Walking in the countryside

Yesterday at 7pm we headed out for a walk in the countryside. The walk took us out of the town of Alp, into the surrounding farmlands. We headed north-east, into the valley which borders with France. We crossed some rivers and walked passed some little towns. Many of the towns had pricey holiday homes, some of which were closed up and not being used.

We are just heading out of town

Hay bales

As we walked, the smell of cow dung pervaded the air. Big fat cows eating the juicy grass were mindlessly gnawing away in the fields. Harvested wheat fields lay here and there along the way. Bales of hay lined the edges of the fields. Small rivers with clean mountain water trickled through the plains. It was great to feel, sense and hear nature. Nature is one thing you do not sense in the city of Barcelona. It is too busy and noisy to notice nature there.

Meadows with wild flowers

As we walked through a tree lined path, I took a photo of the surrounding fields which had flowers and colourful “weeds” growing in them. After the “off road” part of the hike, we came back onto a small secondary road - still in the farmlands though. Before long some tractors pulling bales of hay drove past. We were walking through big farming country. It was a wonderful walk which rejuvenated the senses. Two hours later and about 5 kilometres travelled, we arrived back in Alp and had an al fresco dinner in the terrace area in front of the building – with other locals just dropping by for a chat or saying “bon appetite” as they walked past.    

Hay bales on the move