Costa Ártabra
Here I go with another one of my one-day trips. I absolutely love those. I do nothing, and enjoy too much.
This one involved beach... so what is not to like there?
This time I explored a part of the Costa Ártabra, or better known as northwest of the coast of Galicia, between the estuaries of Ares and Ortigueira.
First order of business... beach. This one is called Playa de Morouzos and it is located in the Spanish municipality of Ortigueira. So close to my home, but yet I've never been there before. I have a terrible humans, I know!
So let's forget the terrible humans fact for a moment, and let me tell you something more about the beach where I had so much fun.
This beach is a little different than the beaches I am used too. Its sand is way darker than the sand I know, and it has extensive intertidal zone, with swamps, reed areas and a pine forest.
Parking is pretty much ok, but you have to think about the fact that is was still spring, and there is no crowd.
I even put a map of parking, so you can see, plan or navigate to exact place... so you are welcome.
From the parking you have to pass a pine forest to get to the beach. Please, BE CAREFUL if you are going there with your dog, because some pines has nests of pine processionary. Watch carefully where your dog walks and what it sniffs!
Now, when we are here, let's start with the best part! The photos of the actual place, and maybe some photo of me doing nothing. But hey, we will not judge my human. She can waste her own time as she wants.
It is a pretty big beach, about 3 km long, and average width of 110 m. As you can see, all beach for myself. So, I had no other choice but to enjoy and start goofing around.
Not bad for a dog and a beach day if you ask me. If you want to see more photos from this beach go here.
After almost three hours doing all kind of activities I got hungry, and a bit tired. There was the perfect opportunity to have a lunch right there on the beach. As a special treat, my humans wanted to take me to a restaurant, but... and there is always one but that ruins it all.. the only one restaurant that is placed there, and it is called A Cabana de Fos is NOT pet friendly.
I am sorry for them, but if they don't want my money, somebody else does.
It was a little late to search for another restaurant, but have no worries because my middle name is "Always prepared", so it was time for plan B. And that would be eat right there in the pine forest, because we always take some stuff with that we can eat on a go. Just be careful...as I said there are pine processionaries there, so chose carefully where you will sit to eat.
After my tummy was full and happy, we decided to continue our adventure. Next on a list was Cabo Ortegal.
Cabo Ortegal is a cape located in the community of Galicia, in the municipality of Cariño (A Coruña). It is part of the Spanish Atlantic coast.
For its value (geological, morphological, ornithological) Ortegal is included in the community interest site (L.C.I.) "Costa Ártabra".
One fun fact. This is the place where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Bay of Biscay. It is place where if you are lucky, you can see dolphins and even whales.
Great stone shafts drop sheer into the ocean from such a height that the waves crushing on the rocks doesn't seem like a big deal... like these people here. Piece of cake, right?
Anyway, these jagged rocky islets provide a home to a hundreds of marine birds... so, who knows, maybe these two think they are birds too. Well, we will never know, will we?
The spectacular lighthouse that you see on a photo above was built in 1984. The cylindrical tower is 3 meters wide in diameter and 12, 7 meters high. It is white with red stripe and two balconies of 4,7 meters wide in diameter. And let me tell you... it is big! You can see more photos if you like.
From there we went through local, almost rural roads, passing by the Miranda viewpoint, from where you can see stunning view of a city and port of Cariño. On our way we "met" some wild horses, see beautiful nature... and we finally get to the cliff of Vixía Herbeira.
Vixía Herbeira in A Coruña is one of the highest cliffs in Western Europe. It is located in Santa María de A Pedra next to Cape Ortegal and it is 613 meters above sea level.
I went to the viewpoint of Garita de Herbeira, where I found the famous "garita" a stone house built in the XVII (18th) century, designed by the engineers of the crown and built by the residents of the region. It was a building designed to perform functions of coastal and maritime surveillance. Now it is a landmark so I can pose with it.
Remember that we are on a very high cliff, and some of the areas have no protection, so you have to be especially careful if you go there with dogs so they don't fall.
And the last stop on this mini road trip is coast of Cadeira. We stop there to see stunning view of Bay of Biscay, and to see a monument to a Leslie Howard and his companions.
For those who don't know who Leslie Howard is, quick reminder. He was an English stage and film actor, director and producer. He is probably best remembered for playing Ashley Wilkes in his best-known film, Gone with the Wind (1939). He was active in anti-fascist propaganda and rumoured to have been involved with British or Allied Intelligence, sparking conspiracy theories regarding his death in 1943.
On this vary place, on 1 June 1943, Howard died when flying to Bristol, UK, from Lisbon, Portugal, on KLM Royal Dutch Airlines/BOAC Flight 777. The aircraft was shot down by Luftwaffe Junkers.
A squadron of Junkers 88 fighter-bombers shadowed them and then, even though the airliner was known to be a civilian plane on a scheduled flight, shot it down over the Bay of Biscay.
There was this theory that said that Germans believed that the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, was on board the flight, so that is why they took it down. Howard was among the 17 fatalities, including four ex-KLM flight crew.
And that was it. It was time to go home. I was tired and I need a strength for my next trip.
See you soon,
Aby
