To Cuenca: Wed 16th May

 We have now left Los Madriles where we spent nearly two months thoroughly enjoying walks, activities and friends. We’re in new territory at Cuenca, so the blog restarts.

The campsite is about 5 miles from the city and pleasantly located in woodland. This was our pitch, and hoped it didn’t rain because it’s mainly bare earth that could turn to mud.

Tur first trip was to the Ciudad Encantada – the Enchanted City. It’s a walk round many huge and unusual rock shapes that can be imagined to be objects, animals or people. It starts with what most folks would describe as a mushroom – but why doesn’t it fall over? It must be a magic mushroom!

This next one is the stern of a ship, about 30 feet high. 

And now a Roman bridge. The tree is behind, not growing through the stone.

However, here’s a tree that is growing on bare rock. It is not be surprising to see rockery type small plants growing on the rocks, but this is a fir tree about 8 feet tall. An info board (in English) tells us that trees that take root on the rocks grow as dwarf or bonsai specimens due to the lack of normal nutrition.

This formation is called the convent door. Figures emerging are disappointingly not nuns but just visitors like ourselves. 

We are in this photo together, courtesy of one of a passing Spanish group. We have coats on because it’s cold, being in the central Spanish plain at about 4,000 feet.

Just one more rock image to stretch your imagination – the two bears. There are literally dozens of these rock shapes, but we’ll stop here before they become too repetitive. It’s quite different when you’re there and can appreciate the scale of the rock formations and look at them from different angles.

We returned to the campsite by a different route, and stopped at a car park of an indicated viewpoint. This is the view of the river gorge as we approached the viewing platform.

Here is he platform. It wouldn’t have looked out of place in rock city.

Can you spot the tiny climber on the left-hand cliff? 

But there’s more going on than is first apparent on the cliff face. We spotted a big bird on one of the ledges.

The camera lens shows it to be a parent and chick. The info board tells us that these are Griffon Vultures, one of the largest, with a wingspan of up to 9 feet!

The cliff face is full of them when you look through binoculars. This one is on the nest.

There are many more on the cliff face, but they are more impressive when flying, 

There were Egyptian vultures too, but they wisely stayed in the distance. Must make sure we don’t nod off sat outside in the chairs on campsite in the afternoon sun with these super scavengers about!