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If you start in Almería.....

peregrina2000

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Though I started the Mozárabe in Almería a few years ago, I am sorry to say that I knew nothing about the Archeological Museum there.

Well, a few days ago, @Doughnut NZ posted a link to a Guardian article about the Algar, a Bronze Age culture living near Almería a few thousand years ago.

Than, @Kathar1na posted a link to a marvelous online display from the Museum of Almeria that documents and explains the Algar culture. It is very well done, and it is definitely a not-to-be-missed attraction in a city with attractions that span a lot of history — for instance, the Moorish castle, and the Spanish Civil War shelters that have been preserved and are open to small tour groups,

There are a few other important attractions in Almería, and I remember that @Raggy and @islandwalker have discussed a few, so maybe they will chime in here.

All in all, I will venture the opinion that if you are going to start walking in Almería, having a day or so ahead of time to visit the sites is a very good idea.

And not to forget, of course, that the Almería camino association is probably the most energetic, friendly, and helpful association I have met over many years on many different caminos.
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
Than, @Kathar1na posted a link to a marvelous online display from the Museum of Almeria that documents and explains the Algar culture.
Great find. I've been to Almeria twice but missed the museum of Almeria. It's a city I would happily visit again.

If you're interested in archeology, you should also pay a visit to the Los Millares archeological site in Santa Fe de Mondujar, at the end of your first or second day of walking from Almeria. This site was occupied from the end of the fourth millennium to the end of the second millennium BC - prior to the Algar culture.

You will also notice the "indalo" symbol on T-shirts, manhole covers, and other monuments around Almeria. This was a prehistoric symbol found in another site near Almeria (but not on the Camino)

There are a few other important attractions in Almería, and I remember that @Raggy and @islandwalker have discussed a few, so maybe they will chime in here.
My suggestions for a day or two in Almeria:

Alcazaba - The moorish fortress that dominates the city
Cathedral - Low, fortified construction
Medina - Narrow streets that hark back to the Moorish city
Beach - Sandy beach with some nice cafes
Cabel Ingles - Industrial heritage (Gustav Eiffelby Scottish engineers following the school of Eiffel) at the port
Mercado Central - Covered market & modern supermarket. Try a cherimoya.
Refugios de la Guerra Civil - Civil war air raid shelters (Check times and days for tours)
Church of Santiago - Just north of Cathedral
City center monuments and buildings
(Fat lady statue - in front of the Church of San Sebastian
John Lennon statue - near Church of Santiago
Casa de las Mariposas
Old railway station
Some nice squares - e.g. Plaza de la Constitución)

Museums (Note - Many close on Mondays)
- Museum of Almeria
- Casa del cine (cinema museum) - Outside of the city center
- Cathedral museum
- Heritage center
- Guitar Museum

Since Monday is a closing day for many museums and monuments (including the air raid shelters, for which one must reserve a place on a guided tour), it's best to plan to be in Almeria mid-week or at the weekend. If you're starting the camino here, it might be nice to spend a weekend exploring Almeria and set off on a Monday - since Sundays can be tricky on the camino, with many shops and services closed.

Details about of all of the above are on the Almeria tourism site

If you want to explore the wider region, the nearby Cabo de Gata natural park is officially a desert - quite an extraordinary landscape and a dramatic coastline. It's possible to walk from the cape to Almeria before starting your Camino, if you want to complete the full "diagonal" across Spain.

And not to forget, of course, that the Almería camino association is probably the most energetic, friendly, and helpful association I have met over many years on many different caminos.
Absolutely the best. Awarded the Elías Valiña prize in 2019. They're out painting arrows and preparing for the return of pilgrims. They provide a personal welcome to every pilgrim who starts in Almeria. You need to contact them to get the entry codes for the albergues, but they offer so much more than that.
 
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For the last few months I’ve been hoping to start in Almeria the week after Easter. That’s probably unlikely now. If walking the Mozárabe and continuing on the VdlP from Mérida, when’s the latest you would want to start in spring from Almeria to avoid severe heat in Extremadura?

P.S. I’m not trying to hijack the thread, it just seemed like as good a place as any to ask.
 
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The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
For the last few months I’ve been hoping to start in Almeria the week after Easter. That’s probably unlikely now. If walking the Mozárabe and continuing on the VdlP from Mérida, when’s the latest you would want to start in spring from Almeria to avoid severe heat in Extremadura?
1. The weather differs from year to year. But one thing is certain. Cordoba will be like a frying pan in the summer. You can expect to reach Cordoba on Day 16 to Day 20, depending on your daily walking distances and your interest in stopping to explore beautiful cities like Guadix and Granada. So take a look at the climate charts for Cordoba and determine the last day of the season that you would feel confident about walking the stage from Santa Cruz to Cordoba (26km with no shade and no water). Or, if you're a long-distance kind of person, the stage from Castro del Rio to Cordoba (40km? with no shade and no water). If that looks doable, then the way up to that point is doable.

2. After Cordoba to Merida (and then as far as Caceres, for sure) as the season progresses, and the heat increases, you have some challenges. I would advise looking at the climate charts for Cordoba and Merida during the period that you expect be in this region.

Each person is different. I know someone who absolutely loved walking to Cordoba in August. He is a former boxer. He is a tough old bird and I think he must enjoy the punishment. Speaking for myself, I am not terribly fit and I am unused to high temperatures. I think I'd be up for a mid-April Camino from Almeria. Possibly late-April. But I would not consider leaving Almeria any later than the first week of May. That would put me in Cordoba before the end of May, Merida in early June ... and by then I would have acclimated somewhat but I would probably be at the limit of what I can tolerate.
 
