25 June 2019 - Ruidera
Yesterday I walked from Alcaraz to Ossa de Montiel (more or less 40 kms - rather more I feel!).
From Alcaraz it's back on the tarmac but it is a very quiet road. Past Solanilla and Canaleja onwards and upwards to the Cima de la Pellejera (1042m). After the col you're on the flat. There are no shops or bars until you reach Viveros about 18 kms beyond Alcaraz. But you will find a couple of bars, a couple of shops and a fuente but, once again, no accommodation there. At Viveros I left the Ruta del Argar to head for Montiel. Montiel is a putative 'lugar en La Mancha' where Don Quijote may or may not have come from. Whether or not Montiel is the inspiration for that imaginary place the Cave of Montesinos, which plays an important part in Volume 2, is only 3 kms from Montiel. It proved to be something of a route march to get to Montiel, mostly along the road with a shortcut along a camino bordered by Holm oaks at the now disused salt pans of ...... Salinas.
There's nothing very quixotic about Ossa de Montiel. There's a de rigueur modern metallic statue of Quijote, silhouettes of the Don and Sancho, street names taken from the book but Ossa de Montiel didn't even feel 17th century to me. Perhaps that's the whole point of 'a place in La Mancha whose name I don't care to remember'. But the pay-off was walking past fallow fields of late spring flowers; poppies and other vivid yellow and blue flowers and having plenty of time for the Lagunas at Ruidera today. I was even lucky enough to see a mother partridge taking her half dozen chicks down the road in front of me.
I was bushed when I arrived in Ossa de Montiel. Found a place to stay, slaked my thirst (thirst things first!) and was doing my laundry when I noticed the bathroom had a bath. Not a full-size bath, but neither was it one of those Spanish miniature baths that are only any good for showering in. I turned the taps full on, let the water rise as far it would go and had a great soak. After 40 kms, a couple of beers, what bliss. How simple life's pleasures can be. I did feel a little sorry for the chambermaid who would have to scour the grey rim of grime from the bath in the morning.
From Ossa de Montiel it's about 3 kms to the Cueva de Montesinos. I'd imagined it to be, at least nationally, a high point of tourism. But much like when I reached the Bulls at Guisando one Monday, it's in the middle of nowhere and there was nobody about. Nothing to indicate where the entrance to the cave might be. Unlike Guisando, it's not walled off so access to the hillside is at least possible. It took me a good half hour of walking up and down various tracks to locate it. It's at this Cave that Sancho Panza lowered Don Quijote down, with the help of a rope, into the bowels of the earth. He hauled him back up no more than an hour later but Don Quijote was adamant that he had been down there three days and three nights and that he had met Montesinos, Durandarte, Guadiana and Belerma all enchanted by the sorcerer Merlin, as well as seen his love interest Dulcinea transformed into a peasant girl.
It's possible in high season (I imagine July and August) to take a guided tour through the Cave - that would have been the business but I was pleased enough just to see the entrance. In truth access was only barred in a very rudimentary way. I could easily have circumvented the gate and wondered in and down but without a lamp, a hard hat, a ball of string or any idea where I was going, I didn't want to disappear for the next three days and three nights!
From the cave it's another 3 kms to the first of the Lagunas - and what a magnificent spot these Lagunas are. About 8 kms of successive lakes, each one cascading into the next. I gave up counting but there must be near enough a dozen of them. All perfect for a swim although some are Zonas Protegidas. I'd say that every second lake has a beach of sorts and a place to swim off. The waters a turquoise green and crystal clear. It was wonderful to have the time to amble along the shores and reach Ruidera with plenty of time to chill out. I'm now having a few beers at the Perca Rosa, where you swim with the ducks right from the terrace. Amazing!
Judging by the number of campsites (at least four), Casa Rurales and hotels this place is Tourist Central but there just aren't any tourist about. A few families and few Old Age Pensioners but hardly a gold rush. Presumably that happens in July and August and at weekends? I could easily hang up my boots here for a few days, go for a run around the lakes in the morning and spend the rest of the day swimming, reading and drinking beer. In fact, that was just what I had planned until I lost a day back in Caravaca de la Cruz!
For the record. I stayed in Hostal de la Paz, Calle de la Paz 96, tel: 967 377 731/545 in Ossa de Montiel. 30.00 euros. And in Ruidera I am staying at Hostal La Noria, Avenida Castilla La Mancha 61, tel: 926 528 032. 38.00 euros. For a few extra euros you could stay right on the lake at Hotel Entrelagos a couple of kilometres out of town but there are a number of options in Ruidera or around the Lagunas. There's even a Youth Hostel but it was full of primary school children and quite understandably they didn't want Catweazel staying there at the same time.
Alfin del Asfalto
PS later - the owner of the Hostal La Noria charged me just 15.00 euros for the night, with a handshake and a big hug, when he found out I was a Peregrino. He has walked to Santiago from Oviedo (is that part of the Camino del Norte?) in the past, likes London and is a Norwich City Football Club fan. Well, nobody's perfect.
PPS and a couple of days later - looking at the map more carefully, I notice there is Ossa de Montiel and Montiel. Perhaps it is Montiel with the claim to 'un lugar en La Mancha'?