A local photo walk

The rain had stopped and we awoke to a bright sunny morning and decided to make the most of it and walk from home to Cuevas del Mar (Caves of the sea) and enjoy the changing scenery and autumn light.

We packed lunch of Tortilla, bread, fruit, nuts, and drinks and made our way through the country lanes that lead from home. We travelled along the Camino de Santiago heading east towards Llames de Pria via the roman bridge.

The sun was low in the sky and shone through the autumn leaves and drying foliage casting shadows on the woodland floor.

The small meandering local river; Rio Guadamia was swollen with recent rains.

The young cattle were curious as we passed by and admired their beautiful big eyes. 1152 was particularly cute. 

The insects and birds enjoyed the renewed energy they absorbed from the sun, collecting food and nectar along the way.

We reached the coast and sat for lunch. The local rocks attract climbers who hone their skills and strengthen their grip.

Heading back we made our way along a well defined coastal path which wound its way through woodland, scrub, pasture and even a duck pond. We sat and had a drink whilst being observed by a local cat whose curiosity was stirred by our presence.

As the birds of prey battled high above we walked at a slower pace and took time to enjoy the remainder of the afternoon and to savour the sites of a fresh autumnal day.

With home in sight, our tired bodies and weary feet were looking forward to a warm drink and relaxing in front of a homely log fire. 

Making elderflower cordial

Friends, Birgitta and Manfred at Casa Belén recently gave us some homemade elderflower cordial which we really enjoyed. With its slightly heady aroma, a sharp sweetness and thirst quenching qualities, we thought it would great to go, sooner rather than later, to collect flowers to make our own. We were sure we had missed the main blossoming of the wild elderflower bushes but we managed to collect enough for a decent batch.

We set off along the Camino de Santiago which is about 500 meters from La Pasera and explored some of the many tracks that lead off it to the left and right. Many of the bushes were sited in overgrown meadows now inaccessible due to thick bramble growth which made collection difficult. We carried on as walking the camino is great anyhow and in the end we managed to collect about 50 or 60 newly blossoming flower heads.  We ensured we didn't strip entire bushes thereby leaving some to fruit later in the season.

We searched on line for a recipe and decided to try this one from River Cottage. We also needed to collect lemons but given the plentiful trees around the area we were easily able to gather enough for our needs. In this recipe we needed 6 for zest but only used the juice of 3.

In total we made about three and half litres which we will use over the coming weeks. We also made some ice cubes with the undiluted cordial for using in a nice sparkling wine or Cava. If we get chance we intend to make another batch but that really does depend on finding elder flowers that are not turning to fruit.