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Thanks, Raggy! I had remembered something about an old industrial site, and it’s the “Cable Inglés.” An early 20th century loading dock, in the style of Eiffel, where the trains could dump their mineral cargo directly onto ships. According to the website I linked to, the loading time for 8,000 tons of local iron ore was reduced from 10 days to 10 hours!
 
I think I'd be up for a mid-April Camino from Almeria. Possibly late-April. But I would not consider leaving Almeria any later than the first week of May. That would put me in Cordoba before the end of May, Merida in early June ... and by then I would have acclimated somewhat but I would probably be at the limit of what I can tolerate.
Thanks, that's the kind of timeframe I was looking at too. If it isn't possible to start before early May, then I'd look at omitting the Mozárabe and starting the VdlP from Sevilla, or the Camino do Este from Tavira in Portugal, or abandoning the south entirely and doing a northern camino instead.
 
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in the style of Eiffel
Corrected my post for accuracy.
The older of the two curved bridges at Santa Fe de Mondujar was actually designed by Eiffel's firm in Paris and some people claim that Gustav Eiffel himself designed it.

In Alquife, the Camino Mozarabe takes you past the iron mines that provided the motivation for all of this construction - the cabel ingles, the railways to the coast, the bridge in Santa Fe.
 
Thanks, that's the kind of timeframe I was looking at too. If it isn't possible to start before early May, then I'd look at omitting the Mozárabe and starting the VdlP from Sevilla, or the Camino do Este from Tavira in Portugal, or abandoning the south entirely and doing a northern camino instead.
Alternatively, you could also start the Mozarabe from Malaga, Jaen, Granada, or Cordoba.
 
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Thanks, that's the kind of timeframe I was looking at too. If it isn't possible to start before early May, then I'd look at omitting the Mozárabe and starting the VdlP from Sevilla, or the Camino do Este from Tavira in Portugal, or abandoning the south entirely and doing a northern camino instead.

You might even see a little snow in early April, prior to Cordoba, along with miles of hilly Olive groves. Almeria is also a large producer of vegetables. As you fly in you will see all these massive plastic tarped gardens.
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Though I started the Mozárabe in Almería a few years ago, I am sorry to say that I knew nothing about the Archeological Museum there.

Well, a few days ago, @Doughnut NZ posted a link to a Guardian article about the Algar, a Bronze Age culture living near Almería a few thousand years ago.

Than, @Kathar1na posted a link to a marvelous online display from the Museum of Almeria that documents and explains the Algar culture. It is very well done, and it is definitely a not-to-be-missed attraction in a city with attractions that span a lot of history — for instance, the Moorish castle, and the Spanish Civil War shelters that have been preserved and are open to small tour groups,

There are a few other important attractions in Almería, and I remember that @Raggy and @islandwalker have discussed a few, so maybe they will chime in here.

All in all, I will venture the opinion that if you are going to start walking in Almería, having a day or so ahead of time to visit the sites is a very good idea.

And not to forget, of course, that the Almería camino association is probably the most energetic, friendly, and helpful association I have met over many years on many different caminos.
Hi Laurie,
Thanks for his useful information. Just wondering in case I missed it, and I very well could have, did you ever do a zoom meeting for the Via De La Plata? If you haven't would you consider it? If you have whoops I missed it and hope it went well.
 
If you want to explore the wider region, the nearby Cabo de Gata natural park is officially a desert - quite an extraordinary landscape and a dramatic coastline. It's possible to walk from the cape to Almeria before starting your Camino, if you want to complete the full "diagonal" across Spain.
I love Raggy's idea of a full diagonal walk! The village of San José would be a great place to start. There are several buses a day from Almeria to San José (1 hour, 3 euros) run by Autocares Bernardo. The 46 km walk would take you past the beautiful wild beaches protected by the Cabo-de-Gata Natural Park (where many movies have been filmed), over the dramatic headland at the cape itself, by the bird blinds at the salt-drying ponds of San Miguel, and along the shore via pedestrian walkways to the city of Almeria. There are many places to stay in both San Miguel and San José.


photos - Almería to San Miguel de Cabo de Gata
photos -San Miguel to San José: Around Cabo de Gata
 
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This article indicates that at some point in the future there is going to be a pedestrian walkway along the Cable Ingles. That should make for an interesting stroll. From the Cable Ingles, it is also possible to see directly next door the Mauthausen Memorial, 142 white concrete pillars in memory of the Spaniards who died in that German concentration camp.
 
On a light note, may I add that Almeria was an important filming location in the 60s and the 70s. There's a sightseeing route of sorts that points to spots in the city that were used in filming movies like Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. And the Tabernas desert just off the camino was used in all the Sergio Leone Westerns. There are three theme parks in the desert for film buffs, including one that uses the actual set built for For a Few Dollars More (and later used for shooting The Good, The Bad And The Ugly).
 
and later used for shooting The Good, The Bad And The Ugly).
Looks like The Good, The Bad and The Ugly has a place on more than one Camino! Just a few days ago, on the virtual planning Lana thread, there was discussion of a hilltop near Covarrubias where the final shootout was filmed. @Raggy posted a great video made by some friends who went back to the site and re-enacted the scene.
 
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Parts of Exodus were filmed just above Pechina (Stage 1, Km 10 on the Mozarabe). These two wikiloc tracks will take you there:
 

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