APAPS 28 June 2017.
This was the first of
the 2017 summer breakfast walks of the “select” group known as Os
Amigos do Pequeno-Almoço Peripatético.
7 am start: present:-
Hazel, Ingrid, Janet, John, Maria, Rose and Yves.
Temperature: quite
reasonable.
Total distance:- 6.75
km
Total time: 2 hours and
2 minutes precisely
Moving time:- 1 hr 40
mins
Av. Moving speed: 4 kph
Ascent: 191m
From the starting point
near the small bridge on the São Marcos road, at first we headed
back towards Silves along the flat and then veered sharply right,
climbing up towards the windmill, before traversing across the slope
below it.
 |
| One sort of Trig Shot (copyrigtht: Aristotle Associates) |
 |
| Another sort of Trig Shot |
A climb up to the
windmill itself was not actually on the plan for the morning, but
three rebellious souls, namely Hazel, Maria and Rose, insisted on doing it.
Maria takes her trig point duties very seriously, it would appear.
So be it, but we lost a fair amount of time because of their deviation. The ostensible leader then had to think on his feet – something he is not very accustomed to doing these days – and devise a shorter route so as to get back to the cars by the hour of 9 am, this being necessary because Ingrid, toujours la femme d ´affaires, had something pressing to attend to elsewhere.
So be it, but we lost a fair amount of time because of their deviation. The ostensible leader then had to think on his feet – something he is not very accustomed to doing these days – and devise a shorter route so as to get back to the cars by the hour of 9 am, this being necessary because Ingrid, toujours la femme d ´affaires, had something pressing to attend to elsewhere.
We found a disused
track heading down into an isolated valley westwards which brought us
out on the Prison Road at 8.15 am. It had been the intention to
stroll along nothing but broad paths from this point on, but now
there wasn´t time, so eventually we resorted to a climb across some
uncharted and unrecce´ed wilderness, the leader hoping that this
would be a short cut.
Miraculously it was (
it probably saved us at least five or ten minutes) and when a
familiar bench – known to the cognoscenti as “Rest and Be
Thankful” – came in sight, there were shouts of “There it is -
the bench.” It´s not clear if those were shouts of glee or relief.
 |
| Resting and Being Thankful |
Anyway, we reached the
cars as near to 9 am as dammit and Ingrid rushed off, while the rest
of us repaired to Pára e Fica where the hospitable Ana was ready
with a tasty breakfast of bacon, eggs, tomatoes and buttered toast.
 |
| Bacon and Eggs |
The less said about the
conversation over and after breakfast the better, Aristotle seemingly
being determined to lower the tone with every conceivable
double-entendre he could think of and then some. Oh, the decline of
philosophy in these troubled times!
The following photos have nothing to do with this walk, but since Hazel and Maria were still fizzing with excitement about their zip-wire adventure over the Guadiana River the previous Wednesday, why not have them recorded here? Note the handbags.
