Those of you who know me will know that I am a very handsome Spanish Water dog and Scruffy is a most unsuitable name. I know this is true my documents say so and Dad put a picture of me on his Facebook page.
Now for the story:-
I knew that something was afoot because very early one morning, before it was light, we were all off in the posh car with mum, dad and his BIG magic bag, and the rest of the pack. This was not going to be a normal day! After the exciting start we went on the motorway so I went back to sleep, stopped once but only for petrol, so I slept again. When I next woke we were climbing rap[idly up a mountain road and the scent of pines was filling my nose. The outlook was improving fast. At a big col which they called Ragua we stopped and all of us started to walk up hill. The pack was really excited and dad had his magic sack on his back, this was looking better and better.
Puerto de Ragua
After a little while the rest of the pack got called back and returned to the car with mum. They were not pleased! Dad and I kept on up the hill over wide grassy slopes. It was a bit boring but a herd of mouflons at Moprron Sanjuanero raised my spirits even though I wasn't allowed to chase them.
Dad found the Alto de San Juan very, very, very hard going and was so slow I thought he might give up, but he didn't. More mouflons at the top but I was so good that I didn't go after them and got a handful
Piedras del Peligrinas
of biscuits from the magic bag as a reward. At Penon del Lobo we met a big herd of sheep and goats with a VERY big sheepdog. I wagged my tail and tried to look friendly from behind dad, and it worked! Dad and I were pretty thirsty by this time as the magic bag was only producing small amounts of water, but after talking to the shepherd it produced some more and we all drank well. Along the Piedras del Peligrinas the wind got up and the weather threatened so we hastened on to Collado del Puerto. Here a big herd of cows was guarding a tiny little streamso we had to remove them to fill the magic bag's water bottles. I left this job to Dad! He keeps muttering about vapour pressure of water at body temperature and reduced atmospheric pressure, but I don't understand. I just know that I am much thirstier than usual.
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| Puerto de Trevelez |
After the stop for water we climbed back to the crest of Lomo de las Albaides and over Cerro de Trevelez. By this time I was getting tired and hungry in spite of my frequent snacks. Looking down into the corrie beside Puerto de Trevelez we saw lots of snow fed streams and little tarns so this was where dad decided to stop. i thought it was just to eat but after eating the magic bag worked again and dad turned into a red and blue caterpillar and started to go to sleep. No house, no bed, no tent, nothing I was shocked! However I was given a plastic bag and a towel as a reward for defending us against another herd of cows so it wasn't too bad. Eventually I curled up beside dad and did my best to get to sleep. it was cold and windy and this had never happened to me before and I wasn't sure that I approved.
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| Laguna de Juntillas |
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| Me in a field of celandines |
Next morning we were up with the dawn and the magic bag produced a really good breakfast, not like our usual stingy offering. We watched a squadron of vultures coming in to land for their breakfast on a carcass further down the corrie, but I was not allowed to investigate further. By the time the sun came up we were on our way up Cerro Pelao. It was a lovely day with mouflons everywhere but the wind began to gust strongly and it was very cold so dad decided that we would descend to Laguna de Juntillas, and thence to Collados del Buiteras. It was a good call, lots to drink, pretty surroundings with lots of flowers and interesting smells for me. Collado Buiteras was a bit of a challenge which forced us up a big snowfield to get past it. The ground started to get rougher and more difficult and the crestline was very difficult indeed. At Collado de Vacares we had a stroke of luck and I found a wonderful balcony path across the cliff high above the laguna. It allowed us
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| Laguna de Vacares |
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| The balcony |
to scramble up to the ridge which gave
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| The summit of Vacares |
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| Alcazaba from the Vacares ridge |
access to the summit of Puntal de Vacares. The next section was a nightmare labarynth of tumbled blocks all the way to Puntal de Goteon. It took a long time and a lot of energy but it was fun to get through, though i am not sure that dad was quite so keen. As we got closer to Alcazaba he kept muttering about being tired, and unsettled weather, and an uncertain path, and HAVING ME ALONG! If he is going to chicken out I don't want to be blamed, it is not my fault, I could go on for ever. Anyway that is what we did, we walked away, out through Goteon. It took us a good two hours more to get to Siete Lagunas. the mouflon carcass on the way and the live ones on the hill were not enough to keep my interest and by the time we got in I was tired but I don't think I showed it.
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| Our hotel room at Siete Lagunas |
The best bivvy place was taken when we got there but we found a neat little overhang with a rough boundary wall just around the corner. Weather proof it was not, but a great improvement on last night's alfresco pad! And boy did we need it. We had rain and later such a wind as I had never been out in before. Dadtold me it was a katabatic wind, but whatever it was I was pleased for the protection of our little wall. I was was really pleased we weren't out in the open like last night.
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| Siete Lagunas |
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| This is me and my dad on the top of Mulhacen |
Up with the dawn again, we missed the Persied meteor showers, can't think why, and after another wonderful breakfast we were off up the ridge to Mulhacen. Lots of Mouflons that I declined to chaseand after a few hours we arrived at the top at about the same time as a couple of Spaniards. We celebrated the highest point on the Iberian peninsular with more drinks and snacks, Yummy! Then a young German couple arrived and somebody else with a really nondescript mongrel, who was actually quite nice. And then we were off again, headingdown to Caldera. We met another two dogs on the waydown, a juvenile german shepherd who had too much to say for himself; and what they said was a proper water dog but I knew this couldn't be true because it didn't look much like me!
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| This is me showing my best profile at Caldera |
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| Cooling off on the way to Valeta |
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| Dad and me and my friend Maria |
I was sorely tempted by the mouflons around the refugio at Caldera and even sneaked a short chase but I just got smacked for my pains. What is a dog to do? After this fiasco we were off again along the track of Crestones del Rio Seco, heading for the Valeta refuge. It was a long steady walk with really cheeky mouflons all the way but I really couldn't be bothered any more. We had lots more snowfields to cross and when we got there there was this lovely little Spanish girl called Maria who just wanted to feed me things. I thought she was lovely. We left the hut and headed down to Pradollanothrough the ski clutter. Boring, tiring and best forgotten. Iwas very, very pleased when we stopped at the first cafe where I another snack, a long drink, bits of dad's bacon and eggs and then I went to sleep. When I woke up mum was there with the car. These are wonderful parents. I had had enough of adventures in the mountains and just wanted to go home; and here was the car.
