Saturday 1 February - A productive day in Peñíscola

Weather: Cool with lots of light showers, but not as cold, overcast or wet as forecast.

We've just started on a string of what are forecast to be cold nights (2-3 degrees) which didn't cause either of us to leap with enthusiasm out of bed this morning. By and by, I came to realise that I had a 10k run to do (having deferred my long outing until tomorrow, for the better weather), and that if I didn't get on with it, I was likely to be doing it in the rain. As it went, there were patches of blue in the sky as we stepped out the door and I caught some nice warming rays as I trundled down to the seafront. I'd plotted a circuit for myself today and it was incredible how soon after turning inland from the smart promenade, I hit what felt like remote rural Spain.

Back at Bertie, it was a working day for Mick, and being in a lull of TGO Challenge related tasks myself, I had a day of complete leisure. I put it to good use.

First, the Spanish Grammar book that travelled around Germany in the summer has finally been cracked open. I'm not sure I'll ever get to grips with the subjunctive...

That ribbon that I bought a week ago has now been attached to the driver's seat cover and, with no small amount of faffing, anchored to the seat base.

Sourdough discard* American pancakes were made (should have taken a photo - they're good!). Only one was eaten; the other two were cut up for me to take with me on my longer runs. (*The sourdough method I use doesn't result in much excess starter, so I intentionally build it up to give extra for pancakes.)

Then, after a trip to Aldi in the rain earlier in the day, after lunch I set to making tea. A few days ago, whilst perusing the meat fridges, I spotted a pack of rabbit. It not being a meat that's generally available in the supermarket in the UK, it seemed like too good an opportunity to miss - and in the intervening days I'd realised my first thought of 'If only I had a slow cooker with me' was a bit silly - the hotplate on low would perform the same service.

So, armed with a pack of chopped-up rabbit meat (on the bone) and a stew-pack of vegetables, we've had a pan full (and I mean FULL*!) of rabbit stew on the stove all afternoon. There's still half a rabbit in the freezer for another day too. (*Two years ago I removed from Bertie the big saucepan that we'd carried around for over a decade because it so seldom got used; I swear that I've wanted it more since I removed it than I ever used it when we had it available!)

Managed to find time to cast on and start the second sleeve of a cardi I'm knitting too.

The forecast is back to sunshine again tomorrow, so I'll be heading back out into the hills.

Of all the productive things I did today, this was the only photo taken (and then only because Mick prompted me). 

Friday 31 January - Peniscola

Weather: The weather pattern until now has been clear mornings, with cloud building around lunchtime and the odd short, light shower. Today there's not a cloud in the sky and, when out of the northerly wind, it feels warmer than the advertised 17 degrees.

I headed back into the hills on Wednesday, starting with a 3km run down the road almost to the sea, before looping around to pick up a PR route, taking in the elevated and isolated Ermita de Sant Antoni. The paths were much better (wider, without scratchy bushes clawing at my legs and arms) on that side of the hills, and the views of the sea and the lumpy-bumpiness all around me were superb. On Alta de Vistahermosa I joined my route from the previous day, from where it was back onto the narrow paths through scratchy stuff, but only for a few kilometres.

The white building is Ermita de Sant Antoni

Looking seawards from next to the Ermita's chapel

Selfie (obvs)

Good paths

Waymarks and signposts

Yesterday morning I found myself lacking energy and enthusiasm, so decided to go for the 'get it done quickly' approach, heading down to the seafront promenade and running to the next resort along and back. I'd joined Mick for the first five minutes, but he's running shorter intervals and distances than me, so I soon went on ahead of him.

Back at Bertie, the forecast of rain seemed so unlikely that I considered doing laundry. I went and checked out the facilities, but then spotted the big dark cloud behind us. It was a good call to defer until today, as whilst the rain didn't last too long, it was the heaviest shower we've had yet. 

The laundry thus got done first thing this morning, and it was all dried outside and put away by noon, when we headed down to the seafront for lunch. Today's eatery was another I'd chosen in advance based on reviews, and it was a good choice. 

A lot of food (and drink) for €17 a head. There was an incredible amount of seafood in that paella. 

It's unusual for an eatery in Spain to be busy at 1pm, but this one is frequented mainly by foreign tourists  and was busy. Almost everyone around us was French (unsurprising as it's the main nationality on the campsite too), which explains the popularity of what would locally be considered an early lunch. I was sitting facing inwards, but Mick got the sea view under a glouriously blue, cloud-free sky. I feel no need now to try any other restaurant - that one has a big enough menu for a return visit. It's a decent bit of exercise to go there too (today it was 3km there and 4km back).

Once again, we opted for the longer walk back, cutting across between castle and town, along the seafront and up through the nature reserve. 

We walked up there and around the old town a couple of years ago, so felt justified in bypassing it today.