is a walk around 10km as well. I enjoyed the time for myself that I didn’t spend on the couch, listening to my podcasts and discovering the area.
So the next step was to start climbing. The Peñon de Ifach in Calpe is impossible to miss. The beautiful nature park is a Peninsular next to the fishers district of Calpe. The hike is divided into two different parts, the first one easy and paved and the second part a lot harder.
We started at the parking lot next to the entrance, poorly prepared but at least with some water and hiking shoes. The plan was to go as far as possible but I never imagined we could reach the top. I read other blog entries and was sure I wouldn’t be able to make it. So we decided to walk around 30 Minutes uphill until we reached a tunnel. The paths were easy and it was amazing cardio. Sweating and breathing heavily we reached the tunnel, took pictures but were curious how the hike would go on. The tunnel is really slippery and dark, you need to hold on to different ropes along the walls. But surprisingly the way continues easily. We kept on walking, I was excited how far we had come. But slowly the trail became more difficult. At first it was only smaller and with no security at the sides. Then it turned into an uphill climb, no real trail, just stones marked in red to guide the way. But so many people surrounded us. And if they had managed, why shouldn’t I be able to do it??
We took an easy trail to the back part of the Peñon and had a beautiful view! The water is amazingly blue, seagulls enjoy the nature and you can see the whole coastline. But then it got serious… only around 750m to the top but they took forever. Uphill, climbing, finding the trail and the next possibility to put your foot. When we reached the top I couldn’t believe it!!
Going down is only a blurr. My muscles were starting to go sore and I focused so much on my feet. Trying not to slip and trying to ignore my shaking legs. We had brought no food and only small water bottles (because we never thought of climbing all the way up) and it took around 4 hours in total.
Definitely worth the view! It felt great to reach the top :).
annaespaña 
Wow!
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