Today I have reached a landmark – I am moving out of (the rather large) Andalucia and into a new region: Castilla – La Mancha. The scenery starts to change with the change in region. I am moving out of the high Sierras and into more rolling hills, but as I shall find out over the next 2 days, the exciting biking is not all over. But initially the region reminds me of Cumbria on one of its rare sunny days.
Though you don’t tend to find orchards like this in Cumbria.
Three days ago on my way to Las Ventas, I had met a group of 3 spanissh mountain bikers. We had a chat and I explained what I was doing, and then we moved on. Today on a stretch of tarmac, a car passed me and then pulled in – and it was the same 3 chaps on their way home to Alicante!! This time we took a photo, and here is Jose and his friends:
As I came over the pass at Puerto de Arenal, I came across signs to “Nacimiento del Rio Mundo” – the birth of the World River. I had a chat with a couple who lived in Granada – an English lady and Spanish chap, while we tried to interpret the map provided at the pass. We eventually decided we knew where to go – and we were right. And this is what we found:
The river emerges out of a cave system half way up the cliff face, and then cascades down into the valley. Apparently you can climb up to the cave and then go for walks into it, if you have a local guide. It was so spectacular I thought it also warranted a video clip. See it below.
My Epic Journey 