Always take the weather with you

Wednesday 25 March to Friday 27 March

The trouble with having stayed on an excellent site, the next one falls short of the mark!

From l'Estartit we planned a short journey to Blanes, only 60 miles, intending to stop off at one or two places on the way. However, it was soon raining quite heavily and we decided against stopping at Pals and hoped the weather might improve a bit later. We should have been so lucky! As we climbed up to Begur, we disappeared into the low cloud and it was still raining. Nor were the parking areas we saw especially motor-home friendly (no barriers, but small) so we didn't visit here either. So on to Blanes, a very different place to l'Estartit, being on the area of the Costa Brava lined with hotels and camp sites. We had selected Camping Blanes, where the facilities turned out to be OK, but rather dated, but this site (and the same was true for others we saw) lurked beneath pine trees, extremely beneficial in summer, not so enticing on a dull, wet day. After being dripped upon from on high all night, we decided to move on again in search of the sun, but did have a brisk walk to the edge of town along the seafront before making our escape.

Blanes

The journey to L'Ametlla de Mar, just north of the Delta de l'Ebre, was mostly on motorways and the toll system was rather bizarre. We had to stop three times in quick succession to pay tolls of Euros 1.11, 2.27 and 0.80! As soon as we had passed Barcelona, the cloud lifted (hurrah!) and the sun came out and by the time we reached Camping Ametlla Village Platja, it was glorious (ignoring the cool wind!) Another good site with excellent facilities and well out of town. One disadvantage is the road up to the campsite, narrow, windy and one quite steep bit (all OK unless something is coming in the other direction!) and there is some noise from a railway line which passes quite close by. I'm not sure the site would be as attractive at busier times as much of it is dedicated to a lot of chalet accommodation.

There is a great walk direct from the site along the coast, to L'Ametlla de Mar, about 5 km distant. The rocky path is fairly flat most of the time, but there some ups and downs along the way. It is even signed, stripes of red and white paint this time, with white stone markers as well. We did wonder, however, how long the path will exist, as it was obvious that the cliffs were being seriously eroded. You can also walk in the opposite direction, down to Cala de l'Aliga or even further to l'Ampolla, about 12 km.

The main reason for staying at L'Ametlla de Mar was in order to visit the Delta de l'Ebre, although we have subsequently found sites which sound equally good and are nearer. Next time ….

It was a very clear morning, with the mountains so sharp they looked like cardboard cutouts. However, after leaving the main road to enter the delta and putting the mountains behind us, the landscape changed dramatically and it felt like being in the Fens!

The information office at Deltebre was a good place to start our visit (open from 10:00 to 13:00). Although the assistant spoke no English, we compromised with French! She provided us with a good map (Euro 0.50) and kindly suggested some places to visit and how to get there. Before setting off we visited the Ecomuseum located above the office (Euro 2.00 per person) which gave a good overview of the delta, past and present. Panels were obligingly written in English. The exhibition continues outside with examples of trees and crops to be found on the delta, a separate building dedicated to the rice fields and an aquarium. It was a really worthwhile half-hour introduction.

Bridge over River Ebre at St Jaume d'Enveja near Deltebre

As the Rough Guide to Spain says:

In the bottom corner of Catlunya is the Delta de l'Ebre, 320 square kilometres of sandy delta constituting the biggest wetland in Catalunya and one of the most important aquatic habitats in the western Mediterranean. Designated a natural park, its brackish lagoons, marshes,, dunes and reed beds are home to thousands of wintering birds ….. The scenery is unique in Catalunya, with low roads running through field after field of rice paddies, punctuated by solitary houses and small villages, before emerging onto dune-lined beaches.

At the southwestern point, there is a working salt mine producing 50,000 tons of salt per year (if we remember correctly!) and lorries are constantly travelling to and from along some of the narrow roads and ultimately across the 6 km long sand spit. It was a bit of a headache squeezing past on the narrow roads (John, who was driving, would put it more strongly than that!), but at least you could see them approaching far into the distance.

We made some short stops to look for birds and saw flamingoes, terns, a kingfisher, and heron. Although we are no twitchers, we also believe we saw a marsh harrier and little egrets (will have to check with Clive when we get home!)

Whilst we didn't choose to do so today, the delta would be a great place for some cycling, some suggested routes being marked on the map.