Weekend Trip - Day 1 - Santiago - Ponte Maceira - Finisterre - Camarinas
04/11/06 16:35 Filed in: Galicia
I've only been out of La Coruña once since I arrived so today I've hired a car and am off touring.
First stop Santiago di Compostella. My second visit and this time I stay away from the churches and explore the labyrinth of old narrow streets to the west of the main visitor attractions. Bordering on this part of the town is a quiet park from where the first radio broadcast in Galicia was made.
Park in Santiago di Compostella
After stopping for a coffee it's back into the car and drive west to Ponte Maceira. My first teacher at Paralaia, Marga, suggested this tiny village was worth a visit. It's well hidden only just making it onto my Michelin map on the smallest category of road. She was not wrong. It's a beautiful place. Tiny and very quiet. The only people I saw were pilgrims passing through. What appeared to be the only restaurant had closed for the season.
Large house overlooking the bridge at Ponte Maceira
View of the bridge from upstream.
The bridge is the dominant feature of Ponte Maceira and such is the volume of water in the river in winter that the arches have been submerged. More pictures of Ponte Maceira here.
After leaving Ponte Maceira a narrow road more or less followed the Rio Tambre down to a larger road leading to Muros. I turned off this road onto a scenic route which was not on the map. Passing through very hilly countryside I passed this little stream....
....and eventually popped out on the road to Muros.
I was going to Cabo Finisterre and followed the coast road round through Muros, Carnota, Cee and Corbucion.
Cabo Finisterre in the distance.
Cabo Finisterre has a lot of visitors and the grounds were being landscaped and re-paved at the time of my visit. It was considered the end of the known world before Columbus. In fact it isn't or wasn't. The western most point of Europe is in Portugal and that of Spain is a few miles further north. Nonetheless it is a dramatic spot with lovely views all round.
Looking NE from the cape. A secluded anchorage near some attractive beaches. I will try to stop here on my way south.
The end of the world?
Cabo Finisterre lighthouse.
Front entrance of lighthouse with work in progress.
Self on Cape Finisterre.
By now it was getting late in the afternoon. I drove back round the coast to Cee then north to Camarinas where I got a room at the Hostel Gaviota.
First stop Santiago di Compostella. My second visit and this time I stay away from the churches and explore the labyrinth of old narrow streets to the west of the main visitor attractions. Bordering on this part of the town is a quiet park from where the first radio broadcast in Galicia was made.
Park in Santiago di Compostella
After stopping for a coffee it's back into the car and drive west to Ponte Maceira. My first teacher at Paralaia, Marga, suggested this tiny village was worth a visit. It's well hidden only just making it onto my Michelin map on the smallest category of road. She was not wrong. It's a beautiful place. Tiny and very quiet. The only people I saw were pilgrims passing through. What appeared to be the only restaurant had closed for the season.
Large house overlooking the bridge at Ponte Maceira
View of the bridge from upstream.
The bridge is the dominant feature of Ponte Maceira and such is the volume of water in the river in winter that the arches have been submerged. More pictures of Ponte Maceira here.
After leaving Ponte Maceira a narrow road more or less followed the Rio Tambre down to a larger road leading to Muros. I turned off this road onto a scenic route which was not on the map. Passing through very hilly countryside I passed this little stream....
....and eventually popped out on the road to Muros.
I was going to Cabo Finisterre and followed the coast road round through Muros, Carnota, Cee and Corbucion.
Cabo Finisterre in the distance.
Cabo Finisterre has a lot of visitors and the grounds were being landscaped and re-paved at the time of my visit. It was considered the end of the known world before Columbus. In fact it isn't or wasn't. The western most point of Europe is in Portugal and that of Spain is a few miles further north. Nonetheless it is a dramatic spot with lovely views all round.
Looking NE from the cape. A secluded anchorage near some attractive beaches. I will try to stop here on my way south.
The end of the world?
Cabo Finisterre lighthouse.
Front entrance of lighthouse with work in progress.
Self on Cape Finisterre.
By now it was getting late in the afternoon. I drove back round the coast to Cee then north to Camarinas where I got a room at the Hostel Gaviota.