Oven Peak

It sounds more dignified in Spanish: Cabeza del Horno. It’s directly behind the campsite and is a steep ascent in parts. The photo is taken from our pitch.

The hill is a good fitness test and takes about an hour from the campsite to the top. So here are today's intrepid challengers proceeding along the outside of the campsite heading for the base of the hill. It’s all scrub land with networks of pipes running here and there without any clear purpose.

It’s quite a scramble, but we reach the top in the obligatory hour. There’s a fine panorama of the bay and the campsite where Jane and some friends have just finished aquarobics in the pool and are claiming to be waving to us. 

I really couldn’t spot them at the time but, sure enough, in the telephoto picture examined later- there they are, top left corner on the green part (the artificial grass). 

This is the mast, clearly visible from below, but no longer functional, looking somewhat like a guillotine. Lucky it’s not functioning then. Rudi’s found a door in the tin shed just behind the mast. “Order four café con leches and a plate of churros while your in there”, I shout to Rudi. Sadly the potential hilltop café isn’t functioning either. We have a swig of our tepid water instead. 

Nice view, looking inland, of the rambla and White Cliffs where we walked a few days ago.

Having taken in the 360 degree vista, we start to descend down the back of the hill, using the road originally made to build and then maintain the mast when it was operational. It’s deteriorated significantly, with weathered ruts and rubble but at least it leads in the right direction to get back down again.

The disused road decants us in Isla Plana village. On the outskirts is a crumbling, derelict house. It is interesting to note from the partly collapsed wall how it was constructed- evidently of local stone with very little cement or mortar just like a dry stone wall. 

We have a purpose, and head towards the Pensionista café in Isla Plana to meet up with our cheerleaders, the aquarobics team, for coffee. We have all earned our refreshments this morning!